Team MilkyWay
by celestial-insanity
Summary: When Abby, Sarah, and DJ wish for something bizarre in response to a chain email, they are totally shocked when it becomes true! But Shepard needs the best on her team, and these three know EXACTLY what will happen at a given time. Welcome aboard!
1. To wish upon a chain mail

**Author Notes:**

This fic is a self-insert story, where Abby, Sarah, and DJ (also known as HK) make a wish and are transported to the story of Mass Effect 2. Now, don't you go getting discouraged because it's a self-insert fic! *wags fingers* Sarah, HK, and I are great friends and are just having some fun. We would never intentionally screw up our favorite game. ;) So please, before you judge, read the fic yourself!

* * *

**Prologue**

**Aikido Dojo (Abby)**

"All right, good. Grab your jo's and let's line up."

I wiped the sweat off of my forehead with a grin and grabbed the jo I'd lain on the edge of the large mat that dominated the entire dojo. We were all identical then, a swarm of exhausted people wearing rough white gi's, as we scrambled towards our designated place and, kneeling, bowed to the picture of O'Sensei hanging up on the wall. Clapping twice, as was our custom, we remained kneeling until Sensei turned and announced in a loud voice, "Domo arigato gozaimasu."

"Domo arigato gozaimasu," we repeated. We leaned back, relieving our aching backs, and bowed to our partners of the night's classes. "Domo, domo," we chanted, and I glanced up to see Tyler, my younger neighbor I'd so forcefully dragged into Aikido, get up to retrieve the brooms.

My wrists were going to _hurt_ tomorrow, but today had been a good, productive class. If there was going to be another one, I would have joined in if I could, even though I'd already participated in two of them already. I couldn't wait to be an uchideishi, a live-in student, for a week over the rapidly-approaching summer break.

We swept the mats off and got to our knees one last time to wipe them off. I could already see my left wrist swelling up, but a few hours of sleep would make it good as new. Singing under my breath, I sat down on one of the many chairs lining the edge of the mat and took my cell phone out of my bag. I could hear the other students around me talking and socializing, but with a weary tenor that suggested that they were going to be sleeping _good_ tonight.

_Food, shower, bed,_ I thought, prioritizing.

I had a new email from Sarah, but didn't bother to read it yet; it looked like a chain message, and I didn't believe in those things. Let's see. . . there was a letter from Dawson asking how to put a wallpaper on his cellphone. . . Typical Dawson, he _knew_ I was training tonight. . . I checked Facebook and read my friends' latest status updates, then checked out my DeviantArt messages.

Ah, the wonderful feeling of having a phone with internet!

I'm a Floridian at heart; I'd lived there most of my life, until we had to move to Virginia. The snow, which was originally awesome, had lost its charm and I was glad when the warm weather began peeking through the clouds. I'd been sadder than I should have been when we moved, but I was starting to find a place here in Virginia, and, well, I had stuff and people here that I just couldn't leave right now.

Dad and I dropped Tyler off at his house, as per our usual arrangement. When we got to our own I wasted no time in setting the water to boil on the stove. Yawning hugely, I logged in to MSN Messenger.

* * *

** Sarah: **_BOO!_

** Abby: **_BOO!_

** Sarah: **_LOL. How's it going?_

** Abby: **_Awesomely, just got back from Aikido. You?_

** Sarah: **_Ooo, awesome._

_

* * *

_

I glanced up from the computer as the dogs began to cold-nose my hand. "What? What, you need to go outside?" I asked them. Bear, a black Chow with threads of Labrador in him, panted happily at my waist. "Oh, fine, fine, fine. C'mon, let's go!"

I led the four of them downstairs and out into the backyard. "Go pee," I told them, and closed the door. Still humming that same song underneath my breath, I took the stairs two at a time and checked on the water. Steam was rising from the top, but no bubbles yet. "Grawr," I mutered under my breath, and went to check my messages: Sarah had brought HK into the conversation window.

* * *

** Abby: **_Sorries, had to let the doggies out. Hai peoples!_

** Sarah**:_ HAI!_

** HK:** _Why hello there._

** HK:** _How are you?_

** Abby:** _Doing pretty good. I'mma making me some RAMEN, yum. ^0^_

** Sarah**: _Ooo, that sounds good. We just had some pork chops for dinner._

_

* * *

_

I made a face. Gross!

* * *

** Abby:** _Cool! So how're you guys doing? Sorry I didn't get on earlier, today was so busy._

** HK:** _Oh no, it's fine. I haven't been doing much. Just working on my fic._

** Abby:** _Awesomeness! :D_

** Sarah:** _Actually, I wanted to ask you guys a question..._

** Abby:** _yup?_

** HK:** _?_

** Abby:** _brb! keep talking!_

_

* * *

_

Sucess! The water was boiling! I grabbed a packet of beef-flavored ramen noodles and cut open the plastic wrap with a very large, disproportionately-sized butcher knife. Humming the same song I'd been singing back in Aikido, I dropped the ramen in to the pot and began to break it up with the pasta spoon. Setting it to simmer on low heat, I glanced back at the laptop.

* * *

** Sarah:** _kk_

** Sarah:** _So, anyways, you know how stupid those chain emails are, right? I mean, sometimes I send them on, you know, just in case they're true, and nothing ever happens. It's like..._

** Sarah:** _All of these people SAY their wishes come true, but, really, they never do, you know?_

** HK: **_Yes?_

** Sarah:** _Well, one of my buddies on DA sent me this chainmail. If all three of us wish for the exact same thing at the exact same time, the wish will come true at 11:11 tonight._

** Abby :** _I wonder what Time Zone they're using. ._

** Sarah:** _hehe_

** Sarah:** _Well..._

** Sarah:**_ I was wondering if you guys wanted to try it out. It probably won't work, but... _

** Abby:** _what if it does?_

** Sarah:** _Yeah, exactly_

** HK:** _hmmm, we could try it out, I suppose_

** Abby:** _We should totally wish for something stupid, though_

** Abby:** _Like_

** Abby:** _7 pineapples in the mail, tomorrow, with little strawberries inside of them_

** Sarah:** _ewwwww_

** Sarah:** _I think..._

** Sarah:** _If we do this..._

** Sarah:** _We should at least be serious about it, because the letter is only good for one wish_

** HK:** _Alright, then. What should we wish for?_

** Sarah: **_hmmmmm_

** Abby:** _...cake_

** Abby: **_Strike that. How about..._

** Abby: **_To be in Mass Effect 2!_

** Abby:** _Wait, Sar, did the wish of your DA friend come true? What'd she wish for?_

** Sarah:** _She said she wished for a red sports car. And she got one! I saw it in her Journal today. Apparently..._

** Sarah:** _Two of her friends got a sports car, too!_

** Abby:** _...LET'S DO IT!_

** HK:** _But it's not like we can just wish to be in a video game. Let's at least wish for something normal._

** Abby: **_Like...?_

** HK:** _Well, I don't know. :P :P_

** Abby:** _I vote ME2! _

** Sarah:** _Well... I suppose we could try it..._

** Abby: **_Or we don't have to. It's up to you guys._

** Sarah:** _No, I think it'll be interesting. I don't want to wish for like a gazillion dollars or anything._

** Sarah:** _Can you imagine in..._

** Sarah:** _"Hey mom, dad, GUESS WHAT I FOUND OUTSIDE!"_

** Abby: **_LOL!_

** HK:**_ LOL_

** Abby:** _Pleeeeease HK?_

_

* * *

_

If I had to wish for anything, it probably wouldn't be to get sucked into Mass Effect 2. Seriously, that would just be... odd, to say the least. I'd probably end up wishing for a job at Bioware or something, though, so it was a moot point, kind of...

Besides, it wasn't like this would actually work. Hah!

* * *

** HK:** _Okay, I don't see any harm in it :P_

** HK:** _Leave it to YOU TWO to think this up, though_

** Abby:** _*bows*_

** Abby:** _You love us anyway._

** Sarah:** _Ooo I can't wait. You guys didn't read the email I sent you yet, did you?_

** Abby:** _Nope._

** HK:** _No, not yet._

** Sarah:** _Good!_

** Sarah: **_Okay, well, here are the rules..._

** Sarah: **_We can only read the first paragraph..._

** Sarah:** _And then we all have to close our eyes and think about the thing we wish ten times._

** Abby:** _Okaies. Does it have to be in exact word order or something?_

** Abby:** _Like... "i wish we were in--_

** Sarah:**_ No, just the general impression, methinks_

** Abby: **_Alright..._

** Abby:**_ SO!_

** Abby:** _If we're going to be in ME2, we should at least have a starting point._

** Sarah:** _What do you mean?_

** Abby:** _Well, if we just randomly popped into ME2, where would we be?_

** Abby:** _I do NOT want to see Udina in the shower._

** Abby:** _Or... well, anybody else for that manner._

** Abby:** _and can you imagine what would happen if we popped in during a ROMANCE scene? Gah, the HORROR!_

** Sarah:** _LOL!_

** Sarah:** _That would be too funny_

** Abby:** _Not if you're Shepard... ._

** Abby:** _We should create our own Shepard, too, just to be safe. _

** HK:** _We don't even know if this will work,_ _but I'm willing to give it a try, LOL._

** Sarah:** _Yay! *hugs*_

** Sarah:** _Okay... how about a female Shepard?_

** Sarah:** _Paragon! I definitely don't want to meet a Renegade Shepard._

** Abby:** _Heeeell no._

** Sarah:** _hehe_

** Sarah:** _Any other ideas, guys?_

** Abby:** _Shepard should be a biotic_

** Abby:**_ So... an Adept. _

** Sarah:** _kk_

** Sarah:** _HK?_

** HK:** _Did she save or kill the Council?_

** HK:** _Because you all know what I did. :P_

** Abby: **_"Ah, yes, 'Reapers.'" _

** Abby:**_ I DIED when the turian dude said that._

** HK:** _LOL_

** Sarah:**_So, since I don't know much about ME1, you guys will have to figure that part out, hehe._

** HK:** _Well, it does make things a bit harder in ME2 if you killed them..._

** Abby:** _More doors are open if they live._

** HK:** _Okay, then. So the Council is alive..._

** Abby:** _Wrex is, too. And Wrex loves us._

** HK:** _You can't have Mass Effect without Wrex!_

** Sarah:** .

** Abby:** _Poor poor Sarah :P_

** Abby:** _brb, noodles are cooking_

_

* * *

_

I drained the broth and poured the noodles into my bowl. It hit the bottom with a satisying glop. I mixed in the flavoring and took it over to the table, then brought the laptop over. It was 10:30.

* * *

** Abby:**_ Alright, and her name is..._

** HK:** _hmmmm_

** Sarah:**_ How about something pretty, like..._

** Sarah:** _Amelia or something, you know?_

** Abby:** _That works._

** HK:** _Okay._

** Abby:** _Love interest?_

** Sarah:** _How about..._

** Sarah:** _Kaiden?_

** Abby:** _I LUV KAIDEN!_

** Sarah:** _haha_

** HK:** _Yes we all know you do, Abby._

** HK:** _:P_

** Abby:** _^0^_

** Abby:** _And while we're at it, let's wish for a greater and more in-depth story than the one they showed us in the game._

** Abby: **_Like... I want to know more about the characters._

** HK:** _Yeah, totally._

** Abby:** _And when I get there..._

** Abby:** _i want my iPod, which shall always be charged, to play the music from the OST that matches the moment. :P_

** Sarah:**_ LOL okay!_

** Sarah:** _well, I don't have an Ipod or anything, but... well, if I don't have anything else with me, like... no internet, no ability to watch DVDs, or whatever... I want my CD player with me, and some spare batteries, because... if things get too stressful or if I need a moment to chill or whatever, I like to listen to music. ._

** Sarah:** _maybe..._

** Sarah:** _I could have a special CD or something... that has assorted tracks on it. Like... it can just happen to play ANY song I want, anytime_

** Sarah:** _bwahaha_

** Sarah:**_ whatever I'm in the mood for_

** Abby: **_the Abby approves. :P_

** Abby: **_it would be so awesome if this actually WORKS_

** HK:** _Indeed._

** Sarah:** _Okay, so let's think about how we'll phrase the wish..._

** Sarah:** _We need--_

** HK:** _HEY DO I NOT GET A WISH? _

** Abby:** _FIIIIIIIIINE! MAKE IT QUICK!11!_

** HK:** _:P :P :P_

** Sarah:** _LOL_

** Sarah:** _LOL_

** Sarah:**_ LOL_

** HK:** _J/K, I don't need a wish...I can't think of anything to bring along_

** HK:** _:P :P_

** Abby:** _...you're horrible!_

** HK:** _Well I can't! :P :P :P_

** Abby:** _Are you sure you don't want to bring, oh, I don't know... a book or something?_

** HK:** _Yes, I am sure. :P_

** Abby: **_*rolls eyes*_

** HK:** _Oh hush._

** Abby:** _Grawr._

** Sarah:** _LOL_

** Sarah:** _Okay!_

** Sarah:** _We should call this idea..._

** Sarah**: _Well, some sort of name so we don't have to think about ALL of these details._

** Abby:** Team Milky Way.

** Sarah:**_ ...LOL_

** HK:**_ *facepalm*_

** HK:**_ Of course it is._

** HK:**_ :P_

** Abby:**_ o:)_

** Abby:** _So, basically we'll all wish together, on Sarah's cue..._

** Abby:**_ "Commence Team Milky Way."_

** Sarah:**_ Hahaha_

** Sarah:**_ I think we should say 'I wish' though, just to be safe_

** Abby:**_ awww, there goes my big bad movie impressions._

** Sarah:**_ lol_

** Sarah:**_So... are we all ready?_

** Abby:**_ Yup! BRING IT ON, you weirdo Collectors!_

** HK:** _Yes. :P_

** Sarah:** _Okay..._

** Sarah:**_ Now, remember..._

** Sarah:**_ We ALL have to wish it, at the same time, okay?_

** Sarah:**_ So as soon as I say it--_

** Abby: **_Just get on with it, we know!_

** Sarah:** _Okay, okay, just making sure :P_

** Abby:**_ bum bum bum buuuuuuum_

** Abby:**_*cue suspenseful music*_

** Sarah:**_Everybody ready?_

** HK:**_ Yes_

** Abby:**_NO!_

** Sarah:**_okay, we'll wait_

** Abby:**_ brb, doggies. If I'm going in to an alternate universe, I can't leave them outside. LOL_

** HK: **_...*sigh*_

_

* * *

_

I got up and let the dogs in, giggling. Dad had already gone up to bed and Mom was probably comatose up there as well. I shooed Hootch away from my ramen and ate it all before I looked at the computer.

* * *

** Abby:** _Okay... question_

** Abby:**_ shouldn't we wish to wear future clothes, as well?_

** Abby:** _Because there are two things that may happen_

** Abby:** _#1, we'll get there naked_

** Abby:** _#2, we'll get there in whatever we're wearing_

And so we debated on the exact style of clothes we would wear.

** Abby:** _commence team milky way!_

** Sarah:** _Okay... everybody ready?_

** Abby:** _Yes_

** HK:** _Yes_

** Sarah:** _Alright... 10 times, wish right now._

_

* * *

_

I closed my eyes immediately and thought,_ I wish for Team Milky Way. _

I repeated it again, and again, and again, until I got to my tenth time. I opened my eyes and waited for the others to get back.

* * *

** Sarah:** _And now..._

** Sarah:**_ I guess we wait._

** Abby**_**:**__ It's nearly 11:00. We'll know soon. Better eat up! :P_

** HK:** _Just thinking aloud here, but I just realized something..._

** Sarah:** _hmm?_

** HK:** _Well..._

** HK: **_After the Collectors basically destroyed the ship, Commander Shepard probably isn't going to like random visitors._

** Abby:** _I suggest we duck._

** Abby:**_ :)_


	2. We just know stuff

**Chapter 1**

**Normandy Cargo Hold, (Sarah)**

I wasn't sure what happened. One minute I was sitting at my computer desk, with headphones on and listening to something on youtube, and suddenly... I was somewhere else.

I blinked several times, trying to figure out where I was and what the hell happened. I felt as though I had simply blanked out. Was I... out shopping with someone? Did I take a wrong turn somewhere? Or was I asleep? Was all of this simply a weird dream?

My mind suddenly snapped back to the email, and the wish that me, HK and Abby had made on msn. "No," I muttered out loud to myself. "It didn't happen... did it?" My eyes went wide as I looked around.

Wherever I was... it seemed to be a large room, full of boxes, crates and canisters. The room itself had sort of a dull, whiteish gray color. It also seemed to be... metallic. I inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly, noticing that the air had sort of a... staleness to it? Maybe this was like what recycled air would smell like. It wasn't too bad, and it was certainly better than the smog I had to breath when I lived in Conneticut, but I didn't exactly like it either.

Suddenly I heard a noise. It sounded like footsteps, as if someone else was moving around. I cautiously moved around a large stack of crates to see what it was.

As I got closer, I suddenly realized that I could hear something besides foot scuffles. It sounded like... someone had started to laugh. It started as a small giggling fit and then grew into hysterical laughter. I could tell it was a girl who was laughing. It couldn't be... could it?

I finally moved around another stack of boxes and saw a girl standing there. I recognized her face immediately, because I had seen pictures of her before. She had light brown hair, light blue eyes and an outfit that looked... well, futuristic I guess? It looked like something that someone might wear on the Cerberus crew.

On impulse I suddenly glanced down at myself. I had on a brownish outfit, one that looked almost exactly like Commander Shepard's casual attire that you could see in the game.

I tore my gaze away from myself and looked over at the girl. She was roughly the same height as me. We both looked at each other for a moment. But before either of us could say a word, another voice spoke:

_"I am detecting intruders in the cargo bay."_

It sounded like some sort of ship-wide announcement. And it was... EDI's voice!

"Shit," I muttered under my breath. Usually I tried not to do that around people, unless I was chatting on the internet. But right now it didn't seem to matter much. All I knew was that we really weren't supposed to be here, even though it was obvious our wish had come true. And well, the voice of EDI had made it plain that we would be viewed as intruders as soon as someone saw us.

"Abby... that is you, right?" I spoke aloud, somehow managing to find my voice.

"Yep," she answered as she looked at me, as well as around the room. I was feeling nervous and a bit disoriented, but she looked like she was having a ball. In fact, she looked as if this was all some sort of joke and she was the only one who was laughing at it.

"Then... where's HK?" I asked, looking around.

That was when we spotted him. He stepped out from behind a large, cylinder-shaped canister. He was looking around. He appeared to as shaken as I felt. I could see the nervous look on his face.

Well, that made two of us, then. I glanced at Abby, wondering if she would change her tune if... oh I don't know, _maybe if people started to come at us with guns or something! _Technically we were on **their** turf, after all.

All of a sudden, I heard the sound of footsteps approaching. And it sounded like they were in a hurry. HK and Abby were at attention as well, so I knew they were just alert as I was. HK's eyes were as wide as saucers and Abby simply looked around in anticipation. Well, at least Abby knew martial arts... not that that would do much good against real armor or guns....

The door on the far side of the cargo bay opened and we saw several people step through. It looked like a couple of them were human, probably security. I didn't recognize them from the game at all. Though there were a lot of random humans on the crew who looked the same to me. I never paid attention to them. All I really noticed in this case was that they had their weapons drawn. And they were aimed as **us.**

Well, I could safely say that I'd never had a gun pointed at me before. And by the look on HK's face, I could tell he didn't exactly like the prospect any more than I did. Abby was just... grinning. I wasn't a violent person or anything, and of course I would never do this, but part of me felt like slapping her. Just to knock her back into reality... if this really was reality.

Just then, Abby seemed to snap out of her initial giddyness or whatever mental state she had been in, and turned a little more serious. She spoke to me and HK in a firm but hushed tone as the soldiers came toward us.

"Stay close to the boxes. If they start shooting, duck behind, but you better hope they don't start shooting or we're screwed. They'll interrorgate us first, but they won't kill us."

Well, that sounded good enough to me. I glanced over at HK. He glanced at us, then looked back at the approaching men with the guns. He seemed perfectly content to stay quiet at the moment. That was good enough for me. I stayed quiet too.

Part of me even wondered if I should raise my hands above my head...

A small part of my brain noticed at that moment that HK was wearing an outfit similar to the one that Abby was wearing. Well, I'd say that their clothes seem to suit both of them... hopefully our choice of wardrobe might help prevent us from getting shot. Hopefully.

"Stay right where you are," one of the humans spoke up, keeping his gun aimed. His sidekick beside him kept his weapon trained on us as well.

Just then, another figure entered through the doorway. I couldn't help but stare at her as she entered. I was pretty sure I knew who that was... but could it really be? Was it her?

Surely enough, I knew it was her when she spoke, because I recognized her voice. "Well, what do we have here?" Commander Shepard said as she neared us. She stopped just behind the guards and folded her arms across her chest, eyeing us carefully.

She had short red hair and dark brown eyes. She wore a formal black and white outfit that reminded me of a Star Trek dress uniform, sort of. She was all business and she spoke in a firm yet quiet tone. At least I felt that she wasn't going to throw us out the airlock or order anyone to shoot at us.

Just so long as we didn't do anything stupid, I assumed.

I felt as though she was searching us with her eyes, taking in our appearance, our clothes, and probably whether or not we were a threat. Part of me hoped that the fact that me and HK most likely looked like scared turkeys might help our case. Yeah I didn't exactly want to appear helpless or cowardly, but if that meant she might think we were harmless... I could sacrifice some dignity for that.

Then, to my surprise, Abby spoke, clearly and boldly. "Commander Shepard. We heard you're taking on the Collectors, and we want in... uhm, if your buddies lower the guns, can we talk privately in your private quarters? You know, the one with the fish tank and the collectable ship display."

I saw Shepard's eyes widen with surprise, then narrow with suspicion. She unfolded her arms and moved toward us, although she did not make any moves to tell the guards to lower their weapons... yet.

"How do you know this?" she asked carefully. "Do you work for Cerberus?"

Right at that moment, EDI spoke up. "Commander Shepard, I have biometric data files on every individual even remotely connected with this organization. These three come up on my database as blanks."

"I see," Shepard replied, obviously analyzing this information in her mind. She eyed us warily. "So if you're not with Cerberus, how do you three know so much about our mission and my quarters? And more importantly," she added, placing her hands on her hips, "how exactly did you get here?" I had no idea what she was thinking, but I could definitely see the intelligent, calculating look in her eyes. She was probably trying to come up with her own explanation for this... if she hadn't cooked up one already. I was starting to feel very nervous.

In spite of myself, I somehow found my voice enough to speak up this time. "That's... hard to explain, Commander," I said slowly. "We just... know stuff." Okay, that had to be one of the stupidest things I'd ever said.

The Commander gave me a look that suggested she had surmised as much herself, and she probably suspected I was stalling or trying to give her the runaround. And she wasn't too pleased with that notion. I then glanced toward Abby, feeling a bit helpless. She seemed to be the best spokesperson in this situation for some reason.

"Commander... we came aboard this ship because this is where we need to be. Can we talk in private, please? Miranda Lawson can sit in, too, if she wants." Abby then gave what looked like a smile, although it seemed somewhat forced.

"So, you're familliar with my crew as well as the mission," Shepard commented. "Gentlemen," she said, turning her attention to the guards, "I'm not taking any chances with these three. I'm going to speak with the Illusive Man about them. They might be spies who've somehow tapped into Cerberus's listening devices and I want them put into a secure room and put under guard until I say otherwise."

"Yes, Commander!" the two guards said in unison. Shepard drew her own gun as well, obviously getting ready to go with us to make sure her directions were carried out before she made that call.

"Wait a minute," I said aloud, "you're going to lock us up in a room?"

"Until I can figure out whether or not you're a threat to me or my crew, or this mission," Shepard said sternly. "For all I know, you might be working with the Reapers like Saren."

HK finally decided to speak up after that intense accusation. "No! Trust me, no...we're not like that insane turian. We're not against you, but we're not Cerberus...uh....I don't know how to explain it...but we believe you. We know the Reapers exist and that the Collectors are stealing human colonies."

Then Abby spoke up. "We know everything that happened two years ago, from Eden Prime on. Your relationship with Kaiden, Ashley, Garrus, Wrex, Tali, and Liara. How you left Ashley to die on Virmire, and she told you it was the right choice. That's exactly what she said. "You know it's the right choice, Commander.'"

Shepard frowned. She appeared unsure what to think. She seemed to be considering everything that was said, but she made no move to holster her gun. "Alright," she finally said, "before we go anywhere..." She indicated the guards to step back a little with a motion of her head, but they did not lower their weapons either. "I want to know one thing. What are your names?" And it was obvious she wanted each of us to speak for ourselves.

"I'm DJ... or well... you can also call me HK," I heard HK say.

"I'm Abby." Yeah, short and simple. Abby definitely was the blunt one at times.

"Sarah," I said as clearly as I could.

The commander merely nodded, obviously making a mental note of each of our names. "Very well," she said. "Now if you'll please come with us, nice and easy... I'll put you in one of the empty crew quarters for now, since we don't exactly have a brig on this ship." By the look on her face I could tell she thought this was definitely a poor oversight on the part of Cerberus. She waved toward the door with her gun nozzle.

I found myself moving first, more or less leading the way in front of HK and Abby. I wasn't sure why I was leading the way, maybe I was just eager to comply. I saw Shepard eying us again, then she turned and lead the way out of the room with the guards following right behind us.

It was then that I realized I had my CD player with me. Apparently it had somehow gotten into my pocket, along with my headphones. However I made no move to take it out. I didn't want anyone to think it was a weapon... and I certainly didn't want to risk them taking it away from me.

Finally when we got to the room meant for us, Shepard opened the door and we filed inside like a good little group of kids. Or whatever. "I'll be back," the commander said as she looked in on us. "After I talk to my boss." After that, she closed the door. And there was no doubt that she locked it from the outside as well.

I then took a moment to look around the room. Well, all things considered, I knew there could definitely be worse places to be locked up. This place at least had furnature... although the chairs didn't appear to be the most comfortable chairs in the world, at least they had cushions.

I took out my CD player and slipped my headphones on. "Hope you guys don't mind," I muttered. "Music helps me relax and I really need a moment to... you know, gather myself or whatever." With that I walked over to one of the corners of the room, as far from the door as I could get, and sat down on the floor instead of choosing one of the chairs. Then I pressed the play button on the CD player and turned up the volume to full blast. Yes, I know that was probably going to cost my eardrums someday, but it was an unfortunate habit I had... especially if I was under stress and/or very nervous.

Besides, for some reason... listening to "Telephone" at full blast just made the song even more... exciting, or something.

After I was halfway through listening to the song, I noticed that Abby was looking at both me and HK, so I shut off the CD player. She was squinting her eyes like she couldn't believe it. "HA! You guys are REAL!" she exclaimed.

Both HK and I stared at her for a moment.

"Yes... we are," HK said aloud, looking as though he was still trying to absorb everything that had just happened to us. I couldn't say I blamed him.

Somehow or other, my semi-sarcastic side decided to kick in. "Oh yeah, I'm sure you figured we were just computer programs like cleverbot that you've been talking to for these past few years, not that we were real people," I muttered with something like a smirk on my face, as I took off my headphones and put them aside.

Before any of us could say anything else, the voice of EDI spoke again. "Abby, HK, and Sarah," she greeted us in her soft, textured, mechanical voice. "I would like to ask you a few questions."

Well, that was something I hadn't been expecting. Sure, I guess I should have expected it. Maybe it's just that... it didn't even occur to me, at all, that the AI on the ship might choose to speak to us. I thought we would just have to wait around in here until Shepard came back.

Who knows, maybe Shepard herself asked EDI to talk to us.... anything was possible at this point.

Without waiting for any kind of acknowledgement, EDI went on. "How did the three of you get here? We are currently in the middle of space and you were not detected until twenty-one-point-three minutes ago."

"How do you think we got here?" I asked aloud, partly because I was curious what kind of answer she would cook up, and partly because I was trying to stall for time until I had a good answer. Unless maybe Abby could think of something better to say.

"Since you were not detected until a short time ago," EDI replied, "I am going to surmise that you somehow managed to stow yourselves aboard the shuttle at Freedom's Progress, and used stealth tactics or possibly cloaking technology to avoid detection."

Part of me was tempted to blurt out "Well, maybe we did!" simply because it seemed like the most logical explanation at the moment. Yet something stopped me from doing it. Maybe it was because I wanted these people to accept the truth about us, and well... if any of us even came close to admitting that we stowed away, (even though we didn't, not like that anyway) well... that probably wouldn't look good for us. Especially if Shepard thought we were spies already.

So instead I blurted out, "We wished upon a star... and we ended up here." In spite of myself, I grinned.

"That hardly seems likely," EDI replied, sounding mildly irritated.

That was when Abby spoke up. "No, we didn't wish on a star..." She fought to keep her face straight. "We wished on a chain email!"

Both of us girls laughed in spite of ourselves and even HK looked amused.

EDI, however, was not amused. "If you do not wish to answer that question," she said, apparently deciding to move on, "I would like to ask how you have acquired so much information about this ship, its crew, and the mission. And how did you come by Cerberus uniforms if you do not work for Cerberus?"

I looked at Abby and HK and simply shrugged. How was I supposed to answer that, at all? I couldn't exactly say that we had popped into a video game or something just because we all wished at the same time.

Abby spoke up first. Somehow I was hoping she would, though. "We just... found these uniforms laying around so we put them on," she said with a shrug, as if it was the most obvious thing in the galaxy.

EDI seemed to accept that answer. At the very least, she didn't press that particular subject. "Now tell me how you have acquired so much intel," she stated.

Once again, Abby spoke up. "We just know things about people," she began. "We're mystics who can just tell things about people. And we know some things about the future."

I stared at her in amazement. I wasn't sure whether this was going to help our situation or make it worse. And so I wasn't sure if I wanted to hug her or let the floor open up and swallow me whole.

"HK," EDI then spoke up. "You seem very quiet. Why?"

Both Abby and I turned to look at HK. Indeed, he had been the most quiet out of all three of us.

After hesitating slightly, he spoke. "Well...uh, I'm just still a little disoriented, I guess, and they can put this stuff into words better than I can at the moment, but what they are saying...is true."

"I see," EDI acknowledged simply. It was hard to tell whether she accepted that answer or thought it was bullshit.

"Hey, is Commander Shepard still talking to the Illusive Man?" Abby chimed in.

"Affirmative," EDI replied. "They are currently engaged in a very private conversation. I anticipate they will probably be finished within fifteen to twenty minutes at most, at their current rate of discussion. Possibly sooner."

I honestly hoped it would be sooner... then again, part of me hoped it would be longer. Seriously, did I really want that conversation to be rushed when I had no idea what the outcome would be? For all I knew, both Shepard and the Illusive Man might decide the best thing to do is simply space us out the airlock. I seriously hoped Shepard would be better than that.

"EDI, do you believe us?" I finally asked out loud.

There was a pause. "I have not introduced myself to any of you, nor has anyone mentioned by designation, yet you know it." It was a statement of fact, yet it held the ring of a question mark in the air.

Before any of us could reply she simply said, "I do not have enough information to render judgement. Logging out." She then seemed to withdraw entirely from the room, the holographic globe shape vanishing from the terminal she had been speaking from.

"Well, I guess we're alone," I muttered with a slight shrug of my shoulders.

"Indeed," HK said simply. He seemed distracted.

A silence fell over the room.


	3. Smoking will kill you

**Chapter 2**

**Normandy Empty Quarters (DJ/HK)**

I looked around, still quite weirded out by the prospect of any of this. I expected it to be some dream that I would wake up from any second...but that wasn't happening. This was no simple dream...their wish, as out there as it was, had actually come true, and here we were.

How had it happened? How had a stupid chain email, which were false 99% of the time, caused this to happen?

There was also a whole other side of this that I was considering. Due to their wish, had the Mass Effect universe somehow been made real? Had it been real all along, and they just didn't know it? It seemed impossible...but this wasn't simply being in the game. No one looked like they were designed graphically...they all looked real. Not pixelized, as real as anyone back on Earth.

Also, I had not seen these quarters before...if this were as simple as the game was, then these would not even be here, because BioWare didn't design them. Yet, here they were...Abby's wish of everything being more in-depth had taken on a whole new meaning.

For a brief second, I wondered maybe if we simply got killed, we would somehow appear back at where we were before this all started...but I quickly realized that wasn't the case. This was reality now, it was actually happening.

And then there was the issue of telling everyone where they came from. I knew all of these people better than they thought...they believed in Reapers, sure, but they wouldn't believe in this. We all pretty much had no choice but to make up some kind of story after we nearly died of laughter while trying to tell EDI the real story.

And now, Shepard was talking to the Illusive Man. Amelia was a Paragon...so no, she wouldn't kill us unless we tried to shoot...and unless Abby went more gung-ho than she already was, I could definitely not even fathom us leading some random assault. We were at their mercy, and luckily for us, Abby liked these people.

The Illusive Man was one guy who's reaction I couldn't guess accurately. In truth, I couldn't guess anyone's reactions, but I pretty much knew how they would handle everything. Shepard wouldn't kill us. Miranda would have some kind of fit and demand that we be interrogated or sent back to the Illusive Man himself, most likely. Jacob would probably be the neutral one in it all.

However, one thing that was clear on my mind was that Shepard had control here. We saw that in the games. No matter whether the Council or the Illusive Man is overseeing her operations, she has control. Everyone had to follow her, like it or not.

But, would we look like loons to her? Would she just keep us locked up like this the entire mission? And should we tell her all that we know? Because, in truth, we definitely knew alot...we could tell her the way to do everything to ensure everyone's survival.

Though, at the same time, I had to remind myself that this was not a simple video game any longer. Anything we did could alter the future, as all those movies, books, and tv shows emphasized in fiction.

_Surely we could at least give them hints, if they'll listen,_ I thought to myself.

We had all been silent for a minute or so now...ever since EDI had vanished, we were just quiet, lost in thoughts. Sarah was having a similar reaction to me, only she was a little more talkative...and it was for the better. I needed to stop acting like a mime and talk, as well, too.

"Okay," Abby said, breaking the silence. She still seemed very excited. "We need to find out where we are in the game. Like, do they have Mordin yet? We know that they're off Freedom's Progress if they have the Normandy..."

Suddenly, EDI popped up again. "We are heading to Omega to recruit Dr. Solus and Archangel now. I continue to be surprised at how you know these pieces of information, but I will let Shepard decide on all of this herself." she said, then vanished once more.

"Ah, so we're just in the beginning stages." I commented with a nod to myself.

Right at that moment, Sarah chimed in. "I think we did wish to get here early in the game," she said thoughtfully. Her eyes darted around the room nervously for a moment, then focused on her friends again. "I don't know whether I should be the happiest person in the universe right now or scared to death, though. I mean... I'm going to meet Garrus and Mordin sometime soon!" She grinned like an idiot.

Abby was grinning, too. "This is so cool! I'm going to get to meet JOKER!" she yelled, her excitement barely contained.

I actually chuckled. Abby loved Joker, Sarah loved Garrus, and...who didn't love Mordin? I was still slightly shaken by the events, though, so there was no room for excitement just yet. I also knew that EDI was likely listening in, getting more and more confused.

Just then, the doors swung open, and Shepard entered. Behind her was Miranda and Jacob..Miranda was complaining, no surprise there. I still liked her, but of course she would have an outrage at all of this. I had to wonder if Sarah was thinking "BITCH" at that very moment.

"Shepard, this is insane! These people are obviously working for the Collectors, the Shadow Broker, or someone. We need to send them back to Cerberus for a proper interrogation. We have more pressing matters, and I certainly don't like spies on the ship." Miranda said, the rage clear in her eyes.

Jacob leaned against the wall. "Calm down, Miranda, they're kids. I doubt they can do any real damage."

Shepard held her hand up. "Both of you can go back to your posts for the time being. The Illusive Man and I discussed this, and before anything else happens, I want to talk to them personally," she told them.

Miranda nodded obediently. "Yes, Commander."

They both left, and I nearly shuddered at the thought of a Cerberus interrogation. I knew what happened to Veetor, or what would have happened if Shepard was a Renegade, and I was not about to go through the same thing...though all three of us were human, maybe they'd be less rough.

Shepard folded her hands behind her back, keeping her composure. "The Illusive Man wants to meet with you, and he will, but I don't follow him quite like Miranda does. I want to talk to you three first." she said.

All three of us nodded, Abby still grinning like she had hit the jackpot. Sarah and I were keeping more reserved.

"I want to know how you know so much about me. How you know so much about anything." Shepard stated, glancing out the window into space. She had a kind tone to her voice, but still one of a soldier. "I don't care too much for Cerberus, but I know they don't spread their info around, and we only just discovered that the Collectors were behind the attack on human colonies...I'd say you could have been present on Freedom's Progress, but the Collector swarms paralyze anyone and everyone, and that colony didn't have the best hiding places. More importantly, I want to know how you knew Ashley's last words...no one could know that, and its nothing that anyone would bother spreading throughout the universe."

We all looked at each other, and finally, I decided to stand up and say something to the woman. "Listen," I said, trying to keep my voice controlled and calm. "We're not going to be able to offer a full explanation to all of this...I'm not sure that we know it, but what you need to know is this: We're not spies, we're sure as heck not soldiers, or anything of the sort...but we know things that have happened in great detail, and we know things that are going to happen. Do we have special powers? Not really, but we just...know."

Shepard's eyebrows raised in what was most likely confusion and suspicion. "Like what?" she simply asked.

"Well, I'm not sure if we should even say too much, but-" Sarah started. It was obvious that this was risky waters for all of them.

Abby interrupted. "Okay, there is something we can tell you, just to prove it, because we know its true and no one else does. Archangel, right? He's this guy everybody hates on Omega...they're trying to kill him, and we're going to have to get to him first...but here's the big shocker: He's Garrus."

Shepard's jaw dropped. Her eyes were filled with pure astonishment, and it took her a second to collect herself. "Garrus? Garrus Vakarian?"

We all nodded.

"Thats impossible...last I knew, Garrus was re-applying for C-Sec, he wanted to be a Spectre, he was never a merc. That was Wrex." Shepard said, starting to pace.

"But the Illusive Man didn't know anything about Garrus's location, did he?" Sarah pointed out.

I had to admit, this was a smart thing to reveal. It was a fact that in no way could change, and we were going to be at Omega soon, anyway. I just hoped Shepard didn't think we were liars and toss us out somewhere before then.

Shepard glanced to Sarah, as realization dawned in her eyes. Could I ever be sure of much? No, but I had a hunch that she believed us now.

"If Cerberus, a group that has more information than the Alliance and Citadel and probably matches the Shadow Broker with intel, doesn't know that Archangel is Garrus, and yet we do, doesn't that say that we're legit?" Abby asked, giving a slight shrug.

"It could still be false," Shepard muttered, looking to be in a state of confusion. "But...its not unfounded. Come on, lets go see the Illusive Man."

Right at that moment, Sarah took a step forward and cleared her throat softly, obviously intending to speak. Shepard turned to look at her, and Sarah met her gaze evenly, although Sarah did look mildly sheepish.

"Um, Commander?" she said, her tone sounding a little timid. But as she continued, her tone became less uncertain. "If it's possible, um... I would like meet Garrus personally." Sarah then lowered her gaze and turned her face away, at least as much as she could without seeming too awkward. But it was apparent that she felt affection for Garrus... and was she blushing ever so slightly?

I wanted to laugh, not at Sarah, but just because I knew her fondness for Garrus...it made me wonder who Shepard was going to romance. Was my friend going to have to watch her and Garrus get romantic?

Shepard tilted her head slightly. "Well, if what you are saying is true, you're going to be seeing alot of him. There's a long journey ahead, and Garrus is going to be along for the bulk of that." she said, regaining her composure after the initial shock had worn off.

As we began to walk along, exiting the room and going out into the halls, I decided to say something myself, based off of Shepard's last statement. "Wait...so you're going to let us stay?"

Shepard nodded. "It depends on what happens when we find Archangel, or Garrus...but I don't see any reason in getting rid of you. You may be valuable to the mission." she replied, hitting the button on the elevator as we boarded it.

"And the Illusive Man?" I asked curiously.

"I think we all know that Shepard has more command here than him." Abby said with a chuckle.

Shepard actually cracked a smile. "So you do know me." she said.

The elevator headed upwards, and silence fell upon us again. However, I was starting to feel just a little better...we may have Shepard on our side, and we all knew that we'd be proven correct when we found Archangel. If we had Shepard believing us, no one else would get rid of us. No one could.

The elevator came to a stop shortly afterwards, and I saw the command deck...I had played ME2 enough to know how it worked. Nothing was new or spectacular to me, except maybe seeing the computers and the people up close. I saw Kelly give Shepard a concerned glance, and then worried that Shepard would be so nice that she romanced her.

I then had to remind myself that we blocked that issue...Shepard romanced Kaiden, so she's likely to romance one of the three options here...unless, since this was more real now...she somehow romanced someone like Grunt or some random crew member.

But I highly doubted anyone would romance Grunt.

We went through the armoury, where Jacob looked at us, and just had his usual expression on his face, not showing any surprise, anger, or happiness one way or another. He crossed his arms, like Jacob seemed to do often enough, as we went into the next small hallway, and then finally into the briefing room.

The table was already lowered, due to the fact that Shepard had just been speaking to the Illusive Man. She ushered us to step forward, and we did so.

We saw the Illusive Man's hologram, where he sat and smoked a cigarette or cigar, like usual, with that emotionless face. Shepard stepped in once we were all in the projecting area, and he simply stared at us for a moment.

"I think I deserve some answers," he said, putting his cigar down for the moment. "It is not everyday that three young people show up on the most advanced starship in the galaxy, and know so much. Shepard and I had a nice discussion... you are lucky that she actually is kind."

Sarah stared at the man for a moment. Then, whether it was out of nerves or a sudden burst of boldness, she said something a bit surprising. "Smoking will kill you." After those four words left her mouth, the expression on her face suggested she couldn't believe she even said that. She looked sheepish, then stepped behind Shepard.

The Illusive Man didn't give a firm reaction either way. "And you took quite a risk with your life by coming onto that ship into particular, and getting involved in this. I think my own risk isn't quite as big as yours." he told her in a very controlled manner.

It didn't surprise me. He only lost his temper, and even then it was only slightly, when Shepard blew up the Collector base. Mouthing off didn't seem to upset him too much.

"I understand you know alot about our mission, and Shepard herself," he continued, folding his hands. "Although it was initially expected that you were on Freedom's Progress, I think we all know thats impossible. The whole reason we are tracking down Dr. Solus is because he can develop a countermeasure so that people can survive the swarms. And this ship was only just released from a Cerberus-controlled facility. How do you know all of this?"

Silence fell again, as none of them seemed to be sure what to say. I wasn't entirely trusting that the Illusive Man would take the answers that we had been giving everyone else...in a way, he still intimidated me.

"Well?" he asked, after more silence.

Shepard finally spoke up. "I've decided that they aren't a threat...at this point, I'm not sure that it even matters. They're harmless." she said.

"Shepard, obviously they are harmless. But what concerns me is the fact that they had this information to begin with...I have been tricked big time if random people know much more about our operations than Cerberus thought. Like I told you, they could be working for someone. They, personally, are not an issue."

Abby actually laughed. "Ha ha, he thinks I'm harmless..." she muttered. "Not surprising, though."

"They also know about your past...I suspect Liara T'Soni and the Shadow Broker are involved. I told you we had suspicions that she was somehow affiliated with him now, Shepard." the Illusive Man speculated. "There is no other explanation."

Shepard shook her head. "I know Liara...she wouldn't give out information and send someone to find me. She'd come do it herself."

I nearly cringed as I thought about Liara's current state...best not to mention that now, or they would all think that the new Benezia sent us.

"Perhaps," the Illusive Man said, taking another puff of his cigar.

"Also, they've given me a valuable piece of intel...until I find out whether its true or not, I'm not doing anything to them." Shepard told him.

I continued to feel relieved that Shepard had some kind of trust for us, now. Otherwise, we would have crumbled in this meeting.

"Garrus Vakarian, who Cerberus could not find, is Archangel...according to them, at least. He is the merc operating on Omega." Shepard finished.

The Illusive Man's eyes flickered. "I...did not know this, but I would admit that its...plausible. It could still be the Collectors or the Broker, though..."

Shepard, once again, shook her head. "No, even though Garrus is my former teammate, the Broker deals with higher people than people on Omega, and I doubt the Collectors have the sources to find this out if you don't."

"Fair enough," the Illusive Man said, smoking once again. "Do what you want, Shepard, but if they turn out to be a threat, I reccomend that they be terminated as quickly as possible. This is humanity on the line, Shepard...we can't take any chances."

With that, he cut off the hologram feed. I looked to Shepard, taking a heavy breath...for a little while, I thought that would never end. "Wow, thanks...I don't think we could have handled that without you." I said.

Shepard nodded. "It's no trouble... I just hope that once we get to Omega, what you told me proves true. But for now... welcome to the Normandy."

I looked to the other two...this was likely the start of something bigger than we could imagine.


	4. We're just psychics

**Authors' Notes: **_Thank you to all the Watchers (Raigel, Ninja-TIEM, and KoKoTheBunga) and a special thanks to Kashira1786 for the helpful comment. ;) We'll remember your advice for HK's next chapter. I'm so very glad you chose to read this fic out of the other Self-Inserts out there, and I do hope you continue reading it. _

_Since I forgot to put FF.N authorial names here..._

_Abby = me, celestial-insanity_

_Sarah = TehMarishal_

_HK = hk47fan_

_Enjoy!_

_

* * *

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**(Abby)**

Apparently my imagination was more thorough than I'd originally thought. Of course, there was a very high possibility that I fell asleep at my laptop (it wouldn't have been the first time) and was simply dreaming this all up. But there was a hint of a sweet smell in the air I'd never encountered before, refreshing and invigorating to my overwhelmed mind, that told me that _no_, this was real. This was _happening_, and it wasn't merely some detailed illusion.

I couldn't stop grinning.

Okay, sure, Commander Shepard probably thought we were crazy, Miranda wanted us 'taken care of', Jacob probably wanted us interrogated, and the Illusive Man probably thought he'd imbibed a very Illusive Drink. If I belonged here in this galaxy I would probably be worried about the consequences of acting the way I was, but from experience I knew that as long as you played it cool, stayed confident, and kept the story straight, people tend to take you a lot more seriously.

I was pretty confident that dropping Garrus's name had started a chain reaction of little rocks that preceded an avalanche. Commander Shepard would keep us here and locked up while she went to Omega, and hopefully she'd go see Archangel first, acting on our tip.

But there was still a few major questions to be answered, and I needed to get HK and Sarah alone to discuss them.

Shepard led us back to the unofficial brig and sat on one of the beds across from us. EDI appeared silently over her terminal, throwing a soft blue light on the reflective metal beds. "So tell me. . ." she said, tapping her fingers restlessly on the butt of her pistil. "What else do you know?"

I glanced over at HK and Sarah. Our eyes met, and an unspoken agreement passed between us. Shepard watched us, amused, and I had the distinct impression that both she and EDI were analyzing our body language. I'd bet a whole bucket ColdStone Ice Cream that the latter had some kind of lie detecting software in her programming.

I didn't know these guys outside of a computer box, but years of intuitively grasping their mindset through one sense alone lent us an unspoken communicational advantage that, for all our disadvantages, made up for a lot. Anybody could tell they were nervous, and for all of my outward confidence I was pretty shaken, too. Sarah bit the side of her lip, glancing from HK to me, questions in her eyes. HK pursed his lips a little bit and gave a slight shrug of the head, which I took to mean _'Well, do it, but be careful.'_

My toes were jumping up and down in my boot. Nervousness, or excitement?

"We know a bit," I admitted slowly. "And, well. . . Huh, I really don't know how to explain it."

"Try your best," Shepard said, her voice carefully controlled. "Start with how you got the information."

Wrong question. "Well. . _." Now how do I explain this?_

Shepard raised one perfect eyebrow, and inspiration struck.

"We have. . . dreams, I guess that's how you could say it," I said carefully, glancing at HK and Sarah. "Feelings, senses, whatever. We really can't explain it, and we've been trying to for years, trust us, but when we try to tell somebody how it works, outside our small group, then, well. . . it doesn't happen."

"Oh, really?" Shepard's voice was dripping with sarcasm.

"Oh, please, Commander, don't tell me you've never heard of psychics before," I said stiffly, putting a slightly condescending tone into my voice. _I'm so screwed, I'm so screwed, I'm so screwed... _Talking to Shepard like she was an ignorant schoolgirl was not going to win me any points. "Only most of the psychics I've met or heard of aren't psychics at all. And I don't want to say we're psychics, but we kind of are. We can't control it. We just get these feelings, or information, or whatever, and boom, look who guesses the night's winning lottery numbers."

"We've never won the lottery or anything," Sarah muttered. "I don't think our powers work that way."

"So you just. . . know the last words of Ashley Williams, the exact layout of the Normandy, and where Garrus Vakarian is?" Shepard asked.

Oh, we were screwed.

HK blurted out, "You should know about this kind of stuff better than anyone, Commander Shepard...you got all those visions about the Prothean's destruction, Ilos, and Sovereign."

Shepard's eyes narrowed. "Well," she said carefully, weighing every word with a micrometer, "I can't dispute that. But you could have easily gotten my records of my testimony to the Council with a few bribes..."

But we could all tell she didn't believe that at all.

I could tell it was time to drop another bomb. "You didn't tell the Council that Shiala gave you the Prothean Cipher." I didn't even give her time to respond to this. "Look, do you think we want the entire galaxy killed by the Reapers? If you haven't noticed, we're not indoctrinated. Indoctrination and all other forms of mental manipulation equal a minus in intellect. Saren was given relatively free reign from Sovereign, but when he started questioning his mandate, Sovereign 'upgraded' him. And when you convinced Saren to shoot himself--"

"I didn't." Shepard's eyes were as cold as ice. "I fought and killed the bastard."

I held up one finger to stall her and turned to Sarah and HK, wondering. "Oops," Sarah muttered. HK's face was heating up with embarrassment, and I was thinking back to our descriptions of Shepard in Team Milky Way, wondering if I'd specified that. . . then, I had to wonder if we'd saved--no, no, we saved Wrex. I could feel my heart stutter in relief. There was no way I was going to be in the Mass Effect universe and not meet the famous Urdnot Wrex. That would just be the blackest type of torture.

"It was a strand of the future you could've followed," I said, putting a theoretical frown on my face as I pretended to 'look back' at our mistake. "Either way, Saren was going to die. The only real danger you had of Sovereign controlling the Citadel was when the Conduit was closing back on Ilos, but as soon as the Mako hit the relay it was set in stone from there."

"And after I killed Saren, what happened?"

_He turned into a zombie._ "Sovereign used him as a type of avatar. Soon as the body disintegrated, the Reaper's shields went down."

"The fleet took out Sovereign after saving the Destiny's Asencion," HK continued. "Wreckage nearly crushed you, and your crew and Anderson all thought you were dead...but you made it, popping up at the last minute."

"But you were limping," I supplied. "We didn't pay much attention to the injury itself, because you met with Anderson afterwards. After the Council meeting we lost track of you for a while, until suddenly we saw your ship, the first one, I mean. I. . . forget what planet it was, but it was icy blue."

I looked at her, all humor gone. "We saw you die."

Silence. I could see the words had affected her more much more than our privileged knowledge of the rest of her word. I had never expected it after playing the video game, but Shepard actually looked. . . uncomfortable, if a person like her could be. Obviously, mention of her death still struck a raw chord in her.

Sarah cleared her throat softly and spoke up, breaking the heavy silence. "So what are you gonna do, Commander?" she asked. "Are you going to keep us locked up in here, or let us come with you on Omega, or what?"

Shepard blinked, awareness of the situation creeping back in to her gaze. "Why would you want to come to Omega?"

"We're just asking what your plans for us are," I said.

Shepard snorted, some of her old life returning. "I find it hard to believe you can take Omega full on. It's safer for you on the ship." Her eyes caught mine. "Especially you. How old are you, kid?"

"Fourteen," I said promptly.

"Exactly. A fourteen-year-old girl shouldn't even _look_ in the general direction of that God-forsaken place, much less step on it."

"Have you ever been there?" HK asked.

"No," she said wryly. "Except I know how to take care of myself. Now. . . let's consider this a test of your... skills. What am I going to find when I step off this ship?"

"Zaeed Massani," I said, glancing at HK and Sarah. I didn't know if they'd downloaded his character, but that was where they met up. "At least, one strand says so. You'll be summoned somewhere, first, though. You should go. You'll meet a friend."

"A friend," she echoed.

"Excuse me, Commander Shepard," said EDI, "but they aren't keeping to their story. They say if they tell any one person what happens outside of the three of them, it won't happen."

"That's a very good point, EDI," Shepard conceded. She looked at us. "Well?"

HK decided to speak up again. "I understand what you are saying, but for the most part, these are facts that can't change...maybe the Zaeed thing can, I think only Abby had that...dream."

"And Kasumi," I muttered, a small grin on my face.

"Archangel _is_ Garrus. That's not an event that can change... that's a solid fact."

"Besides," I said, "we. . . we kind of have a general idea how everything will happen during this campaign. We were sent here, and our job is to keep the Reapers from killing us all. Every small revelation, every big one, we already know about it. We obviously can't tell it all to you yet, but. . . hints and pieces, I think that will work." I glanced at HK and Sarah. "Will it?"

Sarah simply nodded. "Yeah, I think so." HK simply nodded, too.

"So there we go," I said confidently. "You're stuck with us, Commander. Is Rupert's cooking really that bad as everybody claims it is? Because even though I just ate some awesome ramen noodles, I just got back from a class and I'm still hungry and insanely tired."

Less than five minutes later we were in the mess hall, eating happily next to Rupert, who seemed to think we were either crazy, as in bat shit, or totally telling the truth. His food actually wasn't that bad, either. It was on the same par as my normal school cafeteria.

"I've never had ramen before," Shepard said, obviously trying to force conversation. I stared at her in shock. "It's Japanese noodles, right?"

"You've never had ramen?" I asked, affronted. "Crap. Zakera Ward, on the Citadel--best place for it. I'll take you there."

"Been there?" she asked.

"Yeah." At least that was some of the truth. . . wrapped in a convenient lie.

"So. . ." Sarah began, sounding a bit unsure, "who are you going to pick up first, on Omega?"

"Archangel," she said. I was surprised she would even tell us that. "I need to know sooner rather than later if you're telling the truth."

I nodded. "Alright. . . and I suppose we're staying here, then?"

"Yes," Shepard said. "When I get back, we'll talk more."

"What's our ETA?"

"We're docking soon. Until I get back, you're going to stay on this deck, understand? EDI has the elevators locked down. No trouble." She looked like she meant it.

We all exchanged a glance. EDI had no powers over the innards of the Normandy, at least not yet, so we knew the threat was empty. Most likely she'd alert Joker if we were using them, who would call a security team.

I was starting to wonder if Commander Shepard was feeling alright. Back home I'd been writing a piece of fiction, titled 'Entanglement,' following the events of Mass Effect 2. In it, Commander Valar Shepard was having a hard time adjusting. Either Amelia Shepard had a better poker face or was sincerely not experiencing any side effects. I couldn't tell, but it intrigued me.

I wondered if, in like my fic, she heard Ashley's last words echo in her skull when she woke up in that Cerberus facility. After all, I was the only one in the group of us who'd written a Mass Effect fic so far, and when I said 'detailed' I was kind of hoping that some of the details would run right alongside my story.

I glanced behind me and towards the right, at Miranda's office. The door was closed, unsurprisingly. On the other side, Doctor Chakwas--I felt my heart leap when I saw her--was throwing a suspicious glance our way.

"You'll trust us sooner or later, Commander," I said, returning to look at her. I smiled, but there was no strength in it this time. "I wonder. . ."

"Wonder what?"

I was wondering if, like in the game, we'd each have our own little Loyalty Missions to complete. It was certainly something to think about. If it were so, I wondered inwardly what mine would be, or Sarah's, or HK's. "I was thinking Sarah should go with you to Omega. . . if you meet Zaeed Massani."

She blinked and looked at Sarah, then back to me. "Excuse me?"

"Zaeed will be chasing a batarian. He'll shoot him in the knee. He also wants to go take care of some unfinished business, but I don't know the world it's on. He'll tell you all of the details as you meet him. When you meet him, you should know we're telling the truth about our... feelings."

"I thought you said you couldn't get to specific," Shepard said harshly.

I threw her a patronizing look. "I know exactly how much to reveal," I said, mirroring her tone. "Look, take Sarah. She's the oldest out of all of us, anyway. Take her to meet your friend, then send her back to the ship."

Sarah was looking at me with a horrified expression. I grimaced in apology. Sarah swallowed, pressing her lips together in a thin line. Her eyes darted around nervously, then she said, "But um... I don't even know how to use one of their guns. I mean, I have used a BB pistol, and I even have one still, but uh..." She trailed off.

"There won't be any fighting," I assured her, speaking in a low, calming tone of voice. "Don't bring her to Archangel's base. After you get the info you need, send her back here."

Shepard wasn't the kind of lady who looked like she took orders from anybody, but she looked like she was hard-put to resist. "I don't suppose you have floor plans for the base? Seeing as you're psychics?" she asked sarcastically.

Okay, maybe she wasn't feeling that great. I filed that away for future info. When Shepard trusted us, maybe she would give me more fodder for my story. I smiled inwardly.

"You want floor plans?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"If you think you can be that specific."

"Got a piece of paper and a pencil?"

I drew it out for them, as close as I could reckon. I didn't include the merc's base of operations on the other side of the bridge, but I still remembered Garrus's hideout pretty well. "Here is the first floor as you cross the bridge," I said. "Best as I can remember it. X's are places you can take cover. That circle is a bomb you should probably dismantle. Just saying.

"Here is the second floor, up these stairs. Garrus is there, taking potshots. Other side of the balcony is a dead end I think. I'm not sure, it's very hazy.

"Here's a door leading down to the next floor. Left door here leads to a small hallway, with a tight corner right here. There's a flamethrower guy there, so grenade his butt. Lots of krogan... Blood Pack. Krogan and vorcha, with the varren. This door leads to a bigger area, here. I... can't remember much about the cover and layout, though."

Shepard actually looked impressed. "This could help."

I handed the papers to her. "They better. If they don't, I'm going to be so pissed at B--myself."

"Can you tell me how I'll get there?" she asked, interested.

"Uh, no," I said, shaking my head. "I know exactly how, though. It won't be hard, trust me. Actually. . ." I grinned. "I wish I was coming, but I'll ruin it for you, and so would HK or Sarah. We've never fought with the weapons you use, and we've never worn armor. I want a few test runs or something before you put us in a deadly situation."

Sarah nodded empathetically. Her eyes were still wide. She and HK had made occasional helpful comments on the map as I'd been drawing it, but were now silent again.

I wondered why I had such an easy time talking to Shepard.

I'm aggressive by nature, and I'm really nervous. That had to account for some of my bluntness. I don't sugar-coat things, and don't appreciate it when others do, either.

We'd have to put up with the omnipresent EDI, though, so we'd never be able to talk about it fully. And if Shepard did let us out of the ship... it probably wouldn't be without some kind of bug or tracking device.

She led us back to our unofficial prison and left, probably to get her team ready and suit up. I breathed out a deep sigh of relief as the doors closed. "I'm so sorry, Sarah. Really, I am. I just need you to see if Omega is the way we... dreamed it." Did EDI notice the hesitation before my lie? Probably. "Okay? Don't drink anything there, don't talk to anybody. Stick with Shepard and look tough."

Sarah's face turned more serious, as though she was trying to take the advice to heart. "Don't worry... I plan to stay close to Shepard," she muttered. "Just... well, pray for me I guess," she added with a small shrug. "And hopefully I won't get lost or... die down there." She smiled a little, but the smile quickly vanished, as though she realized that that really wasn't funny in this case.

I stared at her for a moment, frowning. Then I said, with utmost seriousness, "Don't stand anywhere near the edge."

Sarah blinked. "Oh yeah, they... wouldn't have the safety barriers on like in the game," she muttered.

I giggled. "That would be so horrible... just walking, trying to get a good look... and oopsie-daisy, a krogan pushes you off." I couldn't stop laughing, and I had to sit down. "There's one detail we might have missed."

I sighed and leaned back, stretching my cramped back. "Now, let's see. . . you know the basic self-defense moves, right? In case anybody tries anything on you."

Sarah looked thoughtful for a moment. "Um..." She pursed her lips, as if thinking or trying to figure out how to phrase this. "Well... I know that if anybody starts shooting, I should duck behind something... or maybe just get down flat on the floor." She laughed a little, but it sounded like a nervous chuckle more than anything.

"But..." She looked a little sheepish. "I don't really know any great moves. If they're not wearing armor, I could maybe kick them where it counts, or aim for the shin. But I don't know how well that would work on aliens."

I frowned, thoughtful. "Obviously, we'll have to improvise," I mumbled, thinking out loud. "Okay, um... for humans, basic stuff. Break the nose, gouge out the eyes, rake the face. A good fighter can ignore a punch to the balls, and there are techniques for resisting a punch to the stomach, so don't try those. Windpipes. Hit it with the knife-blade of your hand with enough pressure, and it'll seriously choke or kill them. But if you're that close then you're kind of screwed there... Hmmm. So just, like, run if you get into a confrontation. If they have a gun, don't run straight, but do the alligator-run, you know, the zig-zaggity thingamabob."

Sarah's face was growing more and more horrified as Abby rambled on and on, giving more and more info. "But... stuff like that can KILL someone, or seriously hurt them," she said, then shook her head at her own words, as if realizing how stupid they sounded. "I mean... yeah I know that that's the point, and uh... if somebody's attacking me, then they're not concerned with not hurting me. But um..." She pressed her lips into a think line and shook her head. "I've never had to hurt anyone before. I've never really even been in a fight!"

"Sarah, if somebody attacks you on Omega, it'll be either to kill you, rape you, or embarrass you because you're human," I said, gripping her shoulder. "It'll be hard at first, but when your back is to the wall and the adrenaline kicks in... well, we'll sort out the bad feelings afterwards. This is a risk you have to take. I'm so sorry for putting you on it, but you're the oldest. They would kick HK and me out soon as they saw us."

She sucked in a deep breath, then nodded slowly. She looked more resigned than anything. "I'll just stay close to Shepard," she finally said. She still looked nervous, but she looked a bit more determined. Then she purposely moved toward the door. "So when am I leaving, anyway?" she muttered, intertwining her fingers together in front of her.

"Well, there is some positive, and that is Shepard," HK interjected "Just do what you just said, and you should be fine. No one's ever died on Shepard's watch before."

I coughed a noise that mysteriously sounded just like '_Ashley_.' "Okay, okay. But before you go, I need to tell you some more stuff!" I fluttered over to her side, suddenly excited with the new challenge of finding different ways to incapacitate turians, krogans, and who knew what else.

"Pull the turian's whiskers, but stay away from his mouth because I bet they can bite off fingers with that beak of theirs... um, take out batarian eyes, because that just plain-out hurts and Saren did it once (remind me to describe how he tortured that one batarian) and let's see... salarians look soft, and their neck is probably a very vulnerable spot. Such a big head on a small body is crazy. I wonder what their home planet looks like? Take out the neck of salarians first, and their eyes. Take out batarians with head strikes. Turians... ah, whisker-thingies. I just said humans... um, human stuff should work with asari, too. And if a krogan is running for you, just step to the side. It's all about angles with those guys."

Nothing could get me more excited than an explanation of how to hurt somebody. I hoped EDI was making notes.

Sarah listened, obviously trying to absorb all of this, although she gave a couple of dull nods from time to time. "Uh huh," was all she really said whenever there was a pause of breath. "Thanks for the tips," she finally added with a forced smile. "Well, I guess I'm ready to go," she said, and turned to face the door. "Wish me luck... and take care of yourselves."

My eyes suddenly widened and I ran up to her. "I'm so saying bye at the airlock," I said. "Besides, I need to see_ Joker_."

HK looked at her with a look that said he was worried, but he wasn't too distressed. "Good luck, and just...stay safe and alive," he warned.

"Oh yeah... that would be good," I agreed.


	5. Zaeed and the ryncol incident

**Shuttle** **(Sarah)**

I sat back in my seat, double-checking to make sure I was all buckled in. Shepard and Jacob were in the shuttle as well, and I found myself sitting next to the commander. A human pilot who I didn't know the name of was apparently flying.

I was feeling a bit... uncomfortable. And it wasn't simply nerves. And no, it wasn't simply because I was sitting next to the famous Commander Shepard, either. Those were a couple of good reasons to feel uncomfortable, but another good reason was because I was wearing some armor. Shepard had insisted I put it on before we left the Normandy, especially since I didn't know how to defend myself. I noticed she didn't give me a gun, though.

At one point during the ride I reached up and took the helmet off, setting it on my lap. Jacob and Shepard looked at me quizzically when I did this.

"You'll want to put that back on when we reach Omega," Jacob told me quietly.

"Yeah, I will," I murmured agreeably. "But how do you guys stand wearing this stuff all day? It's hot and it's uncomfortable."

"You get used to it," Shepard replied. "Plus it's either that or risk someone blowing a hole in your chest... or in your head." She nodded at me indicatively.

_Yeah, point taken,_ I thought. I put the helmet back on. Shepard looked mildly amused, then gave a small nod of approval.

We arrived at the docking port a short time later. As we got out I couldn't help but feel a little sorry for the pilot. Surely it had to be utterly boring to wait around in the cockpit until the rest of us got back. Also... were there any bathrooms on the shuttle? Well, hopefully there was, for his sake.

I shoved the thought aside, hearing Shepard beckoning to me. I followed her and Jacob out of the docking area and down the long corridor. We were moving pretty quickly, although I could tell that both of them were keeping an eye on me as well.

When we started to slow down a bit, I realized that I was the one holding us up. My pace had slowed a bit. Shepard and Jacob were looking at me even more now. "Why are you slowing down?" the commander asked, sounding a bit concerned as well as annoyed.

I looked down at myself and made a gesture at the armor. "This, I'm not used to walking around in something like this," I answered. Ugh, I HATED the way my voice sounded inside this helmet. "I feel like the Tin Man."

Shepard chuckled a little.

"Well," Jacob said in amusement, "I guess we're not in a bit hurry... not yet anyway."

"We can slow our pace a little," Shepard consented. And the three of us walked side by side, with me in the middle and ever so slightly behind them, until we came up to a Salarian.

As soon as the bug-eyed alien spotted us, he seemed to perk up. "Ah!" he exclaimed in a friendly tone. "Welcome to Omega! You're new here, aren't you? I can always tell! Allow me to-"

Suddenly a Batarian approached, causing the Salarian to shut up and look in his direction. "Oh," the Salrian said, suddenly sounding nervous. "Hello, Moklan! I was just..."

"Leave, Fargut, NOW," the Batarian said firmly.

"Oh, of course, Moklan! Whatever she wants!" Fargut said, apparently all too eager to comply. The Batarian then gave him a light shove, causing him to turn and flee.

Moklan then turned back to face us. Or rather, he faced Shepard, and seemed to dismiss Jacob and I. "Blasted scavengers," he muttered. "Welcome to Omega... Shepard."

The commander straightened a bit, squaring her shoulders a little. "You know who I am?" she responded, casting a quick glance at me out of the corner of her eyes.

For a brief second, it occured to me that maybe I should have mentioned this before we got to this area. Surely it would have shown her that we were telling the truth. But well, it slipped my mind, and it was too late now. So I just stood there, kept my face as straight as I could, and stayed quiet.

I was also privately thinking that Batarians were even UGLIER in person.

"Of course," Moklan was saying, speaking as though Shepard was the only living being who existed at the moment. "We had you tagged the moment you entered the Terminus Sytems. You're not as subtle as you think. Aria wants to know what brings a dead Spectre to Omega. I suggest you go to Afterlife now and present yourself."

Shepard shook her head and spoke in a re-assuring yet stern tone. "Cut the attitude. I'm not here to cause trouble for Omega."

"Things explode around you, Shepard. You can't blame Aria for keeping an eye on you." The Batarian narrowed his eyes... all four of them. "Afterlife. Now." With that, he turned and walked away.

"Friendly fellow," Shepard murmured under her breath, once he was out of earshot.

"The Afterlife, hmm?" Jacob asked, crossing his arms. His eyes flickered to Shepard's, then at the corner where the Batarian disappeared. "You got any idea how nasty that place in?"

"We'll wear oxygen masks," Shepard replied. She jerked her chin towards the end of the long hallway. I squinted a little bit, trying to stay small and insignificant. I could see a splash of yellow armor, standing over a huddled body on the ground. The body tried to stand, a feeble effort on his part, and the human's kneed him in the face. "Looks like something's going on over there," Shepard stated. "I think this could be our man."

Shepard began to walk briskly, Jacob following, and I scrambled to keep up. The limp, broken-looking body looked up at us as we approached, and I was surprised it was a Batarian. It looked like Abby was right-the guy in the yellow armor had to be Zaeed...

"Please," the Batarian mumbled, his deep voice thick with pain. "You have to help me."

Zaeed growled. "No one said you could talk, jackass." He stomped on his face for emphasis, and I gasped, cringing away.

"You Zaeed Massani?" Shepard asked, covering my noise. Part of me wanted to rush forward and try to yank the Batarian away, or maybe even stand in the way. But I didn't want to get too close. The last thing I wanted was to be hit myself... or possibly punched aside. This brute looked like he might do either. I stayed frozen to my spot.

And then Zaeed turned around, and I was thankful I was wearing a helmet. I was gawking at him in a most unsoldierlike way; his face was old, lined with wrinkles and old battle scars. A circular tattoo could be seen on his muscular neck, and a wicked scar traced from his temple, to his eye, to his chin. His left eye was dark brown, maybe black, and the other one, where the scar touched it, was a blue so light that they reminded me instantly of watchdog eyes.

This was a very scary man.

"Yeah. That's me," he said, looking Shepard in the eye. He had an Austrailian accent, some small part of my mind realized. "And you must be Commander Shepard. I hear we have a galaxy to save."

Shepard wasn't even phased. "I assume you've been briefed?"

"I've done my homework," said Zaeed. His tone was very up front and aggressive. _Abby has met her match,_ I thought inwardly, groaning. I wondered how long it would take for the two of them to start wrestling matches on the Normandy. "Cerberus sent me all I needed to know."

"What's your relationship with Cerberus?" Short, business-like, and professional. Bioware hadn't been fooling around when they created Shepard. I was glad.

"Easy. Cerberus is paying me a lot of money to help you on your mission. That's the long and short of it."

"Not many mercs would take a suicide mission for the pay," Shepard pointed out.

A faint trace of humor touched Zaeed's eye, then. Or at least, I hoped it was humor. Happy people are less likely to kill you. "Most mercs don't get an offer like the one Cerberus sent me." He turned around to check on the Batarian. "This mission doesn't sound like good business, but... your Illusive Man can move a lot of credits."

Behind him, the Batarian shuddered. I felt like doing the same thing.

Shepard seemed to notice him for the first time. "My contacts told me we were picking up one man, not two," she noted. "What's with the extra wheel?"

"Batarian delinquite," Zaeed explained. "Pissed off someone rich enough to hire me to go after him. For my 'bring them back alive' rates, even."

"Please..." the Batarian mumbled. "I didn't do it..."

"I said _shut it!_" Zaeed kicked him in the face again, his armored foot making an impression in the soft, malleable skin. I watched, my heart beating hard in my chest like it wanted to grow wings and escape. This was horrible, worse than a video game! Why did he have to be so _mean? "_Tried to lead me in a chase all over the Systems. He should have known better. People always end up running to Omega."

Shepard assessed this situation calmly, and I hoped she would at least tell him to lighten up. If anybody could, it would be her. She held out her hand. "Good to have you, Zaeed. We have a lot to do."

They shook on it.

"That's what they tell me," Zaeed commented. He took the pistil from his hip and gestured at the Batarian with it, who began to slowly, and with much pain, climb to his feet. "I assume the Illusive Man told you about our arrangement?"

"No, I guess he decided to leave that information out of the dossier..." Shepard muttered. She glanced at me, and suddenly I remembered what Abby had said, back on the Normandy.

_"Zaeed will be chasing a batarian. He'll shoot him in the knee. He also wants to go take care of some unfinished business, but I don't know the world it's on. He'll tell you all of the details as you meet him. When you meet him, you should know we're telling the truth about our... feelings."_

"Huh, figures," Zaeed said. "Good thing I asked. Picked up a mission a little while back, just before I signed on with Cerberus. I think you'll be interested. Ever heard the name Vido Santiago?" Shepard shook her head. "He's the head of the Blue Suns. Runs the whole organization. Seems he recently captured and Eldfell-Ashland refinery on Zorya and is using their workers as slave labor. The company wants it dealt with."

Shepard looked at me, obviously looking for some type of answer, but I was still paralyzed. She glanced back at Zaeed. "I'll make sure we get that done."

"Good. Get that out of the way so we can concentrate on being big goddamn heros."

The Batarian ran for it, limping and dazed, and I stood back in amazement to let him go. Zaeed just sighed calmly, as if he were expecting behavior like this and it disappointed him. He aimed carefully and shot the Batarian in the leg. His foreword momentum carried him onwards for a few more feet, where he fell in a disjointed heap on the floor.

"I better turn this thing in before it starts to stink," he said, holstering his weapon. "I'll be locked and loaded the next time you need some killing done."

He took out a pair of handcuffs that would make any normal police officer blanch and placed them on the Batarian's wrists. "See these babies, ass hole?" he sneered. "One word from me and your sorry ass will be fried by an electric jolt so hard you'll shit yourself. Get up and get moving."

And we watched in total fascination as Zaeed made the Batarian, already wounded, stand up and forced him to march down another docking hallway without another glance.

I found myself staring after them even after they vanished from sight. I didn't even realize Shepard was talking to me, trying to get my attention, until she put a hand on my shoulder and gave me a gentle shake. "You okay?" she asked.

"Yeah!" I blurted, blinking and nodding my head. "Um, let's go!" I added eagerly. I didn't want to continue standing around here like an idiot, despite what I just saw.

After that we continued onward, until we came to a large area that looked very familiar. There were a set of huge steps leading into a large doorway, and the words "Afterlife" above it. The name was lit up and glowing, obviously intended to draw attention and to make it clear to any passerby just what the place was. It looked magificant enough in the game, but here... I swear it looked like the entrance to a palace.

I found it a little easier to shove aside the horrors I'd just seen mere moments ago as I entered the doorway. I barely paid any attention to the guard telling Shepard that she was expected inside, or the human grumbling behind us about how he wanted in, badly.

As we walked in through corridor leading into the main area of Afferlife, we paused long enough so that we could put on our oxygen masks, at Shepard's insistence. Jacob didn't need to be told twice, but I was a bit hesitent. I complied, though, just so we could keep moving.

Then we entered the heart of Afterlife, and I felt as though nearly all of my senses were overloaded as we walked inside. It seemed like everyone was talking loudly and the music was almost too loud for my ears. I was actually glad now that I had my helmet on because it helped muffle the sound a bit. The sight of the place was a lot to take in, too... seeing the way it looked in the game wasn't even doing it justice. I had never seen this many people in one place before, except maybe in a couple of large malls I had been in back on Earth. And I've certainly never seen so many different species in one place.

"Hey," Shepard was saying, giving me a nudge. "Wake up, we need to get moving."

"I'm awake," I muttered, and I found I had to speak up to be heard over all the noise. I was looking in every direction as we walked, and I was finding it harder to keep up with Shepard.

Then we stopped at a counter, and Shepard leaned forward and placed her palms on the surface. I moved closer to her, wondering what she was doing. She glanced at me, then at Jacob, then nodded toward the barkeeper. "Where can I find Aria?" she asked.

The barkeeper, a Batarian, simply inclined his head toward the upper level.

"Thanks," Shepard said. She then pursed her lips, as if pondering something. Then she shrugged in sort of a "what the hell?" gestured, and ordered herself a drink. I watched her in fascination as she downed it in one gulp.

I found myself remembering what Abby said. And I could almost hear her voice again, in my head, saying "Don't drink anything, Sar!" Nevertheless... I found myself considering it. Besides... this was probably going to be a once in a lifetime opportunity... right? Who knew if I would get another chance at another bar.

I moved a little closer to the counter, sitting down on one of the stools. I saw both Jacob and Shepard looking at me out of the corner of my eyes, but I ignored them. The barkeeper was now looking at me as well. It then dawned on me that I had no credits on me, but... well, hopefully Shepard would be willing to pay for it. I knew she had money on her... especially since she had ordered a drink herself.

"What'll it be?" the Batarian asked me.

Wow. This was the first time I had ever spoken to an alien! A real alien! "I'll..." I thought for a moment, trying to remember some of the drink names from the game. I think grinned impishly. "Got any ryncol?" I finally asked.

He blinked at me. "Krogan ale?" he asked. Then he chuckled. "Sure, we've got some of that back here, but you'll set off radiological alarms if you drink that stuff."

Okay, so I was starting to have second thoughts. But then again... wouldn't this be a cool experience?

(Abby)

Miranda was a babysitter, and I found that extremely funny. Caught between two major threats-us, and making sure Shepard stays alive on Omega-the Ice Queen had been ordered to stay behind and watch us, make sure we didn't try anything stupid. Apparently EDI had heard my lecture on self-defense to Sarah before she left, and deemed it too dangerous for me to roam the ship alone. And since all normal people take advice from Artificial Intelligences, Miranda felt obligated to stay.

HK and I were just sitting on opposite beds, staring at each other, oblivious to our warden when I glanced towards the door, a frown on my face. "HK..." There is was, that slight, mental whispering in my head that grew louder with every heartbeat. Goosebumps stood on my arms. "Somehow, I'm getting the feeling that Sarah is doing something really, really stupid. Are you getting that vibe?"

HK blinked, seeming like he was thinking for a moment. "Kinda, but I don't know why...maybe its just our nerves in the midst of all of this. We can trust Sarah."

"Sure, sure," I grumbled, unable to shake away the feeling that somewhere, somehow, something really _stupid_ had happened.

(Sarah)

I stared down at the drink that had just been placed before me. Part of me half-expected Shepard to say something, possibly try to mother over me or question my decision. And yet somehow... she only looked amused.

I was a little surprised. I mean... wasn't she going to say something? Then again, maybe she considered it perfectly normal to drink. Or perhaps she figured this might be good experience for me. I had no way of knowing.

"Well... down the hatch?" I murmured, and brought the cup to my lips.

I was unable to down it in a single gulp like Shepard had downed her drink. In fact, I swear I nearly died over the first mouthful. I barely got it past the gag reflex before I broke out into a choking fit, spilling the rest of it down the front of my armor. My eyes began to blur and water to the point where I could barely see anything, and my throat felt like it was on fire. Hell, it felt like my esophogus and stomach were on fire too. I could then feel my windpipe starting to tighten and I was panting for air.

"Whoa there, Sarah," I vaguely heard Shepard's voice. I could feel myself being lifted up off the floor with her help, and she helped me onto the seat.

Wait... when did I fall down on the floor?

"Hey, you okay?" I heard Jacob's voice saying. Frankly, it sounded like both of them were speaking from far away, even though they were right in front of me. Hell, all of the noise in the bar sounded like it was coming from the end of a tunnel a mile away.

"Here, I want you to do something," Shepard said, gently but firmly. I then found myself being gently escorted down onto the floor, into a sitting position. "Put your knees up... there you go. Now put your head between your knees. That's right. That should help."

It took me a few moments to realize I was even in that position at all. Or even on the floor, for that matter. Gradually I began to feel a bit better... I could begin to breath again, the burning eased down, and the world seemed right-side-up again. And all of the noise returned to normal.

"How're you feeling?" Jacob asked. Gosh his voice sounded LOUD.

I lifted my head up to look at them both. Yeah, I was definitely feeling more human again. "Okay," I managed. My voice sounded a bit raspy.

"No more drinks for you, young lady," Shepard told me, "until you're sure you can handle it. And stick with the milder drinks this time." She handed me my helmet.

Jacob frowned. "You feel up to walking, or do you want to stay here at the bar?" he asked.

Shepard tilted her head a little. "Not sure if she's in any condition to walk right now," she murmured thoughtfully. "And I think it's safe to say she won't drink anymore... not unless she's got a death wish." She smirked slightly, then the expression faded. "Can I trust you not to run off? That you'll stay right here?"

I inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly. "I'll stay right here," I nodded meekly. "That's a promise."

Shepard grabbed my arm, right behind the elbow, and helped me up onto the bar stool again. "No more drinks," she said firmly. She then placed a few credits on the counter and slid them toward the bartender. "Do not serve her anything, even if she asks," the commander snapped. After recieving a nod from the Batarian, Shepard looked at me again.

"Alright, I'm going to meet with Aria, and I think we'll both agree that you're not in the best... shape to go see the person who runs this place right now," she said to me. "So I want you to stay right here, and don't even leave this stool. Got it?"

"Yeah," I nodded. My head was starting to throb. "Got it."

Shepard frowned, still looking a little concerned. She held up her hand. "How many fingers am I holding up?"

I stared at her hand for a moment, then grimanced. "That's not funny."

She actually chuckled a little and dropped her hand. She then patted me on the shoulder and, gesturing to Jacob, walked away. Jacob cast another glance toward me, then followed his leader.

So there I was, left alone at the bar counter... and the Batarian bartender was thoroughly ignoring me now as if I didn't exist. Well, maybe except for the occasional glance.

Suddenly a Turian appeared out of nowhere and took the stool right next to me. I looked at him, almost hopefully, wondering if by some slim chance it could actually be Garrus. But no... it wasn't. I could tell that much. His skin was a slightly lighter tone of gray than his, plus he didn't have that cool eye-visor thingy. Also his armor was a different color, too... more of a black color.

I found myself staring at him as he ordered a drink. Somehow... I always found Turians to be kind of cute. Especially Garrus. But still... part of me had to wonder... (whether it was due to all the crazyness of today, or because of the stuff I drank, I couldn't be sure) if maybe it was possible... a Turian might pay attention to me?

"Hey," I said, my voice still sounding a bit raspy. "How's life?" Did I really just say that?

The Turian gave me this long, slow look. I could well imagine what he saw: a small woman in armor too big for her, reeking of ryncol, and a sheen of sweat on her upper lip. I hastily wiped it off. "Uh... good." He turned away, obviously trying to shut me out of the conversation.

I nodded, feeling my head throbbing some more. I tried to ignore it as I grinned. "That's good," I said with a small giggle. "Life's been... good, huh?" I tried to think of something else to say. "You know... um... I've always thought Turians were kind of... cute."

...Did I seriously just say that? And somehow I was still grinning. I wasn't sure if I should feel silly, or if I should want the floor to open up and swallow me whole.

The Turian looked like he was wishing for the latter. "Well, that's lovely," he muttered. He sat ramrod straight, gazing with determination at the dancers. His small, beady green eyes glanced at me, then quickly flickered back to the strippers. "Barkeep, give me the strongest thing you have," he said in an undertone. The Batarian handed it to him, and he took a long drink. A shudder rolled through his body, and his shoulders relaxed as he took more sips. "And... your life?"

My grin had faded, almost giving way to embarrassment, but somehow it vanished. Maybe I was just getting into one of my giddy and hyper moods, the kind where people on MSN or DA wondered if I was on crack. Well, at least now... I could say I HAD been drinking something. I grinned stupidly. "My life is good," I blurted out. "Today has been... weird though."

Somehow I ended up leaning closer to him, placing one arm on the edge of the counter for balance as I scooted myself onto the very edge of my stool. "You know what it's like... to totally end up in a weird place, far away from your home, knowing what will happen next in your life, but still experiencing it for the first time?"

The Turian took another huge sip, and motioned for the barkeep to refill it. A slight smell, like sweet candy, seemed to be coming out of his pores. Only later would I know this was Turian sweat. "Yeah... well, I think so. That's why I'm here. You see... I had a ship, and a mate, and a crew, but they just..." He took another sip. "They vanished! Just... poof. And now I'm here." He sighed dejectedly.

He turned towards me for the first time and seemed to notice my sudden proximety. "But... uh, humans... humans are kind of cute, too. Just like asari... but with more colors."

I leaned forward a little more, and had to stop myself from going too far. I didn't want to fall off the stool, after all. I braced myself a little more by raising my other arm and putting my hand on his shoulder. "That sounds terrible," I said. "I'm sorry you lost everybody. And uh... um... do you think I'm cute?"

"You're all... curvy, like... a circle, but not a circle," he said after yet another long sip. "We're all... liney. You see?" he gestured to himself. "And quarian females... they look like that, except the feet. Human and asari feet are prettier. You see what I'm saying? But humans, you know-humans have _color._ Colors we can't see. Asari are blue, but they get boring. Humans are... varied and, and... and magical! You're all... magic, that's what you are. Magic people."

"Everything is magical, in this place," I said, never taking my eyes off him. "So umm... what do you want to do?" Somehow I no longer cared what I was saying. Almost as if I was in my own private reality at the moment.

The Turian looked at me in a strange way. "Well... I don't know..." He pondered this question. "I think... we should get some more drinks. And then I think you should climb up there," he pointed at the stripper table, "and show the rest of the Turians how... how magical and... circle-like you are. And you know... I think they'll stop hating you humans. You know?"

I stared at him for a long moment, blinking. It took me a moment to absorb what he'd just said. "I'm not Kelly," I finally muttered, and scooted myself back into a proper seated position on the bar stool. I then turned away from him and rested both of my arms on the counter top, folding them in front of me.

I then sighed. Weren't there ever any men around who didn't think about what females looked like under their clothes? Then again, maybe it was stupid to try talking to someone who was getting drunker by the minute. Somehow, my blissness was now wearing off... and wearing off fast.

The Turian sighed, drowned his cup, then mine, and abruptly fell backwards in his seat. The Batarian looked at him and motioned for two of Aria's guards to eject him.

...And this was one of the biggest reasons why I was probably going to stay single for the rest of my life.

Just then I noticed Shepard and Jacob approaching me again. I saw the commander exchange a brief glance with the bartender, as though trying to confirm that I hadn't drunk anything. He gave a small shake of his head, and she looked somewhat relieved. Or maybe she was more relieved by the fact that I hadn't gotten into any trouble, or tried to run off. I was suddenly grateful that that Turian was... well, gone now.

"We're ready to go after ArchAngel, and it seems that it is going to be dangerous," Shepard said. "We're going to put the plans you and your friends wrote out to good use, but in the meantime I want you to go back to the shuttle and stay there."

I stared at her for a long moment. "So... you're going to sign up as a merc?" I asked. I already knew that that was what she was going to do. I simply wanted to hear her say it.

She nodded. "First I'll take you back to the shuttle, then Jacob and I will come back here," she told me. She then folded her arms across her chest. "I did ask Aria if she knew who Archangel is. But she doesn't know... nor does anyone else, it seems. So if he does turn out to be Garrus..." She trailed off indicatively.

I knew what she was trying to say. She was saying that if it turned out that our intel was correct, she would probably believe what we were saying and possibly even put stock into it. To coin the phrase. I knew she was probably starting to put more faith into our words already, though... since one of our little "prophecies" had already come true, when it came to meeting Zaeed. I grimanced a little at the memory. Seriously, I wasn't looking forward to being on the same ship as that man.

"Let's go," I said, getting to my feet. Shepard merely nodded and turned to lead the way toward the exit, and thus toward the shuttle.


	6. Garrus Vakarian

**Normandy, Private Quarters** **(HK)**

I sat silently on one of the beds...Sarah had come back safe, thank goodness, and sound, but she seemed just a little...off. Not too off, but it felt like something had happened to her...but Sarah had never experienced anything like this in her life. None of us had. Maybe she was just excited, and maybe that was all that Abby was feeling earlier.

Miranda had continued to watch us like a hawk, and was now utterly baffled. She wasn't letting it show too much, but I could tell...Shepard had told her that the situation with Zaeed was totally accurate, and I felt that had gained some trust from the Commander. Shepard had gone off to find Garrus, taking Jacob and Zaeed with her, as Miranda refused to leave us.

"I refuse to believe it," Miranda said, continuing to pace. "I still believe something is wrong here. Not even the Collectors can view the future, as far as I know...are you working with Zaeed? Did you set that situation up?"

I shook my head, deciding to speak up before anyone else did. I did need to say more, after all...I felt partially bad that Sarah and Abby had said so much but I had just held back. I needed to at least attempt to help defend us. Miranda would be the most difficult. "No...I know you aren't that trusting Miranda, and thats okay, but I sorta would like you to at least stop accusing us of working with someone. We are not working with anyone...I mean, with all due respect, do we look like we could work with anyone? Sarah is the only adult here, and she's not even that old."

Miranda just looked at us with that face that she showed in the games, only this time it was more clear...much more clear. Anger? No. Believing? No. Just continuing to look like she didn't trust us one bit. "If you had asked me three weeks ago if I thought that Collectors were abducting humans, I would have said no. If you had asked me two years ago that the Reapers were here, I would have said no. Unbelieveable things, far more unbelieveable than this, have happened."

I sighed. "I guess I can't blame you," I told her with a shrug. "Look, Miranda, I have alot of respect for you...but I just want you to have a little faith, but its your choice."

I bit my lip, almost saying I was probably the person in this room that liked Miranda the most, or didn't start out hating here...both Abby and Sarah had hated her, if I recalled right, on their first playthroughs. Sarah's hate was notable, and I was pretty sure I saw her giving Miranda a glare.

Miranda tended to ignore it, either that or she didn't notice...and then a horrible thought sprung into my head. Sarah didn't like Miranda, sorta like Jack...what if eventually they had some kind of fight like those two did? Sarah wasn't quite so aggresive like Jack, and she didn't get tortured like Cerberus, but Miranda seemed to take the littlest thing the wrong way.

_Lets hope it doesn't come to that..like I told Abby, I trust Sarah...but then again, she did tell the man funding this whole thing that smoking was bad for him..._

I put it out of my mind for now. We had to deal with one day at a time right now, and I was anxious for Shepard to get back with Garrus to prove that we were right about more than one thing. Hopefully, they would walk in and that would give everyone en-

Then suddenly, something sprang into my mind. "Oh _dang_," I said outloud, shocked at how we all had forgotten this.

Miranda's eyebrows raised. "What?"

"Um...oh nothing." I said, glancing to Abby and Sarah. "Lets just say...be ready for a surprise liftoff in a little while."

Sarah's face went blank for a moment, as though she wasn't sure what I meant. Then realization dawned on her features, and there was a look of anticipation. I knew she was looking forward to meeting Garrus. But for some reason... she also looked a little... embarrassed?

Miranda's eyes flared with suspicion, especially after seeing the look on Sarah's face. "Whats wrong?" she asked in her cold tone.

Sarah seemed to blush a little, lowering her gaze. "Ummm..." She made a noise, somewhere between a cough and a throat-clearing sound. "I... like Turians," she said simply, and turned her head away.

"You like Turians?" Miranda asked, and I couldn't quite get a grip on how she was responding to this...shock? Disgust? Wondering what the hell this had to do with anything? I was actually surprised that Sarah came out and said that so bluntly. "Thats what you both are babbling about?"

"Its a recent discovery for her," I clarified. "I just randomly remembered it, and it still kinda takes me off guard."

"If it's okay... I just want to listen to my music for a while." Sarah said, more or less excusing herself from the entire discussion. She then walked over to one of the beds, grabbed her CD player, and put on her headphones.

"She daydreams about turians sometimes," Abby said, with a shrug and smirk.

Miranda was looking at us like we were all unstable. She just shook her head, sighing.

However, before anything more could be said, Joker's voice could be heard over the comm. Abby looked like she was about to die of amazement. "We've got to go make an emergency pick-up, apparently there was a problem while trying to recruit Archangel. He's been injured."

I wondered if I should sigh out of sadness or not, or if I should just keep it concealed that we knew about this. I glanced at Abby one last time, but she didn't say much one way or another.

Miranda looked at us as if she was going to ask us if we knew about this, but she just clenched her fist. "Damnit! We need him!" she screamed outloud in frusteration. "I'm heading up to help Shepard get him on board. If you dare try to screw anythin-"

"We'll be fine, I think _Garrus _needs you more right now," Abby told her, emphasizing Archangel's true identity.

As we felt the ship lift off, I nearly felt like grabbing something. Obviously, I had never actually felt a ship take off...Abby seemed excited, still, and Sarah was off listening to music, but I couldn't help and grab onto something out of pure instinct.

The Normandy was soon zooming around Omega, obviously locking onto the coordinates of Garrus's base, and Abby stood. "Come on...lets go see how he is when they bring him in. We never actually see what gets to happen between when he gets hit and when he's healed..and it'll get me closer to Joker!"

I blinked. "We aren't supposed to go beyond this deck, and wouldn't we get in the way?" I asked, concerned.

Abby snorted. "I doubt anyone has the time to focus on two teenagers coming up when they are trying to get a nearly-dead turian to Chakwas," she replied. "And the Normandy has a big command deck."

I glanced to Sarah. "What about her?" I asked.

"She seems pretty well distracted at the moment." Abby answered.

I sighed...what harm could it do, after all? And I would admit, part of me wanted to see everyone's faces when they saw it was really Garrus. "Okay...lets go."

I took a deep breath as Abby darted out of the room, with me following at a slower pace. I was expecting EDI to pop up and tell us to stay put, but she didn't...she didn't have total control of the Normandy yet, so maybe she could only focus on so many things at a time, and getting to Garrus was the top priority.

We both headed to the elevator, and went up to Deck 2. It only took thirty seconds or so, but I could feel the Normandy going as fast as it could while the elevator slowly accelerated upwards. Once it stopped and the doors opened, we spotted all but a few crew members gathered around the airlock.

Abby ran forward, and without thinking, I rushed forward as well. I saw Miranda in front of everyone, with Shepard, Jacob, and Zaeed all carefully hauling Garrus in on a stretcher that someone had probably provided from Deck 3.

"Damn, it _is_ him," Miranda muttered, with a slight gasp.

I actually felt a bit smug at that moment, just because of how Miranda was, and how she'd been so resistant to believe us...and now we had more proof for her, even if Garrus's life was at stake. However, I expected him to survive, just like he did in the game...

But did we possibly alter things by telling Shepard of his identity?

How could we, though? How could that little fact damage whether Garrus lives or dies? It all depends on how the medical equipment operates, and unless we somehow caused Chakwas to go stupid or everything to maulfunction, nothing could go wrong. Everything had happened pretty close to how it was supposed to already.

With several random crew members now helping lift the stretcher, they darted towards us, and both Abby and I jumped back as they ran through...Shepard didn't even seem to acknowledge us, but I knew she had to be focused on Garrus. And thats how she should be.

They all crammed themselves into the elevator, and I was amazed that it actually held all of them...within milliseconds, it was already shut and likely heading down to Deck 3.

"Wow...just wow." I muttered. That was all I could say right now.

"Somehow, its not that different from how I imagined it." Abby told me, looking in the direction of the elevator. "Lets just hope Sarah's curiosity about meeting Garrus doesn't come around at the wrong time...and while we're up here, I may as well go meet Jok-"

"This is not really the time for that either." I told her, smiling sarcastically.

Abby rolled her eyes. "Okay, okay, lets get back down there...but I am going to meet Joker soon!" she vowed.

_Oh I bet you will,_ I thought to myself.

After we were sure that they were down in Deck 3, we took the elevator back down there, and I could see some crew members outside the MedBay...others were inside, including Shepard, Jacob, and Miranda. I had no clue where that downloadable character went.

"We better go tell Sarah," I decided, with Abby nodding in agreement.

We then proceeded to our quarters, prison, or whatever it was, seeing Sarah still listening to her music. I approached her to where she could see me and know I was talking to her. "Uh, Sarah...they just brought Garrus in."

Sarah looked sharply at me and practically ripped her headphones off of her head and put her CD player aside. "What?" she asked, as if wanting to make sure she heard right.

"They just brought Garrus in on a stretcher...everything happened exactly like in the game," I told her, sighing slightly. "I think he's in the Medical Bay now."

Suddenly, as though she were filled with a burst of energy, Sarah moved quickly. She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood up, moving toward the door. "I want to meet him," she exclaimed.

"Um, Sarah..." I started, not sure whether to put this bluntly or not...though she knew this, and now I was a little confused. "He's in critical condition...I don't think now is the time to meet him."

Sarah hesitated, then sighed. She then moved away from the door. "Well, how will we know when I can talk to him?" she muttered aloud.

"According to the game..." Abby said, looking like she was thinking long and hard. "Its hours until he's released."

Sarah made a face, then she walked over to the bed she had more or less claimed for herself and plopped down on it. She released a sigh and grabbed her CD player again, although she did not put the headphones back on. "Bummer," she muttered. "Everything is realtime now... I should have expected it. But I gotta say it's SO much easier when time could pass as quickly as it took for the loading screen to come and go." She sounded frustrated and impatient.

Abby nodded in agreement, sighing. "Yeah...I want to meet Joker already. There's alot more waiting than there is in the game."

"Um, honestly...I think we may have more pressing matters to attend to at the moment. Shepard's probably going to want to talk to us aga-" I started.

Just at that moment, Shepard, Miranda, and Jacob all entered. Jacob leaned against the wall, and Shepard didn't have a firm expression either way...Miranda looked flustered. No different than usual.

"How's Garrus?" Sarah asked intently.

"He took a pretty bad hit, the doc's gonna have a hard time," Jacob replied, just staring at us.

"So, you were right," Shepard said, still in such a controlled manner. I had to wonder how, even if she was a character that was created and partially specified, she handled all of this so well. "Archangel was Garrus...but you didn't tell me about this."

"We already explained why," Abby told her in a very gentle, and almost pleaful, tone. I think we all direly hoped that she understood. "We can't tell you everything because it could alter things...we had to tell you some things to get your trust."

For the first time, Shepard let some frusteration out. "That is a very old friend of mine...and I don't have the intention of losing him as fast as I got him back. I feel like you should have told me."

_She is a Paragon, right? A total Paragon? Please don't tell me she's going to randomly go Renegade..._

"Hey I care about what happens to him too," Sarah spoke up suddenly. She looked straight at Shepard, although her fingers tightened around the edges of her CD player, as if for support. "Don't worry, he's not going to die. And when he's up and around again, I'd really like to see him." She smiled tentatively.

"You know he's not going to die?" Jacob asked, obviously not totally trusting us, as well. At least he wasn't like Miranda.

I nodded. "Positive...everything's already in motion, I don't think it can change now."

Miranda looked at Sarah with more fire in her eyes than earlier. "You want to see him? You want to see him?" she boomed. "You come onto this ship randomly, somehow predicting everything about our mission, and you want to see him? Just because you like turians doesn't grant you a right to visit with one under these circumstances!"

Sarah's face twisted as she stared at Miranda. Her expression was now somewhere between indignation and hurt. Her eyes narrowed into a scowl. "No offense or anything," she said in a darker tone than she usually used, "but I never liked your attitude. I hope your sister isn't too much like you."

Then her eyes grew wide with horror, as she realized what she had slipped out.

Miranda's eyes went wider than ever, and a gasp escaped her lips. She looked like she was about to fall down in horror and shock.

"Sister?" Shepard asked.

"Oh _SHIT_!" Abby yelled, probably out of pure shock. I had to admit, I was feeling the same way as her.

Jacob was just staring at Miranda, he probably knew about her sister..or maybe he didn't, I couldn't quite recall the conversations she had about who knew about her sister outside of Niket and Cerberus. However, either way, he seemed equally stunned that we knew.

"Its what we've been saying all along," I said, trying to get everyone to just believe us. This was getting incredibly out of hand. "We know these things, we just do, we can't say everything, and that wasn't intended to be said bu-"

"There is no way in HELL that came up in some dr-" Miranda started, getting incredibly defensive.

"Enough!" Shepard yelled, keeping that controlled tone even now, but raising the volume of her voice. "We are all getting way too worked up about all of this. I may care about my crew, but I refuse to let these kind of fights break out on my ship! We are getting majorly off focus here. The main objective right now is to hope that Garrus lives..and outside of that, the focus is to stop the Collectors, no matter who or what comes up."

Miranda just shook her head. "I'll be in my office." she said, darting off.

Shepard sighed. "I need to go talk to her," she said, turning to leave herself.

I took a very deep breath, looking at Sarah and Abby. "Well..that was...interesting."

"You three do this to every group of people you meet?" Jacob asked curiously.

"We try not to, believe me." I simply replied.

Sarah plopped herself down onto the bed again and sighed a little. "They call me the jinx back home," she muttered, yet looked slightly amused in spite of herself.

Jacob actually laughed. "Lets hope you three don't carry these habits around too much longer."

A few hours later, we were up in the briefing room...Abby, Sarah, and I had been called there first, because there was news on Garrus and Shepard wanted to speak to us briefly, anyway. We had all taken some time to cool off after that encounter earlier, and I was hoping that Shepard hadn't already lost Miranda's 'loyalty'...if it could be called that now.

Though, who said she was even on our side?

Shepard then came through the doors, sighing. "Before you ask, I don't know about Garrus yet. I need to talk to you three first."

"How's Miranda?" I asked with a gulp.

"She's not a field of roses, but she never is. I talked her down," Shepard replied, putting her hands down on the table, obviously still soaking all of this in. "I now see why you don't want to reveal too many things...but don't make a habit of it. If things keep up like this, this ship is going to be more of a circus than it already is."

"Don't worry," I said immediately, feeling like I was speaking for all of us here. "We won't reveal anything more like that, unless the situation calls for it, or you really need it. You were going to find that out anyway, just...not so soon."

"All she told me was that her sister was like a twin..a clone of herself, sort of, and I already knew about Miranda's origin," Shepard explained, tilting her head. "But I really think we need to leave the subject be for now."

Jacob came in, almost on que, and Shepard instantly looked up at him. Despite what we told her, she still seemed concerned. "Whats the verdict?"

"Well...he took a pretty bad hit, Shepard. The doctors have been working on him for hours...his face really got hit hard. I don't think he'll be up and around for aw-" Jacob started.

But just like in the game, he was cut off when Garrus Vakarian himself walked in. "Surprise, Commander." he told her, smirking as he walked in, with half of his face fried now.

I couldn't help but grin, myself.

Sarah was staring at the Turian with widened eyes and she gasped softly. She seemed frozen in place, unable to move or speak. There was a look of... pure awe on her features, as if she was simply trying to accept the fact that her favorite Turian was now standing right before her.

"Tough son of a bitch. Didn't think he'd be up yet," Jacob commented. He looked a bit taken off guard by this, himself, but I knew that would happen.

"Nobody would give me a mirror," Garrus said as he walked in. "How bad is it?"

Shepard laughed. "Hell, Garrus, you were always ugly...just splash some face paint on there and you're good to go."

Garrus chuckled, but then grunted. "Don't make me laugh, damnit. I'm still sore...my face is barely holding it together as it is."

Jacob, obviously feeling that he was no longer needed, saluted and left. Garrus gave him a simple look, and I knew that the inevitable comment that every old crew member made about Cerberus was coming up.

"Frankly, I'm more worried about you. I've heard some bad things about Cerberus these past few years..." Garrus said, also looking at us. I assumed that Shepard didn't exactly have the time to tell him about the psychic youths galavanting around, so he probably thought we were Cerberus like Jacob.

"Thats why I'm glad to have you, Garrus. If I'm walking into hell, I want someone that I trust at my side." Shepard told him, smiling lightly.

_Ah, so that line remains the same. So she still doesn't trust anyone, including us...not that I can really blame her right now._

"Hah, you realize that means I'm walking into hell too. Just like old times." Garrus told her, still smirking at the entire situation.

**(Sarah)**

In some ways, it felt like a dream was playing out before me, and I almost forget that HK and Abby were there at all. I was also simply _itching_ for a chance be able to speak up and approach Garrus. But there were two reasons why I held back. One was because, well... I was on their turf, and I'd already been pretty stupid so far at times. Another reason was because I'd learned over the years that sometimes, it was better to stay quiet unless spoken to, or unless I found an opening to speak. That lead to less embarrassment, and less awkward situations.

But I also knew that I didn't want Garrus to simply walk out before I had a chance to meet him or talk to him. I just wanted a few minutes with him, surely that couldn't be so much to ask. Even if I somehow made a fool out of myself, even if he wanted nothing to do with me for the rest of the mission after this... it would be worth it. Unless I did something REALLY stupid, of course.

"Garrus?" I spoke up suddenly, interrupting the conversation between him and Shepard. I spoke more loudly than I'd intended, and I was already starting to feel a bit sheepish because of it.

Garrus and Shepard suddenly stopped their small talk to glance at me. Shepard stayed quiet, while Garrus looked like he was observing all three of us very closely. "Ah, death really has changed you, Commander...I don't recall you inviting kids onto the Normandy back in the old days." he said in that cool, but joking, tone of his.

"Its a long story, Garrus. But one of them has been really looking forward to meeting you," Shepard said, gesturing to me.

"Ah, really? I'm flattered, miss..." Garrus started, looking right at me.

I swallowed, inhaling any-or at least most of-the nervousness I felt. I also tried to shove aside those unpleasent memories of what happened with that drunk Turian in Afterlife as I boldly walked forward, extending my hand toward the turian in front of me. "Sarah," I said, wondering if he would shake my hand. To say he was "larger than life" in person somehow seemed accurate. His eye-visor, his scars, hell even his teeth... they somehow seemed even more real now, in front of me.

"Interesting...how the hell do you know about me, though? I'm not exactly a household name...unless you lived on Omega and knew about my...ah, work." Garrus said very slowly. He seemed like he was curious yet suspicious, like everyone else had been, at the same time.

I dropped my hand. Maybe it wasn't the Turian habit to shake hands. Or maybe he just didn't want to touch me or something. "I know stuff about you," I said just as slowly. I suddenly glanced toward Shepard, then at Abby and HK. Somehow... I just wanted to talk to him alone, not in front of an audience. "Can I talk to you for a sec, somewhere private?" I asked. At least as private as it got on this ship, with EDI everywhere, I thought.

Garrus glanced at Shepard, who smiled lightly. "Don't worry, she's not an assassin." she said.

Garrus laughed once again. "Ha, do you really think I need to worry about assassins?" he asked. "I suppose there's no problem with speaking privately..though I must say I am still confused. I was planning on heading down to the gunnery station, maybe you could follow."

I nodded and smiled. "Sure," I said. "That would be great." I then tried to keep a more casual expression. We were just going to have a chit-chat, after all. There was no reason to act all giddy as if he had invited me to a movie or something. Then again, it was not every day that you got to meet one of your favorite characters, after all.

Now if only I could meet Spock, Dinobot, and Prowl. Then I could die happy.

Garrus turned to the door, motioning for me to follow. HK and Abby were both looking partially amused, and partially taken off guard, especially HK...and I wouldn't be surprised if Abby were jealous, just because she hadn't gotten to meet Joker yet.

Garrus walked over to Shepard. "Its too bad everyone still flirts with me instead of you, Commander," he said, laughing again.

"Oh, very funny, Garrus, you know I don't swing that way." she said, grinning at the joke.

"I don't know, I always thought Liara and you had something going on...I'm not so sure Kaiden wasn't one of those cover-ups that people in the government do, though then again, the reason I always liked you was because you didn't put up with that. But I'm sure there's someone on this ship..." he said, trying to grin now, as he motioned for me to follow.

With that, we headed to Garrus's station on the ship. I kept my head down as we walked and stayed completely silent. I already knew that Garrus was the type who liked to tease. But did he have to go and embarrass me like that?

Then again, I always knew I was a bit sensitive. I didn't like to be the subject of jokes, so to speak.

Once we entered the gunnery, the door closed behind us. Garrus cast a glance toward me as he positioned himself at the console.

"So, as much as I'd like to say that having a fan makes me totally happy, you can't blame me for still being a little curious after having every single big merc group try to kill me," Garrus said, while trying to examine the console. "And I doubt Shepard liked me so much as to talk about me non-stop."

"She didn't even mention you at all," I said slowly and carefully, trying to choose my words so I wouldn't say anything stupid again. "I mean, when my friends and I mentioned you, she said you were a good friend of hers, but she said nothing else."

I paused for a moment, glancing down at my shoes, then continued. Hey, I have black boots on? First time I noticed. "Anyway... well..." Okay, now I was starting to sound like an idiot. I was stumbling around trying to think of something to say.

Finally, I decided to start with something simple, just to see how he would react. "I know some stuff about your father," I said, looking at him again. Of course, I still haven't played the first game, but I knew some stuff from watching clips. Thank God for youtube. "You always thought he was too... rigid. You like doing things your own way, without rules and regulations hindering you." I fell silent.

Garrus paused for a moment, no doubt a bit surprised. "How do you know all of this? I don't see how Shepard didn't talk to you...I know I was one of her crew, but not that famous..." he said, very slowly as he turned back to look at me. "You know, you are lucky that you're on Shepard's team...otherwise, I would really be tempted to lock you up and find out who sent you and why...but if you are working with Shepard, then I take it that you aren't...totally bad. So consider yourself fortunate, but I still don't get it."

That was when reality-this crazy new reality I was in-began to sink in a little more. Garrus was taller than me, definitely, plus I could tell he was strong. It dawned on me that even if he wasn't highly skilled in martial arts, he would probably be able to kill me without too much effort. That fact made me nervous, and I began to thank God and count my lucky stars that Shepard had indeed taken my friends and I under her wing.

I wasn't even wearing that stupid armor anymore... I had taken it off in the "brig". So I was a bit vulnerable... yet still a little determined.

Then I decided to try saying something else, just for the heck of it. After all... I had caused enough trouble and enough drama, sometimes indirectly, on the internet. Call me insane, but... maybe, just once, I wanted to try my hand at it in a real-life situation, just once. Well okay... just twice. I had actually forgotten about the Miranda episode.

I chose to say one simple word aloud. "Sidonis." I braced myself.

Garrus was obviously taken aback, much like Miranda, but didn't start screaming...instead, he reached back, and grabbed his rifle, proceeding to cause a few clicks to make sure it was loaded. He didn't hold it up, but had it there. "How do you know that name? Is he the one that sent you? No offense, but I didn't think he'd be that stupid..."

My eyes widened when I saw him holding his gun. Well, I wanted to be crazy, correct? Now he thought I might be working with the traitor. I sucked in a breath, trying to regain my composure. "Umm..." Suddenly I wished Abby was there. She was better at coming up with things to say on the spot than I was. "I-I'm not working with him." I took a couple of steps back, toward the door, though I made no attempt to run. That just might make me look guilty if I tried it. "But I know he betrayed you. Because of him, some gang killed the other ten men that was in your group."

Garrus didn't let go of the rifle, but didn't raise it just yet, either. "But if you're not working for him, then how? Barely anyone knows that."

"I... I..." I was stammering now. "I can see things," I finally said. "Like... things that haven't happened yet. Just ask Shepard when you get a chance. Abby and HK and myself told her that we would find you even before she knew that you were Archangel." I was babbling now. I just didn't want him to do anything stupid with that gun.

Garrus stared for a moment, in silence...for a brief second, he almost raised the gun, but then it seemed like something clicked in his brain, and he stopped...slowly, very slowly, he began to put it back. "You are very fortunate that I happened to go on a journey with one of the few people that had visions..." he said as he slipped it back into its proper place. "If I hadn't worked with Shepard, I'd think you would be giving me a pile of crap...hell, you still may be..but if I really thought you were lying to me, I would waste no time in getting information out of you. However, the Council refused to see the truth...no, they refuse to see the truth to this day, and I'm not going to be like them or C-Sec. Thats why I became a merc in the first place. Again, you're one lucky girl, Sarah."

Yeah, I guess I was lucky. Unlucky at the same time. Isn't that how it usually worked? I was so lucky to be here. Any fan of Mass Effect would love to be in my shoes right now. Yet if this guy had somehow gone crazy on me... I could either be in the infirmary right now, or worse. That was the downside of it.

"I know where he is," I muttered under my breath, before I could stop myself. Then, fearing that I was saying too much, I turned and moved toward the door.

Garrus's eyes went wide. "You...wait, no, I shouldn't..." he said, almost having conflict within himself. "Hell, no, this may be my only chance...where is he? I've been looking to kill the bastard for what he did for months."

I was silent for a moment. At least he wasn't freaking out on me like Miranda did, and at least he put the gun away. Of course, I didn't blurt out sensitive personal information in front of a crowd, either. If anything, I had just told him good news, to his ears at least.

"Look," I finally said, turning to look at him again, "do you really want to kill him?" Images from the game flashed through my mind... and after seeing what Zaeed did to that poor Batarian on Omega... well, I did not like the thought of that sort of thing happening to anyone else. At all. No matter who they were.

"Of course I do," Garrus said, being firm in what he was saying, but not raising his voice at all. "Sidonis was a coward and a traitor...he killed all of my men, innocent men...and has gotten away with it. He's been hiding, like cowards do, ever since...he deserves to die. Its justice for me and the people that died thanks to him."

"Yeah well... what if I told you that he feels horrible for what he did?" I said slowly, not quite looking at him now. He did not appear threatening, but he did have an... intense look about him. "He loses sleep every night over what he did and I think he even has nightmares about it."

Garrus shook his head. "I'm sorry...maybe you're right, but that has to be something I'll see for myself. That man didn't seem to feel horrible when it actually happened...he deserves to pay, and I can't believe that he's changed just like that."

"He felt like he didn't have a choice," I told him. Man, I was horrible at doing this... whatever I was doing exactly. But at least I knew he wasn't going to shoot me. "He was forced to it because some gang threatened to kill him if he didn't."

I sighed. Was this really such a good idea? Maybe I had only succeeded in screwing things up, because now he just might be more distracted about this. "Look, maybe I should just leave you alone," I said, moving toward the door again. "Can you open the door please?" I asked.

"Yeah...probably for the best. Listen, thanks, but this is just...alot to take in. Shepard's alive. I nearly die. Sidonis is out there...I'm going to need some time to think about it...maybe even before I ask you where he is, even if I sure as hell want to know right now...if I even can find the time in the middle of this mission. That comes first, but...I just need time to process all of this...thanks, though, I...think you meant well." Garrus said, as he went over and opened the door.

"Yeah, I'll talk you later," I said, and quickly slipped out the door and hurried down the hall. In some ways... I wasn't sure what just happened. Was I trying to be his friend back there or something? Maybe. I doubted we were, though. I also figured that if I kept saying stupid things, or speaking without thinking... I probably wasn't going to have any friends around here except HK and Abby. And maybe Shepard.

Right now, it might be best if I just... got back to Abby and HK. Wherever they were right now. Ah well, if nothing else... I could just ask EDI to help me.


	7. Talking with turians

**(Abby)**

I wandered away with Jacob, grateful that now, at least, Shepard didn't seem too adverse to our walking about the ship. Shepard looked tired, all strung-out and ready for bed, dark circles like imprints underneath her eyes. She'd taken off her N7 armor in her quarters and had come back to the Command Deck wearing military-issued fatigues this time instead of that strange suit she'd been dressed in last time. I wasn't pleased. I'd been hoping she would stay in her room and get some much-needed sleep, but it looked like she still wanted to keep an eye on us. After a quick conversation with Jacob, she left. I wondered if Jacob was going to be my de facto babysitter for the day. HK had wandered off behind Shepard, throwing a cautious look my way as he passed. He was probably talking to Joker right now... lucky.

Jacob and I didn't talk much as he worked. In the game he'd stayed close to his computer, standing endlessly, but I could see now that a small chair had been set up for his conveinance. He wasn't using it, though; he was walking around the armory, checking and double-checking the weapons.

"You ever fire one of these babies before?" he asked finally, holding out a pistil. I took it gingerly, shaking my head. "Have you ever fired a weapon before?"

"Yes," I said, "but only with the older guns. I shot a Glock once."

"That's an old one," he said. He took the pistil from my hand and placed it back on its designated table. "So you say you can see the future, but you can't fight. That's-"

"I can fight," I said stiffly. "I've been fighting for six years."

He blinked. "Where did you train?"

"I took Shaolin Kempo until a year or two ago. It's getting closer to two. I had to leave, so I started Aikido. I like Aikido a lot more than Shaolin Kempo, though. The peacefulness side of it really appeals to me." I laughed hurmorously. When I'd been taking Kempo, I'd had a violent streak. I don't get in fights and I try to have an even temper, but in Kempo I couldn't help but be unhappy with how thoughts of violence dominated my life. Aikido was a peaceful, smooth transition. "I'm not great at it, but I'm getting insights I never saw before. I hope to progress to the stage one day where if I'm attacked, I'll use pure Aikido on them instead of my Kempo. But I have too much muscle memory for destroy and subjugate that I'm really having trouble."

My small rant seemed to have caught him by surprise. "Well, that's good you're trying to be all peaceful," he said, frowning. "How old did you say you were, again?"

"I'm fourteen."

"You don't act like any teenager I've seen."

"That's because I'm different," I said, shrugging. "I don't think I'm better than anybody, of course, but I just have different... priorities."

"Such as?"

EDI was probably assessing my psyche profile. I might as well give her the satisfaction. "I don't waste time on stupid crushes or... 'middle-school drama.' I'm here to get the job done, enjoy what time I can enjoy, and try to work through the parts I'll hate."

"'Parts you'll hate,'" he echoed. "You sound like you got it all figured out."

"Only the important stuff," I chuckled. "But unless it's absolutely neseccary, we're not doling out any more information. So I'm not going to mention Legion or anything. Oops." I grimaced. "Forget I said that name."

He blinked. "Done."

"Oh, good then." I grinned apologetically. "I'm sorry about Sarah back there, making Miranda blow off the handle like that. She will cool down soon, right?"

"Oh, yeah, Miranda's just not that used to having people in her personal business," Jacob said thoughtfully. "But she's probably trying to fit you in with just about every known information broker out there. I wouldn't doubt that she just foreworded a mission report to the Illusive Man."

I nodded, resigned to this already.

"I'm still trying to figure you out, too," Jacob continued. "I just can't bring myself to believe that you're... you."

I shrugged. "I'm me."

"That's what's weird. Just being able to tell the future doesn't explain, for example, how you got on to the Normandy undetected."

I grinned. "You know I can't tell you that." I turned my face up towards the intercom. "EDI? We just randomly appeared in the cargo bay, didn't we?"

"Yes, Abby," EDI said hesitantly, if an AI could hesitate. "Out of thin air. I am still hypothesizing on that."

"I know. I'm sorry we're putting the crew in such disarray. It's good we came in the beginning instead of right near the end."

Jacob sighed. "Will we ever get the full story?"

"Ah... probably not."

"But you're not with the Shadow Broker or anybody else?"

"Nope. There's no records of us anywhere, I don't think."

"And you've never shot a gun, never knew about armor, and forgot how heat sinks work in technical terms?"

"Yup."

"But you've shot a Glock."

"I'm surprised you still know what that is." I grinned.

"When's your birthday?" he asked suddenly.

"October 11."

"Year?"

"Ha! Nice try." It was 1995, but I didn't want to weird him out. "So was Sarah alright on the trip? She didn't freak out when she saw Zaeed or anything, did she?"

"She drank krogan ryncol," Jacob said, shaking his head. "I thought she was joking at first, but..." He gave one humorless laugh.

My face froze in whatever expression it had been adapting before. "She... drank... krogan-?"

"Didn't you notice how tipsy she was when Shepard got her back?"

My mouth was working, mouthing profanities I couldn't voice out loud. I abruptly turned around and began to march out of the room. "EDI, where the hell is Sarah?" I snapped.

"Asleep in the elevator. I was about to ask Yeoman Chambers to retrieve her."

"Oh, _I'm_ going to retrieve her ass," I hissed.

I stomped outside, ignoring Kelly's shocked look. "Uh, Commander Shepard-?"

I activated the elevator call button, crossed my arms... and waited.

She was sitting in the corner, dozing obliviously with her head thrown back. A slight snore came out of the throat. Kelly gasped behind me, but I was well ahead of her. I took two steps and knelt down to look at her. "You are in trouble," I said slowly, enumerating the words carefully. "Enormous trouble. If you don't wake up, I am hitting you, and it will be neither pleasant nor forgetable."

Sarah's eyelids snapped open and she quickly looked up at me. She blinked, then her eyes narrowed. "What?" she said, sounding confused. "Did something happen?"

"Did you drink krogan ryncol?" I hissed in her face. "After I specifically said _'don't drink anything?_'"

A small look of horror crossed Sarah's face, pretty much confirming her guilt. She was silent for a moment, as if trying to decide whether to try making an excuse-or possibly lying-or to simply own up to it. "Only a _little bit_," she finally said, putting very heavy emphasis on the words "little bit".

"You are _twenty-one_! I am _fourteen!_ If even _I_ know not to drink it, and you do, that's really, really _STUPID_! Did you get sick? Are you okay?"

"Twenty-three," Sarah corrected me with a trace of annoyance and sarcasm. "And I didn't drink much of it. It just about killed me when I took a sip though, and the next thing I knew..." She made a face. "I was flirting with a random Turian who sat down next to me at the bar."

My eyes were wide, and I knew I looked quite demented. Jacob had followed me out, and was standing next to Kelly with a strange look on his face. "Sarah," I said in an undertone, "There is a batarian bartender there that poisons the drinks of every human that walks in," I hissed. "There was a reason I said don't drink it. A reason! Besides the obvious reasons, of course, you know, like getting drunk in front of Aria! That's a reason! Do you know how close you came to nearly dying? I bet the only reason you didn't choke up and die right then was because Shepard's temporarily under Aria's protection! Ugh! You should-you-you should go brush your teeth and go to bed! Or something!"

Sarah pulled herself to her feet and gave me an indignant look. "First of all," she began in a defensive tone, "maybe you should have told me all of this before. If I don't get all of the information up front, then I naturally assume that there is no reason behind the cautions except for general common sense or over-protectiveness." She smirked a little. "Or have you learned nothing about me these past few years?"

"Sarah," I said in a forcibly calm voice, "haven't you learned that sense isn't common? Especially with us! Just-urgh! You're crazy! My dad had to bring home a girl once who'd have Roofies slipped into her drink. There is a reason that you don't drink at bars! And that alien stuff can really screw up your insides. That was krogan stuff, really strong stuff!"

I closed my eyes and took a few deep breaths. "Will you listen to me in the future? Please? Because you're not as durable as Commander Shepard and we can't _reload_ a saved game if we die!"

She looked a bit ticked off, then simply nodded a little. "Yeah, I know this is... serious," she finally said. "And there's no savegames here." She sighed, looking toward the elevator controls. "Look, I'm gonna go back down to the level I was on for a while. I just want some time to myself. I already know what I did was stupid, okay?"

"S'long as you know that," I muttered. I sighed. "You didn't tell Garrus about our funny little secrets, did you? We shouldn't give out any more loyalty mission spoilers." I wasn't worried. Surely she could not be so crazy as to talk about Oriana and Sidonus all in one day. Ha!

Sarah smiled a small, tight smile. "No, of course not," she said with a shake of her head. "Now... I'm not trying to be rude or anything, but mind if I go down to the lower level now?" She placed her hand on the elevator control, but didn't touch anything yet. "You're in the elevator, and..." She shrugged her shoulders and tilted her head, obviously implying that if I didn't get off, I was going with her.

I sighed deeply and pressed the button. "I need to get on that deck, anyway," I muttered. I waved at Jacob as the doors closed. "I need to talk with Miranda and apologize about that thing with Oriana. If she considers us a security risk and kills us in our sleep, I will be very ticked."

**(Sarah)**

I simply nodded at Abby's words and stayed silent during most of the elevator ride. In truth, my head was still throbbing a little from drinking that... stuff. My throat still hurt a little, too. And I simply did not feel like talking all that much. For some reason, I swear that going to sleep only made the discomforts a little... worse. Unless maybe it was just my imagination.

The elevator came to a stop. Abby was still saying something but I was ignoring her for the most part. Yeah part of me felt bad about it, and I was sure I would feel even more guilty later if I dwelled on it later. But was it really my fault that I felt so crappy right now?

...Yes. I scowled at nothing in particular. And I hoped Abby didn't notice.

We passed by the mess hall area and then split up as we each went in a different direction. Abby was headed toward Miranda's office, and I was going to the gunnery to talk to Garrus. Why, exactly? I had no idea. It wasn't like me and Garrus were friends or anything. I was pretty sure I had weirded him out before. For all I knew, he might just tell me to get out or something. Though I knew Garrus wouldn't be THAT rude.

I approached the door to the gunnery and... well, since there wasn't really much option to knock, I simply entered. "Hey, Garrus?" I said aloud as I walked in, though I didn't get too close to him.

Garrus didn't turn. "Yes? Does the Commander need me?"

Okay, so maybe it really was stupid to come in here at all. "Am I bothering you?" I asked simply. Perhaps it would be a good idea for me to leave.

Garrus frowned. "I don't know," he said. "I...I really have to check these calibrations."

In other words, he didn't want to be bothered. Still, I knew that if I walked out that door right now, I would just feel like an idiot and like I wasted his and my time. So I didn't want to walk out without saying anything. "Can I ask you something? I... just wanted to ask you something," I finally blurted out.

"Okay," he said. "Shoot." He still wasn't looking at me. I wondered how badly I'd upset him with my casual mention of the man who betrayed him.

"Okay," I echoed on impulse. "Do you think it's stupid for a human to drink ryncol?"

"Very," he said without preamble. "Krogans and humans don't have the same gene structure. Turians and quarians can't eat human food. If you drink ryncol..." He shrugged. "It's bound to have some kind of lasting effect. Best bet is to stick to stuff from your own species." I wondered if his last words there had a double-meaning.

"Yeah... I tried some ryncol in Afterlife a few hours ago, and it just about killed me," I said with a weak chuckle. Why was I telling him this? It wasn't like he needed to know or anything. Then again, sometimes I had a habit of babbling about something I did, or something that happened to be, especially after being chewed out about it. Maybe I just liked to get other opinions. "I couldn't even drink it all."

His 'whiskers' seemed to twitch in surprise. "You'll probably feel the full effects of it later," he said after a long pause. "But you might want to go see Doctor Chakwas. She's in the room across from the kitchen."

I made a face. "I don't like going to see a doctor unless I'm actually dying," I said slowly. It was true enough, I did not like going to see a doctor. I paused for a moment, thinking. "I'm not dying, after touching that stuff, am I?" I asked out loud.

Garrus shrugged. "I'm not a human. I don't know. Most likely you'll just have trouble digesting things for the next few days until it washes out of your system. Drink lots of water... and don't do it again. Have you spoken to your friends about this?"

"Sort of," I said, making a face. "Well, one of them somehow found out that I drank the stuff and she basically told me how stupid I was for doing it." I moved over to sit on the nearby crate, like I had seen Shepard do in the game when she was talking to Garrus. I really hoped he wouldn't mind. "I guess she was right, though. She had good reasons for telling me not to, and I should have listened to her. I guess it's just... I don't like getting yelled at for something stupid I did if I feel like the results of the stupid action are punishment enough, you know?"

"Sometimes the point has to be driven home, though," said Garrus. "Besides, it's better if other people recognize the failure, too. Recognizing it yourself is all well and good, but it gets... frustrating if there is nobody there to critisize your work."

"Heh," I muttered as I thought over what he said. "Yeah well... umm..." I hesitated, trying to figure out how to phrase this. "Maybe this sounds stupid. But... it feels like it would be better, and less painful and embarrassing, if the people who are closest to me never noticed the stupid things I do. Like... well," I fiddled with my hair, unsure if I was even making sense. "Nevermind. I just care too much about what everyone thinks I guess." I chuckled nervously.

"Ah," Garrus said. "So... is that all you came down here to ask?"

"Um... yeah I guess," I said with a shrug. But I did not make any move to get up.

"So... since you're here... I was wondering if I could ask a quesiton. I was going to ask Shepard, but you're a human, too." I looked up, interested. "What are... cookies?"

I stared at him. That was what he really wanted to know? I felt a little... perplexed. Maybe even slightly disappointed. I wasn't sure what I was expecting him to ask. But not... that. "Well..." I began slowly. "They're something that we eat. They're made of dough and sugar, and sometimes they have chocolate or nuts or something else in them. They're kinda like candy. You eat them as a treat, and not too much, or they can make you sick."

"And they're sweet? Or bitter?" Garrus asked. "There was a human on my team who used to make them, but turians can't eat human food. They smelled... odd."

I found myself grinning suddenly. "To us they smell sweet and they taste sweet," I said. Then I found myself getting curious about something. "What do you eat for a sweet or delicious treat?"

"We can eat most sugar and carbohydrate-based foods," Garrus said matter-of-factly. "So we have a... variant of a cookie, I suppose. I didn't try the cookies that were availible to me because it's human food." He glared at me. "Just like you shouldn't drink krogan ale."

Ugh, we did not need to approach that subject again. As far as I'm concerned, we're done with that topic. Krogan ale isn't for humans, and I was stupid for drinking it in the first place. Yes, lesson learned. Let's move on.

And so, I decided to change the subject. "I know a good joke," I said suddenly, with a smile. "Wanna hear?" I said it in a way that made clear I wasn't going to take no for an answer.

"Is it about the krogan drinking the turian? Because I heard that one before."

"Uh, no," I said slowly. I hesitated, trying to figure out the best way to begin the joke. Finally, I began. "Okay, so there's two Alliance soldiers who find a dead Quarian on their mission. They investigate the scene, and they find out that she was killed by biotics. She was thrown again the wall. One of them says, 'Looks like her suit ruptured and she got an infection.' Then the second one says, 'Yeah, she should have taken more...'" I paused for effect. "'Anti-biotics.'" I grinned, and waited to see his reaction.

He rolled his eyes. "Okay, now that's cheesy... but good. I'll admit it." He laughed.

My grin widened. "Do you know any good jokes?" I then asked in spite of myself.

"Uh, Joker's the guy to go for that sort of stuff," Garrus said. "I'm about to go to sleep, anyway." He finished a slight calibration and locked the terminal. He looked very tired, just like Shepard. "Maybe we'll talk later."

Part of me felt a little disappointed, although I couldn't think of anything else to say. And I definitely didn't want to keep him if he was that tired. "Yeah okay, thanks for talking," I said and moved toward the door.

(Abby)

"Miranda, I..."

Miranda glanced up from her work, waving a curtain of black hair out of her face. Cool blue eyes studied me dispassionately, and I took a deep breath before entering. "Did the Commander send you?" she asked stiffly.

"Nope, I sent myself. I wanted to say sorry about what happened back there... about Oriana. We won't tell anybody else. We're trying to get used to this, too, and we won't jeporadize your sister's safety. And if you ever need help, I guess we kind of owe you for that slip-up." I gave a small smile. "Forgiven?"

Miranda's eyes softened for a bit. "I shouldn't have reacted like that," she said. "It's my fault, as well. I have a bit of a temper, as you've probably noticed."

"We all have our tempers," I said.

Miranda stood and crossed towards the window, looking out at space. "You're being consistant with your story so far... all of you. And I don't want to trust you, especially with the information you dug up. It took months for the full story to hit the Illusive Man's ears. I'd just think you were another spy, except...

"I don't."

"Well... that's good," I said. "So... we cool?"

Miranda smiled and held out her hand. "It will be interesting working with you three... as long as you give us some illumination if something bad is going to happen. EDI believes your story, and she can't be fooled."

"Good," I said, nodding. "Can I come out on missions with you guys? After I get some training, I mean. I want to be ready... just in case."

"We'll see," Miranda said slowly. "I don't want any of you out there. You just don't have any experiance."

"I'll prove I can fight... somehow," I said. "What's our next stop? Mordin? When are we heading to see him?"

"A few hours. It's actually very late at night, or early in the morning. We found you around... eleven at night. It's five in the morning now."

"So the times are the same," I said, surprised by this new information. "Awesome. I'm real tired, but I had no idea what time it was here."

"Go, get your friends. Go to sleep."

"Yeah, good idea. Sorry, again."

"Just don't tell anybody." For the first time, Miranda looked nervous. "Oriana is the reason I joined Cerberus."

"I know. 'Night, Miranda."

I left, waving, and ran into HK and Sarah. They seemed to have been waiting for me.

"Well?" HK asked.

"She's not going to kill us," I assured him. "Come on, let's go to sleep. It's five in the morning and I'm tired." We went back to our quarters and I climbed up the bunkbed in the corner, sitting down comfortably on top. "I wonder if I'm going to wake up at my computer," I mused.

"I hope not," HK said. "This is too interesting. And I don't think we're dreaming."

"Even if we were dreaming, this has to be happening. Just because it's inside our head doesn't mean it's not real." I thought about that for a moment. "If I wake up tomorrow in a straight jacket, I'm going to be ticked."

Sarah didn't speak-she already passed out on her bed without taking her shoes off.

I just had a thought. "Ooo, sleepover," I told HK, and laughed at the weirdness of it all. "This is such a weird way to meet you guys."

"Indeed," said HK. "But it's interesting, at least."

"True..."

He laughed and sat down on a bed. Yawning, I got under the covers of mine and pulled them over my head. Then I noticed something, something odd... I didn't have glasses on. I took the covers off of my head and looked around, half-expecting everything to be disturbingly blurry, but no... it was all normal. I placed a finger on my eye and moved it around, looking for a contact lense.

Nothing. That was nice.

Figures, the only place I would have perfect vision would be in a videogame. Ah, well-at least we weren't in Gears of War!


	8. Mordin Solus

**Chapter 7 (HK)**

All of us knew that Sarah would definitely not be going on this mission. Shortly after she woke up she complained that her head hurt and she had a terrible stomach ache. Immediately after voicing those complaints, she got up and rushed into the bathroom. Abby and I could hear the sound of hacking and wretching over the next several minutes. Abby quickly left the room, a tortured look on her face, and I remembered vaugly that she had a very bad phobia of people throwing up. I probably wouldn't see her anywhere near Sarah for a long time. But, concerned for my friend, I stayed nearby in case Sarah needed help.

When Sarah finally came out, she looked awful. "Oh, God," she muttered as she staggered toward the bed.

Soon after that Shepard came into the room. After taking one look at Sarah, the commander insisted that she go to the medical bay immediately. Once there, the doctor gave Sarah some kind of medicine and then confined her to one of the sickbay beds for observation. It was plain that she wasn't going anywhere anytime soon.

After Sarah was safely in the Medical Bay, Shepard came back to our quarters, with arms crossed once again. Abby tailed behind her, looking somewhat more at ease now that Sarah had vacated the room. "She'll be alright, but she's going to have to stay in there for awhile...she's definitely not coming on the next mission." she told us.

I nodded, almost relieved. Sarah needed some time to just take it easy and relax after drinking krogan drinks and then revealing Oriana's existence. "Mordin, I presume?" I asked, about the mission.

Shepard nodded. "While I was in Afterlife, Aria told me about him...and the lockdown in that complex. I'm not even going to ask if you know or not," she said, turning to stare out into space for a moment. "Garrus needs time to rest after what took place at the base, so I'm bringing Miranda and Jacob...and I want you two to come."

Abby's eyes flashed with excitement and she hopped once. "Okay!"

I tried to keep composure on my face, but I felt like it just fell to the floor in fear. Was it exciting in its own way? Sure...but I was not a warrior. Fighting through the apartments would be like walking into hell...like anywhere else in the ME universe. "A-are you sure we'll be able to survive?" I asked.

"As long as_ you stay close to me_," Shepard answered, heavily emphasizing those last words. Probably because of what happened with Sarah.

I nodded. "Trust me, none of us are ones to go wandering off randomly...not even Sarah, despite what happened in Afterlife." I told her, nodding, even though I had no clue why. "Are you going to give us...weapons, or something?"

She raised a delicate eyebrow. "Will you need them?" she asked pointedly.

I honestly had no clue what to say. "Uh...well...I guess we could just...hide while you three shoot things..." I replied.

Shepard's eyebrow didn't go down. "I think you may be less dangerous to yourselves if you didn't have weapons..its not a matter of trusting you, its just the fact that no one knows how to use military weapons."

I nodded, a little relieved. "Probably for the best. When are we leaving?"

"I'd suggest putting on some armor...then meet the rest of us at the airlock." Shepard answered, turning to the door and exiting in the process.

I looked to Abby, still a mix of emotions. This would be horrifying, fun, and deadly all at the same time. "Well...what do you think?"

She looked grumpy. "No weapons," she said, outraged. "That's like offering a kid a sugar-free snack. _Grawr!"_

I sighed. Abby and I were so similar...yet so different. She'd take a gun and shoot three people at once...I'd take a gun and drop it on my toe. "Its probably for the best," I told her, trying to ease her frusteration. It was like instinct after all those years of advising everyone. "We may have written about people in RPs grabbing lightsabers and blasters and slaughtering everyone, but we aren't really soldiers. We have no clue how to use actual, big guns...especially not in this time period."

"True," she muttered, kicking at the floor with the tip of her shoe. "But what better time to learn than in the field, right?" she asked brightly, and I felt distinctly uneasy when she next said, "That's okay... I'll just take one from a dead vorcha or something. Wish I was biotic."

She rolled her shoulders, like she was psyching herself up for something. Knowing her, she probably was. "I'm worried, though. There, I said it. Don't repeat it. I don't exactly like the idea of getting shot. At all, really." She laughed nervously. "We're going to have to rely on each other a lot more now than we do in an RP. So if one of us says duck... don't look around and say 'why?' Because we would so do that." She stuck out her tongue.

I sighed...she was almost too right. We were not built for battle, but now we would have to learn...it just wouldn't be easy. At least we'd have more protection than usual with the armor...however, as I looked at Abby, I realized something. "You know, umm..." I started, not sure how to say this. "I can probably get some armor for Jacob or some random crew member...Sarah can just borrow from Shepard or Miranda in the future...where do we get _you_ any armor? You aren't quite the size of the rest of us..."

She frowned. "Uh... huh." Her eyes glazed over as she thought it through. "I guess I'll just take the kinetic barriers instead... like Jack does, or Miranda. But I really, really,_ really _don't want to go out looking like a postcard for a Cerberus adventure. Hopefully somebody here has some clothes that might fit me." She looked doubtful about it, though.

"Oh! Idea!" she said suddenly, jumping. "EDI?"

She appeared in her large, holographic ball form. "Yes?"

"Is there any way we can rectify that problem?"

"I believe both you and many other female crew members share the same height and build. I will find you something. It is unadvisable to leave the ship without proper attire."

EDI winked out. Pleased with her success, Abby shot me a toothy grin. "Problem solved."

"Good," I said, happy at that news...I was still getting used to the fact that there were actually other people on the ship that weren't just nameless, like we saw in the game. They actually had names, and in this case, armor to give. You typically just thought of the party members, Joker, Shepard, and the few members that had names, like Kenneth, Gabby, and Rupert. "I guess we better go get suited up."

With that, we both left, preparing to head out into our first mission with Shepard...

Soon enough, we were at the airlock, with Shepard, Jacob, and Miranda..much to my surprise, Miranda didn't go off about us again...she wasn't the warmest person ever, but she didn't complain. Abby's talk with her must have helped.

I felt...weird, in armor. It felt very clunky, and slightly difficult to move around in. It also consumed me, just a bit, because although I was as tall as most of the crew, I didn't have the total build that all the males had. But I would manage...as long as I could jump down when someone fired at me, I should be fine.

"Are we all ready?" Shepard asked.

All four of us nodded.

Shepard turned and open the airlock, and both Miranda and Jacob prepared to leave. I stepped out next, and I heard something from the cockit.

"Bye Commander! Don't die!" Joker's familiar voice yelled.

"_BYE JOKER!" _Abby yelled, excitedly no doubt, as she jumped out, squealing in the process. Shepard just shook her head.

_Should've known she wouldn't just walk by him without saying something_, I thought to myself.

Once out of the Normandy, we took the usual routes to the slums...I glanced around, not believing that I was actually on Omega. Abby seemed to have the same reaction...despite being a "pisshole", which Miranda was rambling on about at the moment, it still was amazing to people who had been on Earth their whole lives, in a time where space supposedly had no life.

Everything seemed the same as it did in the game, only more real, just like the Normandy. I'd have to expect that from everywhere. The same people wandering around, everything looked the same...there was still that batarian priest rambling on about how bad humans are, and he only increased in it when we walked by.

Then, suddenly, something popped into my head. Something that we should probably do, just to be nice. "Hey, Shepard..." I slowly said.

They all turned to look at me. "Yes?"

"I...I know where you can find Kenneth and Gabby some FBA couplings...I just thought it'd be nice to get it out of the way." I told Shepard with a shrug.

"We really should get Dr. Solus first," Miranda said, in a polite tone. "But it's your choice, Shepard."

"I don't think there could be any harm in it, Kenneth and Gabby do need them...are they nearby?" Shepard asked.

I smiled, happily. It would be doing something nice...and it would lead Abby to see something that I had wanted her to see for a long time now.

"Yes...at Kenn's salvage, a small store right near here. Follow me." I told them, taking the lead, as I went through the streets of Omega. It was still a little weird, not to mention scary, but I knew this place...and much to my surprise, Miranda nor Jacob objected to me briefly leading them somewhere.

Soon enough, before we got to the corridor where the shop was, we ran into those vorcha...the ones I had actually forgotten about. "Tell Gavorn we not kill today!"

"What?" Shepard asked, looking to be confused, like always.

"No! No more talk! We not kill today!" he yelled, before turning to leave.

"What was that about?" Jacob asked, looking to Abby and I.

"Eh, vorcha are grumpy ones..." Abby said, smiling cheerfully. I decided not to interfere. They'd find out about the vorcha's havoc soon enough.

They stayed silent, not demanding that we tell them anything...could I be sure of what was going on in their heads? No, but I had a feeling that they were adjusting to us, or starting to...and that was a good sign. We definitely couldn't leave now.

We proceeded down the hallway, and I motioned towards the quarian working, and his kiosk. Shepard nodded, approaching the kiosk, and within no time, she had the FBA couplings purchased.

"Thanks," Kenn said, turning to look at her while she retrieved her purchase. "I really need the money."

I smiled lightly, and Shepard looked at him. "Is something wrong?"

"I just...have some problems, really. No big deal, but Omega isn't the best place for business...I want to get off of it after I make enough money, but Harrot isn't letting me get any business." Kenn explained, sighing as he went over his troubes. I hoped I didn't look like I was enjoying his pain...but everything was going like I wanted it.

"Any way I can help?" Shepard queried curiously.

"Give him money," Abby said in a low tone.

"No, that won't do it all the way," I said in an equally low tone.

"Conflicting visions?" Jacob teased with a laugh.

Abby shot him a glare, and I was tempted to do the same. This was the bad part of doing some things differently in the game...we didn't know other things that could be done if we didn't explore every option. Abby typically did, but this was one thing she hadn't done, as we discussed at one point in time.

Kenn remained silent. I typically tried to read people by their faces...with Quarians, that was impossible for obvious reasons.

Shepard simply glanced to both of us, looking like she was contemplating. She looked back to Kenn. "What would you prefer to me to do?"

"Giving me money is nice, I'd accept it," Kenn answered. "But if you could, I really would like you to talk to Harrot. His emporium is not too far from here. He's an elcor by the slums."

"I'll see what I can do," Shepard told him, immediately turning and leaving. We all followed.

"I actually agree with Abby," Miranda commented, still in a peaceful tone of voice. "You should have just given him money. It would get us to Dr. Solus faster."

"It wouldn't fix Harrot's problem," Shepard explained. "Someone else would just come in and he'd be just the same. We have to set him straight."

"Whatever you think is best, Shepard, we're with you." Jacob told her.

I had to admit, it was hard to keep up with Shepard and the other two. Not difficult, but just...a little hard. She ran fast, like in the game, and Abby and I had to hurry to keep up...nonetheless, I was sure I'd get used to it over time, and it wasn't really a problem.

Seconds later, we reached the emporium. Harrot immediately spoke. "Tentatively excited: Welcome to Harrot's Emporium. Would you like to take a look at my impressive kiosk?"

"Actually, no, I'd like to talk to you about Kenn." Shepard said, diplomatically.

"Confused; What do you mean, human?" Harrot asked.

"I need you to leave him alone. What you're doing isn't right." she continued.

"Defending: I have been here for years, and was before him. It is unfair that he should take my customers from me." Harrot argued.

Elcor remained so bland in life...but strangely enough, I had a bit of sympathy if Shepard was about to say what I thought she was going to.

"You leave Kenn alone or I'll break your legs." Shepard growled, frusterated.

And here was the part I was waiting for.

"With barely contained terror: Alright, alright, human, I shall not oppress the quarian any longer."

This time, I couldn't take it. I let myself laugh, causing the other three to all give me a look.

"Good." Shepard simply said.

"Kindly: As an extension of friendship, I offer a discount on all my items." Harrot said. That always impressed me.

Shepard nodded. "Thanks. Maybe I'll come back sometime." she said.

"Excited: I look forward to it, human." Harrot told her, as we turned to leave.

Abby began laughing, herself. "Wow, that was awesome!" she exclaimed.

I smiled. "I knew you'd like it."

Miranda glanced at us, obviously still slightly confused, and I saw Jacob briefly do the same, but no one spoke. We returned to Kenn, gave him the good news, and headed towards the entrance of the slums...I was satisfied with what had taken place, so far, but the true mission was about to begin.

We approached the entrance, but like always, the guards stopped us. "I'm sorry, ma'am, but the slums are locked down." he told Shepard.

"Why?" Shepard asked.

"There's a plague going on...it effects everyone but humans and vorcha. We have our orders." he replied.

"Who's orders?"

"Aria T'Loak." the guard answered.

"Well, I was sent here by Aria herself...move aside. I have important business here. I need to find Mordin Solus. Do you know where he is?" Shepard quizzed.

"Don't lay off with the questions, do you?" the guard remarked. "The Professor is away in his lab, working on some kind of cure last I heard...be careful, he's dangerous, and I think he's all the way on the other side of the slums."

"Anything we can expect on the way?" Jacob asked.

"The Blue Suns pretty much controlled the district, but the vorcha are starting to overrun it...they've been on the attack since this happened, but the mercs still hold some areas. You'll probably have to fight through them both...you'll encounter the mercs first, then the vorcha as you go in deeper." the guard explained.

"And you say it doesn't effect humans?" Shepard said.

He nodded.

"Well, then lets go...we have a long way to travel."

The guards moved aside, and the five of us headed down in there...Shepard was in the front, like always, and Abby and I were behind Jacob and Miranda...no doubt because the front three had the weapons and we didn't.

We walked down the long ramp, and I could see the Blue Sun troops ahead...we came into view within seconds, and instantly, they spread out and opened fire. I felt the anxiety well up in me...while everyone but me took cover, I just stood there for a moment, frozen in anxiety.

"GET DOWN!" Shepard shouted, causing me to snap out of it. I gasped and jumped for cover, beside Abby, as I thanked the powers that be that I was still alive.

While the other three fired at the Blue Suns, Abby looked at me, in partial shock and frusteration. "You can't just stand there when people take SHOTS at you, HK! You've played ME enough to know the concept of, you know, taking cover!"

I nodded slowly. "Yes, yes, I apologize..its just...thats the first time anything has ever happened like this..."

Abby nodded. "Yeah, I understand."

A minute or so later, the mercs were down, and everyone looked at me. "You need to be quicker next time." Jacob told me, shaking his head.

"I hope you won't be like this the rest of the mission," Shepard told me, seeming concerned.

I shook my head. "No, no, don't worry...its just trying to get used to all of this...I've never been in the presence of anything like this..." I told her.

"There isn't exactly time to get used to it," Miranda told me. "Its take cover or die."

I nodded. "I know. Really, I know."

"We'll be fine, promise." Abby said, looking assured.

"Lets keep going, then." Shepard said, turning to continue on.

Abby was pereversly interested in the dead bodies of the Blue Sun mercs. "Niiice," she complimented, nudging a corpse with her toe. A nervous laugh escaped her throat.

I shuddered at the corpses as we walked by them...of course, you saw them in the game, but now to be right next to them...it wasn't a usual sight. I walked along, trying to ignore them, and also told myself that I better adjust, because I was going to see alot more of them in the future.

"Hey, Commander, look over here..." Jacob said, pointing to the sick batarian.

_Oh, joy, the racist_.

Shepard walked towards the batarian, who coughed and groaned. "Go away, human...I do not want to give you the pleasure of watching me die.." he said.

"What happened to you?" Shepard asked, leaning down.

He laughed. "Like...you...don't know...you released that virus here...its killing everyone, except, of course, humans...and the wretched vorcha..." the batarian explained, in-between coughs. I still felt sympathy for him, despite his bad accusations.

"Why do you think we released the virus?" Shepard asked, shaking her head. "Just because it doesn't affect us doesn't mean we did it...and the vorcha aren't effected, either."

"The vorcha...are not smart enough to release a virus like this...and everyone knows that...humans are always trying to bully and push aliens out of the way...to get what they want..." the batarian answered, obviously getting more and more sick.

"This man is useless. We need to leave him and keep going." Miranda said.

"Yes, humans, go away...leave me...to rot..." the batarian told us, continuing to cough heavier and heavier.

However, as the batarian began to die, Shepard grabbed some medi-gel and leaned down...I had to admit, I was wondering whether she would or not, but was glad to see it. It felt so weird not being in control of Shepard and her actions, even if they remained similar to the game. "Here, take this." she told him.

As the batarian took it and used it, he looked up in confusion. "What? A...human...helping me? Perhaps your kind...are not as bad as I presumed..." he said, still giving the occassional cough.

"I'm going to find the Professor, Mordin Solus. I'll send help for you." Shepard told him.

"Ha, you may not even make it there...that salarian shoots nearly anyone that looks to be a threat...but he does...like humans..." the batarian said as we left.

Abby looked upset as we left. She threw one last glance back at the sick batarian as we rounded the corner and he disappeared from sight. "I like being the good guys," she said quietly. We were lagging in the back, behind the main group. "Every mean decision that could be made is concerning me, but it seems like we're on the right track."

I nodded at her, trying to keep a good distance from the group at the moment, but not enough so that they got worried. "I know...Shepard's a Paragon, and seems to be a pretty good one...but I don't think we ever exactly restricted her from making a wrong choice. Its worrisome...it feels weird to not be in control of her, and have to actually watch to see what she does. I just hope she stays smart."

"Uh-huh," she agreed fervently. "And just think... we never said what would happen at the end, either. That kind of sucks."

I shuddered, actually fearing that. "That...is troublesome. What if we die? What if Shepard doesn't bother to get any loyalty, or makes horrible choices, and somehow gets everyone killed? She may be Paragon, but that doesn't gurantee that she'll be as wise as to make every single correct choice in the final battle..."

I shifted my attention back to the others for a moment, and they were looking at the assortment of locked doors in the area. "Everything is in complete lockdown...they really weren't kidding," Miranda observed.

"If you want, we could just hack them open or bust them down." Jacob said, shrugging.

I walked up to the front of the group, deciding to say something. Unless Amelia Shepard was a looter, this would be useless. "All you are going to find in there are dead bodies, and some logs of how the residents got sealed in and died," I told them. "There may be some nice stuff in there, but thats about all you'll find."

"We've used up alot of extra time already," Shepard said, continuing to proceed forward. "We just need to find Mordin."

We walked into the next area of the district, and it was that rather large area...riddled with Blue Sun mercs. This time, I took cover immediately, while Shepard, Jacob, and Miranda began to shoot at them. A vicious fire fight had begun.

Abby's eyes were wide, and I could tell she was just itching to lean over and shoot something. She was giggling... giggling while people were shooting at us. At one point she moaned, "Let me hit somebody!"

"Not sure you could make it across the room," Jacob muttered.

I shook my head at my...dear, dear, odd friend, but was immediately distracted as a bullet literally went right over us...I would have jumped, but then I would have actually gotten hit. All you could hear right now were bullets flying off the wall, and the cries of pain, or battle cries, from the Blue Sun mercs. It was the same as in the game.

_At least its better then every single enemy in ME1 that wasn't a geth screaming "ENEMIES EVERYWHERE"._

I also had to wonder about that Zaeed guy...I had never used the downloadable content, but from what little I knew, he was the co-founder of the Blue Suns. Why didn't he come along and tell these people to run before the plague killed them, or at the very least, let us pass?

Ah well, too late for that now.

I saw Miranda, Shepard, and Jacob use biotics as well...in-between taking cover and shooting like madmen, of course. Curiosity got the better of me, and I slowly peeked out...only several mercs left.

However, one of them saw me, and I could tell he was taking aim. Letting out a gasp, I jumped back behind cover.

"My TURN!" Abby growled, but she didn't attempt to move yet.

"Um, yes, well, he knows we're here now..I doubt its the time to start bouncing all arou-" I whispered over all the chaos.

However, suddenly, I interrupted. "Everyone's down." Shepard announced, standing up.

I stood up, brushing myself off, as Abby seemed visibly irritated. "Abby, why you like fighting so much I will never understand..."

We then walked across the rather large room, the three with guns picking up some more bullets in the process and re-loading. I glanced at one more locked door...it was where those humans were.

I wondered if we should go see them or not.

_They're humans...they'll be fine, and I can just tell Mordin to send someone for them. We have to hurry._

I felt partially guilty for it...but what could happen to them? They were locked up, we had cleared out the mercs around here...the plague couldn't spread, and they'd be out soon enough, but I also wondered if it was just me getting scared and wanting to end this as soon as possible. I wondered if there was a 'right' or 'wrong' to this.

Nonetheless, we all passed by without a second thought, and I still felt bad for it...but no one's life was on the line here. It would be okay. There were more lives at stake over the plague than two humans stuck in an apartment.

_Wow, I really won't fit well with Cerberus. I'm practically choosing aliens over humans all in my first days around the Normandy crew.._

As we rounded another corner, more Blue Sun mercs emerged.

This time, though, they were taken out rather quickly.

We went through another door, and entered an area that I hated in the game...it was very close to Mordin's lab, but it was filled with the worst enemies. The hardest? No, but it was filled with vorcha and mercs.

Shepard and the other two led the way through the corridor, and I glanced at the staircase that you could take upwards...it might be a safe hideaway, but they'd just shoot up there, too.

By the staircase, there was that large opening into where another shootout was bound to take place.

And sure, enough, it did.

Shepard, Miranda, and Jacob all immediately rushed behind boxes as the fight began...I stayed near the large opening into the room, behind a wall. "Lets stay here," I suggested to Abby, who was behind me.

There was quite an assortment in here...if I recalled right, there were pyros...snipers...maybe even rocket troops.

The place was filled with noise quicker than I could clap my hands, and all you could hear were screams and constant firing of bullets. For a minute or two, I just stayed behind the wall with Abby, listening...Shepard, Miranda, and Jacob all seemed to be okay, still.

Another minute went by, and I decided to take a quick look to see how many were still standing.

I did so, and I saw quite a few...this battle was far from over.

However, as I looked on, I saw a krogan slowly approaching the group.

Dangit, I had forgotten about them.

As I watched, though...he spotted _me_.

Almost instantly, he darted right towards me...my jaw dropped, and as I heard Miranda yell her typical 'Krogan charging!" line, I hit the ground...only after feeling what was likely a gun hit me right in the nose, no doubt causing some blood.

As the krogan ripped me to shreds, I tried to look to Abby with my blurred vision. "HIT HIM, HIT HIM!" I screamed, though it only came out as extremely choked words.

The krogan suddenly lurched to the side and fell to the ground, roaring. I rolled the other direction, breathing hard and clutching my nose. Abby had climbed on the krogan's back and had wrapped her long arms quite successfully around his large, fleshy throat. The krogan was gasping and gurgling, struggling uselessly against her embrace. He staggared to his feet, dragging Abby with him, and abruptly launched himself backward. I heard her cry out in pain as three-hundred pounds of armored alien slammed into her chest, but out of either instinct or training she had angled her body diagonally to redirect the force. Her hands were beginning to slip upwards, and where they originally were orange blood gushed out.

The krogan roared again and tried to grab her hands with his arms, but, sensing this, she let go imediately and I caught a glint of a knife as she drove her right hand again, again, and again into his face. She maneuvered her legs around his body and pulled herself even closer, hugging herself to his frame as she mercilessly killed him.

Finally, the krogan lay still. Abby relaxed, breathing too hard, and crawled out from under his massive, inert frame. The knife was still in her hand. "Never... ever... _ever..." _she panted "go anywhere on Omega... without... a knife... oh crap, that was fun."

I was breathing heavily myself, still clutching my bleeding nose. "Fun? Fun?" I yelled, astonished, even if I shouldn't be. "Well, uhhh...thank you...I guess...maybe taking a weapon of your own saved my life..."

I very slowly looked towards the open fight...another krogan was just shot down by Miranda, and it seemed that now they were finishing off the last of the vorcha. Some stray bullets came our way, but we easily dodged them...I finally took my hand off my nose, which was probably bruised and maybe even broken, but I was just lucky to be alive.

"Gah," I muttered, the comment steming from the aching that was still there. I'd have to ignore it.

After the last vorcha died, we both took the liberty of heading out from the hall...there were bodies everywhere. The vorcha really were trying hard to slaughter the slums with all the people they poured into this.

"Wow," I commented, breathless.

"You okay?" Jacob asked, looking at my nose.

I nodded. "I'll...I'll be fine."

"All three of you are going to have to learn how to fight...though I'll commend Abby on doing a decent job, from what little I saw," Shepard told us, gesturing for everyone to keep on following her. "But this is nothing compared to people like the Collectors."

I decided not to say anything, for now. Truly, Shepard was right.

We walked around for awhile...we scared off those looters, or rather, Shepard did...after they ran off, we kept on our path, and it wasn't long before we finally reached Mordin's clinic.

It wasn't over, yet, though...but at least we had gotten to him.

Heading inside, past the guards and receptionist, I looked around...quite a few sick people in here. Not shocking, but still...they all looked to be in so much pain and dismay. I heard a few comment on how Mordin shouldn't be so kind to humans, since they did this. That's what they thought, anyway.

_I still don't get it, and I never will. Okay, the Council was irritating as heck, but humans have so much that aliens don't...we got a seat on the Council much sooner than the volus, elcor, or anyone else. There are so many aliens suffering here on Omega, in the slums, while the humans remain just fine...how can Cerberus want more human dominance?_

I tried to shrug off the thoughts as we, at long last, found Mordin. He was standing, working, like he always was.

I was amazed...I truly was. Here I was, standing right in front of the most amazing scientist in all of the ME universe, and no doubt, one of my favorite party members.

"Professor Mordin Solus?" Shepard asked the salarian.

Mordin began scanning us. "Hm, too well armed to be refugees...don't recognize you from this area...quarantine still in effect. Don't have mercenary uniforms. Here to clean vorcha out? Causing plague? No, plague not spread by weapons, and not scientists. Soldiers. Who are you? Hired guns, looking for someone valuable, someone with secrets...someone like me. Who are you? What do you want?" he asked as he paced.

Hearing it in person, it was surprising that he didn't get tongue twisted.

"Do you ever pause for breath?" Shepard asked, looking confused.

"Sorry...I'll...try...to...slow...down..." Mordin said, now speaking slower than normal. "No, wait, can't! Not enough time! Who are you?"

"I'm Commander Shepard of the Normandy, and I'm on a critical mission. I need you to come with me."

"Mission, what mission? No, no, clinic understaffed, plague spreading too fast...who sent you?" Mordin said, walking back over to work on something.

Shepard paused before approaching him again. "Its a covert and privately funded human group."

"Related to plague, must effect humans, human centric-interests for human group to know...equipment suggests military, top Alliance standard...Spectre? Not human...only one option: Cerberus." Mordin said, giving us all a cold stare at the end of the long-winded speculating.

"You're well informed. How does a Salarian scientist know about Cerberus?" Shepard asked.

"Crossed paths on occassion. Thought they only worked with humans. Why request Salarian aid?" Mordin replied.

"I'm on a mission to stop the Collectors, and I need your help."

"Collectors?" Mordin repeated, scratching his chin. "Interesting. Plague hitting these slums is engineered. Collectors one of few groups with technology to design it. Our goals may be similar, but must stop plague first. Already have cure. Need to distribute it at environmental control center. Vorcha guarding it. Need to kill them."

Shepard nodded. "I'll get in and deal with the vorcha."

However, right as she finished that sentence, we heard a rather loud noise, and we all looked around. "What the hell was that?" Jacob asked.

"Vorcha have shut down environmental systems. Trying to kill everyone. Need to get power back on before district suffocates." Mordin answered, looking upwards for a moment, before approaching Shepard. "Here, take cure. Also, a bonus in good faith: A weapon from a dead Blue Suns merc. May come in handy against vorcha. One more thing: My assistant, Daniel. Went into vorcha territory, looking for victims. Hasn't come back."

Mordin's eyes were filled with worry, and I sighed as I thought of Daniel and what he was going through right now.

"We'll find him. Lets head for the environmental plant." Shepard said, glancing to the rest of us. We all nodded, and turned to head out once again.

I looked at Mordin one last time, and took another deep breath. "Wow," I whispered to Abby. "We just met Mordin Solus!"

"And he gave us a gun!" she squealed. "Hey, Commander! Can you give HK that gun? Because I'm not groundfighting with another krogan today."

Shepard looked around, and actually seemed like she was considering it. "Alright...if it weren't for the krogan encounter, I wouldn't consider it, but I will give it to you...just let me show you how to use it."

"Muahahaha," Abby chuckled, and leaned over my shoulder to listen in.

Shepard walked over to me, giving me the gun, and as I took it, I began to tremble slightly...I saw both Jacob and Miranda roll their eyes, and Shepard just shook her head. "Here's the proper way to hold it, and aim," she said, grabbing my hands and putting the gun in the right position.

"O-Okay..." I said slowly, feeling like I knew that much at least.

"You have to be quick...and be careful. Its simple, just aim, pull the trigger, then reload," she said, giving gestures of how to do each thing. I felt like a five year old in kindergarten, which was quite embarrassing.

But at least I wasn't dead.

"There's not much more I can tell you." Shepard told me, and I nodded as she walked back to the front of the group.

With that, we proceeded on once more, and came into the next room: A room with two krogans.

My eyes widened, and everyone opened fire on them...but, like last time, one came charging at me. For a brief second I did nothing, but knowing that my life was on the line, I opened fire. I shot at his head profusely, refusing to stop...and after about fifteen seconds, he collapsed to the ground.

"Whoa," I whispered, breathless.

"Good, you at least can do that much." Miranda said and Jacob snorted. Inwardly, I rolled my eyes at both of them.

We kept going, and entered a hallway...my eyes darted to the left door, knowing that was the one with Daniel inside of it.

Shepard, without giving Abby or myself a look, went towards the door...it actually relieved me, showing that she could do more smart things without our help or someone at a game controller and/or keyboard.

We walked in, and immediately, saw Daniel being held at gunpoint by the two batarians. Shepard, Jacob, and Miranda all pulled their guns back out almost instantly. I kept mine at bay.

"Please...I'm telling you the truth...I work for Mordin at the clinic. I'm here to help you!" he yelled, his face one of complete terror.

"We know you're spreading the plague virus. We saw the vials in your bag." the batarian replied, holding Daniel by the collar.

"No!" Daniel yelled. "Those vials contain the cure. Please...you have to believe me!

"Maybe we should cut off your fingers. That should loosen y-" the batarian started, until they all looked to finally see us.

"Look out!" the other batarian yelled.

"Don't move!" the front batarian shouted. "One step and we kill your friend!"

"Everybody stay calm!" Shepard exclaimed, pointing her gun right at the batarian.

"You humans won't get away with this...I know he's trying to spread the plague!" the batarian protested.

"No, thats not true. He's telling the truth." Shepard argued.

However, I couldn't help but get confused...if I remember right...this was a Paragon thing to say, but not one of the really Paragon options...basically, Daniel was going to die.

But Shepard was a Paragon, she had done everything right so far...and she could say anything she wanted, right? Did points even matter now? This didn't make any sense.

_Dangit, he's going to die!_

Almost on instinct, I jumped forward, trying in a desperate attempt to stop the inevitable.

"NO-" I started, but it was too late.

As the batarians saw me hop towards them, they took that as an act of assault, and immediately shot him. I watched in horror as Mordin's assistant hit the ground, obviously dead...he was gone.

And was I responsible?

The batarians turned to us, and I backed away as fast I could. I raised my gun up and fired at them, along with Shepard, Jacob, and Miranda. They died rather quickly, but that didn't help at all..I could feel the guilt mounting inside of me.

"Ohhh damn," Abby was muttering. "Shit. Shit. You guys just... _Haven't you heard of peaceful resolutions?"_

"He was going to kill us next, we had to shoot him," Jacob answered.

Shepard sighed, while I continued to stare at the body of Daniel. "I don't like it, but Jacob's right...damnit. I hate that they all had to die, but we have no choice if they decide to attack like that." she explained. "But lets not make his death worth nothing...lets go put that cure in."

They all began to walk out, but I continued to stare at Daniel's corpse...maybe he could have lived. He still had a chance, maybe...if I hadn't done what I did.

Then again, Shepard wasn't saying the correct things...but still. We could have shot the batarian, we could have done something...and he may not be dead.

It was a pat on the shoulder that caused me to snap out of my brief daze. "Come on, we can't change what happened to him now," Jacob told me.

Slowly, I nodded, and followed everyone across the hall and into the next room.

The next room had more vorcha...we quickly disposed of them, as there were only several, and I continued to get the hang of using this gun...it got easier as time went on, but it was still weird. Still moderately difficult. However, at least I was able to use it as best as I could.

Next, was the room I direly hated: The room before the place where we could spread the cure, with vorcha everywhere.

As we entered, it was no different than in the game. "Oh, no," I muttered.

Before anything more could be spoken outloud, the vorcha started firing. Shepard darted for cover, and every one of us followed, and she began directing us on what to do. She ordered Jacob and Miranda to follow her to take care of the ground troops.

And directed _me_ to take care of the rocket launchers.

Of course, I did not disagree or protest, just because we didn't have time for that at this point. I merely went up to the balcony on our side of the room, if I could call it that, along with Abby.

"Dangit, dangit..." I whispered as I crouched down, trying to take aim at the vorcha on the other ledges. "I can't believe I am doing this."

"Just stay calm. We can do this, you can do this." Abby lightly encouraged.

I nodded, slowly taking aim at the rocket launchers, who were churning out rockets like there was no tomorrow...and for them, they knew there may not be. I could hear utter chaos going on downstairs, and knew that I had no time to sit and carefully make sure I got the shot right.

Pulling the trigger, bullets poured towards one of the vorcha, and I didn't let go. It held on for a moment or so until finally falling. After it died, I immediately turned my attention to the two others...I repeated the process, and soon enough, they were gone.

"We're all clear." Miranda said from down below.

I glanced at Abby, still shaken but actually impressed with the turnout. We headed back down to the lower level, and met up with the three. No time was wasted, as we immediately darted into the next room...the room that would end this dreadful mission.

We walked in, and saw the console at the end of the room. However, there were several vorcha in the way.

"You no come here!" the vorcha yelled, walking forward. "We shut down machines, break fans! Everyone choke and die! Then Collectors make us strong!"

"Why are you doing this? What do the Collectors want?" Shepard asked.

"Collectors want plague! You work for doctor, turn on machines, put cure in air! We kill you first!" the vorcha screamed.

The vorcha grabbed their weapons and prepared for a fight...I rushed for cover, getting down behind one of the platforms...I tried to fire at them, but missed a few times...I have _alo_t to learn.

But, nonetheless, Shepard and the party members took them down quickly.

"Shepard, you need to inject the cure into that console across from you." EDI's voice chimed in.

"Alright, lets do it and get out of here." Shepard said, walking towards the console.

Once there, Shepard put the cure in, and activated the machine.

"Now, you need to turn on the fans," EDI told us, as we turned to see more vorcha arriving. "There are two consoles on each side of the room."

Shepard jumped right back into battle, as she took out some of the vorcha quickly. Abby and I took cover together, again, as I fired off some shots, managing to kill a few. I also aimed at the ones on the ledge above the entrance, as they would be easy to hit and give the others some help.

Once that crew was out, Shepard turned to all of us. "Okay, we need to do this and fast...lets split up. Jacob, you take HK...I'll take Miranda. Abby, you can go with whoever you like."

"I'll go with you!" Abby happily said, still looking giddy at all of this.

"Okay. Lets move!" Shepard ordered.

We broke off in different directions..Jacob and I were taking the console on the right side of the room from the entrance, while the girls headed for the console on the left side.

Slowly, we headed down the ramp into the hall. Jacob glanced at me. "Lets go in fast and easy...I'll alternate between shooting and biotics, you just hit them with everything you got." he told me.

I nodded. "Alright, I'll try to do my best."

"Don't get me killed."

I knew he was probably joking, but I also knew that he was, more than likely, peeved at the fact that Shepard gave him the rookie teenager who could barely operate a gun...heck, he probably preferred Abby over me.

We headed down into the halls, and both of us stood with our backs to the large pillars, or whatever they called them...there was a nice number of vorcha ahead, so we had to do our best.

I took out a few of the weaker ones, while Jacob took out most of the others...I also took some shots at the pyros, but they were _hard_ to kill.

I took some more shots, but they didn't do much...it was Jacob's biotics that really came in handy. When he wasn't firing, which he did well enough, he took out a number with his biotic skill...that was what ultimately finished off the pyros.

Jacob looked around, very carefully, to make sure they were all gone. Once he was sure, he spoke. "Lets go get those fans turned on." he said.

I followed him along as we ran to the control room, and I could hear the other fans blowing...Shepard had reached the fans before us, which really wasn't a surprise. She was...well, Shepard, and she had a skilled fighter in Miranda, as well as little help from Abby if needed.

I also heard more fighting. They were facing the vorcha that arrive after the fans had been activated.

We reached the fan controls, and within seconds, Jacob got all the switches pulled and all the buttons activated. I breathed in relief as I heard our set of fans activate.

However, I turned my head to see more vorcha coming towards us now. "Dang, Jacob, take cover!" I yelled.

Jacob immediately looked at me, then at the vorcha, and ran for cover. I also ran, but I wasn't fast enough: I felt some bullets hit my armor...I wondered if I was about to die, but I didn't feel any pain. Not enough to pierce the armor entirely.

I suddenly felt myself go flying towards a wall, and it didn't take me long to realize that Jacob had pushed, or kicked, me there for my own safety. I hit it with an 'oof', and nearly collapsed to the ground afterwards.

Still alive, though.

As I came out of a daze, I staggered to the unoccupied wall that stood right next to the entrance to the control room, and reloaded my gun really fast. Jacob was giving the fight his everything, but that wouldn't be enough.

"Come on, HK, I need a little help here!" Jacob shouted.

I could feel the sweat running down my face after all of this running and fighting, and the anxiety coming up in my chest. As I tried to swallow it back down, I peeked out and took some shots myself, but they were nothing spectacular...I got two down, but that was nothing, and they were getting closer.

Both Jacob and I had to jump back as quick as we could when we saw rockets coming, and I was constantly thankful that I was still alive.

We looked out again, and continued to fire, but it still wasn't enough. The vorcha were going to be right up close, soon, and would kill us.

However, my worries began to go down when I suddenly saw a vast array of bullets pound several vorcha in the back...all of them turned in shock to see Shepard, Miranda, and Abby slide down the ramp. Shepard and Miranda were shooting and tossing out biotics as fast as they could, and I even saw Abby run up to one or two of the lesser armed ones and stab them in the chest.

Jacob and I continued our own assault, boxing the vorcha in...all of the biotics, bullets, and stabbings combined took the group down really quickly.

"Wow..." Abby said, panting as she walked towards us once the vorcha were dead. "This has been sooo awesome!"

"I wouldn't call nearly dying 'awesome', but it has been...interesting." I admitted. I couldn't think of any other way to describe it, and I still felt guilt for what happened with Daniel.

"Come on, we've done our part...lets go see Mordin." Shepard suggested.

"Good, I'll be glad to get out of here." I told her.

A short time later, we were walking back into Mordin's lab, and saw him working intensely. Despite all that had happened, it remained fantastic to just see the great salarian.

"Environmental systems engaged. Airborne viral levels dropping. Patients improving. Vorcha retreating. Well done, Shepard. Thank you." Mordin congratulated as he paced. "And did you find assistant?"

My heart dropped. I knew he would ask that dreaded question, but it didn't make it any easier.

I decided to speak here. "Uhh...I'm sorry, but...he was held hostage by batarians...Shepard tried to negotiate with them, but I made a stupid move and he got shot."

Mordin looked at us, shaking his head. "Unfortunate, but not surprising. Was good assistant. Thank you for trying, though."

His reaction wasn't horrible, but it didn't ease the guilt.

"We've cured the plague," Shepard said, getting us back on track. "Will you help us stop the Collectors?"

Mordin nodded, smiling slightly. "Yes. Unexpected to work with Cerberus. Many surprises. Just need to finish up here at the clinic. Won't take long. Meet you at your ship. Looking forward to it."

"Yeah, we need to go check on Sarah anyways..." Abby muttered.

"Still can't believe she drank krogan ryncol." Jacob commented with a chuckle.

Mordin had begun to walk away, but whirled around. "Krogan ryncol? Dangerous even for krogan. What species consumed it?"

"Er, well, she's a human..." I replied.

"Oh my. Very shocking. Must give her a check-up once on ship." Mordin said, before turning back to his work.

I raised an eyebrow, wondering what he was going to do. "Um, well, I guess we better go inform her, then..." I said slowly. "But...glad to meet you, Dr. Solus. I can see why Cerberus would want to work with you."

"Thank you. Nice to meet all of you, too. Now, must work." Mordin said, rushing off.

I nearly sagged in relief...I was still feeling sad over Daniel, but we had lived. After that long, tough mission...we had survived, and another great person had been recruited.


	9. Please remove your shirt

**Chapter 8 Medical Bay (Sarah)**

Well, I heard that Shepard, Abby, HK, and whoever else had gone with them had returned to the ship safely, along with Mordin. I was glad they all got back okay.

Also I was looking forward to a chance to meet Mordin, and now I was really beginning to regret being forced to stay in this stupid medical bed. I was getting tired of feeling crappy and being stuck here anyway, because being sick is not fun, and it's thoroughly boring. I'd already gotten way too much sleep. But also, well... now I wouldn't be able to meet Mordin right away!

But at least I had gotten to meet Garrus as soon as I could. That I was grateful for. So I knew that I could wait a bit before meeting Mordin... it wasn't like this trip was going to be over a few hours, after all. It was probably going to take weeks, if not longer.

I still felt sick, though. _Damnit, Abby, WHY did you have to be so right?_

As if my thoughts had summoned her, the doors to the medical bay opened with a muffled hiss. She was wearing some kind of clothing she must have picked up from Omega: rough-textured blue pants, a brown tanktop, and a heavy jacket with too many pockets. Her hair was pulled back in a messy ponytail at the nape of her neck, and she had this _smile o_n her face. Either she'd finally met Joker or finalized her plans for how she would assassinate Udina. I wondered inwardly how I was going to talk her out of whatever scheme she'd cooked up this time. After all, it was _her_ fault I was even in this mess in the first place.

But even smiling, she still looked nervous as she approached me. "Hey, Sar," she said nonchalantly, sitting on the bed next to me. She seemed to be moving a bit more stiffly than usual, and Chakwas threw her a glance as she finished up at her terminal. She swung her legs happily. "Guess. What."

I looked at her for a moment. "What?" I asked, a bit warily. From the way she looked... I was starting to think that either she got a promotion of some sort, and had come to brag about it, or... well, why was I starting to feel a sense of dread here?

"Oh, we met Mordin," she said. She was actually bouncing her seat, _bouncing, _and for the first time I noticed that she was the teeniest bit prone to overexcitement. Mentally I'd always known that, but her body was reacting to it in an unprecedented way. You don't just go bouncing randomly... unless you were Abby and had good reason. "And..." She giggled. "He wants to give you a physical."

"Uh... a physical?" I stared at her. "He wants to give me a physical? But why? Hasn't the doctor here been doing a good job?" I did want to meet Mordin of course, but... hell not like this. NOT like this.

What would he do to me in a physical, exactly? Would he poke and prod me all over? At least the good doctor in here-who's name I kept forgetting-was satisfied to simply check my pulse, my temperature, and give me a pill to swallow or even a shot. I didn't want to go through a full physical.

"Well! Doctor Chakwas is a doctor. Mordin is a scientist. He's perversely interested in seeing the effects of krogan ryncol on a human."

I was going to kill her. I didn't know how, but I was going to kill her.

"When... is he gonna get here?" I asked, suddenly wishing that I had a blanket or something. I wanted to pull one up over my head and disappear under it.

"After he takes Miranda's expensive listening device out of the lab," she stated. "But he'll give it back to her. It's to be expected I suppose." She shrugged. "And, well... I just thought I'd mention you might want to go up there, because, you know, the med bay has..." She coughed politely, her eyes flickering over to the wall. "_Windows."_

Frankly, I felt like I wanted to thank her profusely... and maybe strangle her later. "Well," I said, sitting up and swinging my legs over the edge of the bed, "I guess I'll go up there then." As I stood, I turned to look at her. "Could you... tell the doctor here that I'm going up there, please? I mean, I'm not trying to brush you off or anything, it's just... if Mordin is really gonna do this... I'd rather go alone. I don't want an audience." I winced. I was actually hoping I could talk him out of this.

"Oh, it'll be... fine..." She ducked to hide a fit of giggles. "Oh my God, this is... way... too funny! Hahahaha! I am _so_ sorry, but at least now you'll never, ever drink again!"

"Yeah," I said a bit tersely as I simply turned away from her and then went out the door. I wasn't trying to be rude. I just didn't feel like being laughed at, especially since _she_ didn't have to go through this humiliation. And to make it even more undignifying... I also knew that if I had listened to her, I wouldn't be going through this at all right now. Damn those Salarian scientists and their curiousity!

I found that I had to walk slowly, and a bit stiffly, to get to the elevator. I swear it felt like I had an active numbing agent throughout my muscles and nervous system or something. That and my stomach still felt queasy, and my head throbbed. It also sounded like my pulse was throbbing in my ears as well.

I took the elevator to the top floor and tried to ignore everyone as I made my way toward Mordin's lab. Oh gosh I was so not looking forward to this.

Once I reached the lab, I made sure the door was closed behind me before I approached the Salarian scientist. "Ummm... Dr. Mordin Solus?" I said slowly as I approached the table.

The salarian was huddled over his table, which was overflowing with expensive-looking scientific materials. "Ah, yes. The human patient who ingested the krogan ryncol. Not the best thing you could have done, anybody would tell you, but can't change the past, can only move on. Please excuse mess, I'm setting up my lab. Now..."

He took out a datapad and keyed it on. "Take a seat, take a seat." Hesitantly, I moved to sit down on the edge of one of the storage containers. "Human female, age twenty-three. Name?"

"Um, Sarah," I said simply. "And... is this really necessary?" I scratched the back of my neck lightly, in a nervous manner.

"Oh yes," said Mordin. "If I collect enough data about your condition, _may_ be able to cure it if you choose to imbibe ryncol again. Helps all, don't you see? Besides... tired of working on cure for the plague. Hard, was fun challenge, but still..." He sighed happily. "Now, blow in to this canister here." He held a white bottle in front of my mouth and I obliged. He frowned at the readout. "Blood toxicity level above average levels. To be expected. Main ingrediant in ryncol is varren stomach acid, after all, highly toxic in large quantities, even to krogan."

I made a face. "Varren stomach acid? EW!" Honestly if I had known that, or even suspected that, I would never have even thought about trying the stuff. What did the krogans do, kill varren and pour their innards into vials or something? I did not really want to ponder that idea. I shoved it aside.

"Um... so what are you gonna do now?" I asked warily.

"Blood toxicity leads to hypertension, arteriosclerosis, cardiac arrhythmia, coronary ischemia, all very bad news for a human. Before I treat you... hmm. Look up for me." Then, before I could, his cold hand turned my face upwards. "Ah-hmm. Arteriosclerosis is starting. Interesting. How many sips did you take? No, you took one. You would not be coherant if you took two. Hmmm... Exposure to hematopoietic toxicants can reduce the oxygen carrying capacity of red blood cells, disrupt important immunological processes carried out by white blood cells, and induce cancer. Nowhere close to cancer, however." He smiled, like this was good news.

I couldn't help but think of the characters on Emergency and ER when he began to talk in medical jargon. Well, at least I knew I was in good hands... and I suppose part of me liked the attention, at least a little. But I still felt a bit awkward. I kept perfectly still of course, but I wondered how long he was going to keep his hand on my chin.

"So... what's next?" I asked. Part of me wondered if he was going to have to touch me elsewhere at all. I didn't want to ask that though.

"Blood toxicity relatively easy to control in this day and age. Simply administer this injection-" I didn't even see where the needle came from, but suddenly he was pressing it into the crook of my elbow "-and feed you these tablets. Interesting, interesting..." He laughed. "You are experiancing a headache, yes? Intense vomiting? Short temper, perhaps slight... hallucinations?"

I thought about it. Sometimes it was hard to tell when this guy was actually asking me something, or talking to himself and answering his own questions. But in this case, he seemed to want an answer. "Well... a few hours ago I threw up until nothing was left in my stomach, at least it felt like that... I haven't eaten anything since before that happened. Haven't like it, and... yeah, I've had a constant headache, and maybe I've been short-tempered. But I tend to get like that anyway when I don't feel good."

He was taking notes like the good, model scientist salarian he was. "Yes, okay," he said. He proceeded to do a few more tests, refusing to tell me what they were for. He checked my eye dialation, reflexes (they were pretty slow), and even took a sample from the inside of my mouth. "Wonder if... hmmm."

"Wonder if what?" I asked a bit irritably. As much as I liked Mordin, I was really hoping that this would be over soon. I didn't really like doctors, especially since they were armed with needles and who-knew-what-else. I was just hoping he wouldn't do anything that would actually hurt much. Part of me was surprised he hadn't tried to poke or prod my stomach or something yet.

"Captured Cerberus agents before," he said cheerfully. "All had cyanide capsules in back molars. Knocked them out before they got a chance to use them. Ocular nerve flashbangs harder to disarm. It was a waste, though. Ended up killing them with farming equipment. Tried to escape with valuable intel. Bad idea for them." He chuckled.

"Um, yeah," I muttered. I wasn't really interested in what he was talking about right now. But I did notice that I was starting to feel a little better, at least. "Are we almost done here?" I asked impatiently.

"Take off shirt. One last test."

I was really, really going to kill Abby.

"Um..." I said, pushing against the crate to stand up, a tad bit stiffly. "Why exactly do you want me to take off my shirt?" I asked, taking a step back.

"Must see if medication is taking," he said impatiently. "And must run scanner over stomach. Cloth interferes with the technology." He seemed to suddenly understand what he asked with a social gaffe, so he said, in a bit calmer tone, "Would never use position as a doctor to look at another of the other gender like a gawking bird. Purely medical reasons."

"Um..." I was sure using that word a lot, wasn't I? "But... uh..." Oh geez, did I really need to say this to anyone? Especially a man? Well, at least he wasn't human. "I'm not wearing a bra." There. At least I said it.

He blinked very slowly. "Ah." He pursed his lips. "I realize this is... uncomfortable. Hmm." He cocked his head to the side and tapped his foot impatiently on the floor. "Preferable you keep support wraps on while on-duty. Certain breach of Cerberus dress code somewhere."

I didn't feel it was necessary to tell him that I never wore a bra while I was relaxing. Like, when I spent time in front of my computer. I only wore one when I was actually going somewhere, or had company or something. And what was I doing before I got sucked onto the ship? Relaxing at my computer!

"Yeah well, maybe I can borrow one," I grumbled, trying to drop the subject. "Do you really need me to take my shirt off?" I then asked.

"Erm... yes." I never knew Mordin could get flustered-he'd just admitted to killing people with farming equipment, for God's sake!-but this was where he was totally out of his depth. He activated the scanner. "Just very quickly. I promise I won't, ah, stare."

"Fine," I muttered with great reluctance. I figured that if we just got this over with as quickly as possible, it wouldn't be too bad. Besides, I knew he'd already gotten rid of the spy devices, and the room was empty, plus it had no windows. So long as no one walked in, we would be fine.

I grabbed the edges of my shirt and lifted it up to near my shoulders.

I had to give him credit-he wasn't distracted, and he worked fast. I almost thought that, despite the intense mental discomfort, it wasn't too bad. He wasn't even interested in humans, anyway, and, well... as long as he wasn't looking at me like a dog, it should be good, right?

Then Kelly had to walk in. "Professor Solus?" she asked. Her eyes flickered over to me, and her mouth opened in a comical 'o.' "It can wait," she said, flustered. "I'm so sorry, I'll come in later." She turned around and walked right out.

Mordin's scanner hummed quietly and he quickly pulled my shirt down. "We are done here," he said, crossing back to his table. "Your skin will turn slightly orange, but that will fade. Thank you for helping me with my research. You may go now."

I pressed my lips together in a thin line and tugged at the edges of my shirt, making doubly certain that it was in its proper place. I glared toward the door, not looking at him. "Hope it was worth something to you," I muttered darkly.

"Oh yes," he said, cheerful again. "Been trying to guess human radiological effects for a long time, but always been so busy. Working on a Cerberus vessle will provide me lengthier studies on this matter. When I'm not working on the Collector threat, of course," he added.

"Yeah well..." I slowly turned to look at him again, thinking. He just put me through something awkward and embarrassing. I felt like somebody, somehow, owed me something now. "I was wondering... if I could maybe talk to you about something."

"Go ahead. Very busy, but can't start real research yet until I get this room sorted out..." he sighed, as if Cerberus had fallen below his standards. "Very nice lab, though. Go ahead and ask, I have time."

"Well..." I pursed my lips, trying to figure out what I was going to ask exactly. Then I simply said, "You performed Gilbert and Sullivan... right?"

He glanced up. "How do you know that? Background check?"

"No... I just know." I smiled widely. "I... have my ways of knowing stuff." I fell silent. I did not need to tell him anything he didn't need to know. Abby would murder me for sure.

"Cerberus people do have their way of knowing things," Mordin muttered to himself. "Not unexpected. But still... mission must be graver than I thought, if they go through _those _files. Odd. Any more questions?"

Part of me wanted to say I wasn't really with Cerberus. But well... I actually was now, wasn't I? At least in some ways. "Um... can I ask you something even if it sounds really stupid?" I asked sheepishly.

"Go ahead. I have time. But quickly."

I really hoped he wouldn't read anything into this. I was only asking out of sheer curiousity anyway. "Do turians ever... get turned on by humans at all?" There. I asked it.

"By 'turned on' I suppose you mean the chemical response most species tend to get of another performing... certain acts." I nodded, shamefaced. "I would not know. There are many different variables in all alien cultures. For example, some think it is perfectly acceptable to perform sexual acts on lesser-evolved creatures. Some are interested in children. It's all fetishes, which vary from person to person." He suddenly looked uncomfortable. "Doctor to patient, I would advise against sexual acts."

I was getting more awkward and impatient by the minute, but that last thing he said really set me off. Perhaps it was the aftereffects of that stupid ryncol stuff, or the medicine, or simply the fact that this had been a _very_ weird day and I'd been through a lot of stress. Or maybe it was all of the above. Whatever the reason, I ended up losing my temper.

I moved forward and smacked the palm of my hand firmly down on the top of his table, causing some of the closest items to jar or rattle a bit. "You think I'm some kind of stupid sicko who would go after somebody _just_ so I could have sex with them?" I shook my head venomously, taking a couple of steps back from the table. "Drinking that krogan stuff was a stupid thing to do, but even I'm not _that_ stupid."

I sucked in a deep breath through my nostrils, and staggered a bit for some reason. I ended up having to grab the edge of his table for balance. Okay, apparently I wasn't totally better yet... even though my condition seemed to be improving.

Mordin merely looked amused. Suddenly, EDI popped up on her special table. "Perhaps it is best for Sarah to calm down and go back to the medical bay until she is fully coherant."

I shook my head, feeling a bit defiant for some reason. I gripped the edge of the table so tightly that my knuckles started to hurt. "I don't want to go anywhere. I just want to..."

My brain seemed to freeze up. What was I going to say? What was I trying to say?

Mordin was frowning, stroking his chin thoughtfully as I tried to figure this out. "Perhaps the ryncol is having after effects..." he mused aloud.

I gazed downward at the tabletop for a moment, then gave my head a very firm shake, trying to get the cobwebs and fuzzballs out of it. "Sorry," I muttered, starting to feel a tad more human and coherent.

"Bedrest," Mordin announced. "Yes, yes, best idea. Logical idea. You have a _hangover_. Sleep it off. You'll be normal soon." He smiled encouragingly.

For some reason, sleep sounded like a great idea. Even though I'd had a lot of it already. "Yeah," I muttered. I tried to move away from the table, only to end up stumbling over my own foot... or something. I ended up grabbing at the table again, but my hands ended up slipping across it, due to the clutter. So I ended up falling down on the floor... taking a collection of datapads, vials, and small electronic gadgets down with me.

Mordin was suddenly above me, helping me to a sitting position. He sighed. "I don't have room to keep you here. Medical Bay."

"Perhaps I should call for an escort?" EDI asked.

A voice sounded over the intercom. "Uh, this is just me, being me, of course, but _maybe _we better just drop her off at the next planet. Just sayin'."

"Your concern is noted, Mr. Moreau," EDI replied, "but the Illusive Man gave specific orders."

"Yeah, yeah, I know..." Joker sighed heavily. "Well, at least she'll make good entertainment. No more cheap extranet vids."

I reached up and grabbed Mordin's arms. Then I moved a bit too quickly in an attempt to pull myself up, which resulted in disaster. He moved at an angle at the same time I staggered in another direction. I ended up falling down again... landing on the floor and pulling him down with me.

Mordin tumbled past me, turning his fall into a lithe, flowing roll over my body. _Good reflexes_, I had time to think, but Joker was complaining again. "She can't even stand and she's been puking everywhere since day one. I vote 'airlock.'"

"Suggest you call Commander Shepard," said Mordin, staring down at me with a strange look in his eyes. "Perhaps-"

"Hell no," Joker interrupted. "Shepard's all nice and moral when she's _awake_, but I am _not _waking her up for this. She's got enough on her plate-"

"Waking up the Commander would not be sufficient," EDI agreed.

"Just let her lay there, Professor. She can't get nowhere," Joker said.

Mordin sighed.

It then dawned on me that Joker was apparently seeing all of this. Apparently Mordin hadn't had a chance to get that "expensive" device out of the lab yet. It then suddenly dawned on me that that might mean Joker could see me when I pulled up my shirt.

I was going to kill somebody later, I swear. Even though I'm not a violent person. Maybe I would go strangle Abby in her sleep. Nah... I would never do that. But I might fire off a gun right over her bed while she slept to see if I could make her jump out of her skin.

"Just let me stay here, I guess," I muttered, and curled up into a fetal position on the floor, resting my head on one of my arms. It wasn't the most comfortable position in the world, but I was so damn tired right now that I found myself growing more numb and lethargic. Maybe whatever medicine Mordin had given me was kicking in.

That's when the entire world-or ship, rather-gave way to complete blackness... and then images began to fill my mind...

_I saw a turian moving swiftly down a corridor, as if on urgent business. It was not Garrus, nor was it that turian I had seen in Afterlife while I was there. My mind felt somehow... vague and numb, as though I was seeing and feeling a lot of things at once, yet not really seeing or feeling anything at all._

_I could see the determined expression on his face, as though he was all business. He hadn't spotted me yet, for his back was turned to me and he was moving away quickly. Yet for some odd reason, I felt compelled to approach him, to speak to him._

_So I moved quickly toward him, approaching him from behind and giving him a light, tentative tap on the shoulder. He stopped and his head turned toward me to look at me. I was sure he hadn't felt me touch him, not while wearing armor. Maybe he simply heard my hand's soft tap on his armor. "Hello," I tried to say, but I wasn't sure if he could understand me. My own voice sounded weird to my ears, like a hollow, faraway echo._

_Saren looked down at me, with those piercing, and almost strange, blue eyes of his. "What do you want, human? I am on important Spectre business, if you haven't noticed." he said in a very cold tone of voice._

_His frigid manner of speaking to me, along with the look on his face, made me cringe and take a step back in spite of myself. It was quite obvious that I was bothering him, and he didn't like it in the slightest. Part of me felt as though I'd rather be facing Garrus's reaction to my mention of the name "Sidonis" again than to keep bothering this person._

_"Sorry," I squeaked, hating the way my voice sounded. "I just wanted to meet you. I've heard a lot about you." Did that sound cheesy or didn't it?_

_Saren's eyes flared. "You just wanted to meet me? If you have heard so much about me, you should know that I am always trying to protect the people in Citadel space...save lives. I don't have time for simple bystanders to pull me aside," he growled, visibly angry. "Thats the problem with you humans...you don't care what the price is, you want what you want. Even with something like this."_

_I blinked at him. "All I did was say 'Hello'," I muttered, taking another step back. "You got something against humans?" I knew the vague details about what his problem was. I didn't know everything since I hadn't played the first game. But I wanted to hear him say it._

_"Any turian who doesn't is a fool," Saren snapped, pointing a finger at me. "Your kind randomly entered our space, causing an act of war...and ever since, they have been greedy and pushed anyone aside to get in their way."_

_"Yeah well... maybe you should watch your attitude," I said timidly, yet smirking a little. "You're gonna die because of a human. In fact, you're already dead."_

_Saren actually did a double take. "Watch my attitude? Excuse me?" he asked, growling. "And dead? What is wrong with you, human? Are you really that stupid and foolish? I am right before you...and I am the top Spectre. Some petty human will never kill me."_

_"You're gonna die at the hands of another Spectre, a human one." I smiled smugly in spite of myself._

_Saren's jaw dropped, though he quickly regained his composure, and narrowed his eyes. "You delusional human...despite your obvious fantasies, there will never be a human Spectre. Humans are too rogue, too bold, too brash...I will ensure that they will stay off a group that provides justice, not injustice. You should face the reality of how lowly your kind really is."_

_"Well, you might want to decide what you want written on your tombstone," I smirked as I turned away from him. "Just in case."_

_Saren stormed after me, grabbing my shoulder. "You should show some respect...I could turn you in because of your insane babbling. You would be tossed in a mental ward for what could be the rest of your life."_

_Somehow, even though he was gripping me tightly now and looking me in the face-with his mouth so close I could smell his bad turian breath-I grinned like a maniac. "Go to hell. You're going there soon enough anyway. And you're gonna be sent there by a human."_

_He clenched his free fist. "You really have convinced yourself of this...perhaps I should pity you, but I won't. Humans need to learn their place...you need to learn yours. They will never be on the Council, never be a Spectre...and certainly will never defeat me. And you must have alot of nerve to disrespect a Spectre in such a manner." he told me._

_It was as though I'd become a completely different person here, somehow, because I was doing things I would never do-or say, for that matter-normally. And somehow, I just kept on grinning. "You know something?" I began, "There's something I've always wanted to do with a turian... I doubt I'll ever get close enough to the one I __**really**_ _like, so... I'll make do with this." Then I reached up and, grabbing onto his "whiskers", I pulled his face down enough so I could give him a small peck on the cheek._

_Saren looked at me in pure shock and horror, jerking upwards. "You crazy bitch! I don't think turning you in is enough...I am not like C-Sec. I am not afraid to kill someone who could harm society..." he said, grabbing his gun out._

_My eyes widened when I saw him grabbing the gun with his free hand. My grin had faded, but I was still feeling... smug, and the tightness in the corners of my mouth suggested I was still smiling, at least. "Do it," I encouraged, as if I was drunk or completely off my rocker. "I'm going to a better place than you, I bet."_

_Saren scowled. "I'll take pleasure in this." he said, before pulling the trigger._

My eyelids snapped open as the thundering "BANG" sound faded away, like a desolving echo bouncing around inside my skull. I stared upward for a long moment, then finally blinked as I began to regain my bearings. That... had been a dream?

I inhaled deeply, exhaled slowly, and then looked around. I was... where was I? Not my bedroom, that's for sure...

Oh yeah. I was in a room onboard the Normandy. Weird... it felt almost like waking up from one dream to find myself in another.

One thing was better though... I no longer felt quite as bad as I had before. About all I had left was some nausea and my head still hurt, but... at least it was bearable now. Maybe I could go ask somebody for an aspirin or something.

Hell... I actually felt like eating something now. Or at least going to get a drink.

I then noticed HK in the room. I didn't know if he'd just gotten here, or if he had been waiting here for a while. I didn't see Abby anywhere; maybe she was visiting Joker or somebody.

"Hi HK," I muttered. It felt a little weird, calling him his internet nickname instead of his real name, but well... it still fit. "Have I missed much?"

HK sat on his own bed, looking at me. "Hmm...well, not much. You know that we got Mordin, since he, uh...examined you..." he said, nearly snorting, even if he didn't know quite how it really went. "We've all just been sorta resting since we got Mordin and left Omega...Shepard's asleep up in her own room, still. Not sure where Abby is, actually."

"Ah, okay," I said simply. I slowly pushed myself into a sitting position on the edge of my bed. "Hey... who moved me in here?" I asked. "Last thing I remember is..." That's when it all came back to me. Mordin examining me... having to pull up my shirt, and Kelly walking in... then losing my temper... "Oh... God..." I pressed my face into my hands momentarily. Geez I felt embarrassed.

"Well, erm...you sorta went to sleep in there, and after a little while, Mordin had to really start working...and everyone figured it would be better for you to be in your own quarters, so some of the crew just, well, picked you up and tossed you in here." HK replied, looking a bit confused at the entire thing himself.

"Yeah, okay," I mumbled, lowering my hands away from my face. "Ugh, how am I going to be able to show my face out there again after this? Everybody probably thinks I'm nuts now, or really stupid or foolish or something."

HK was silent for a moment. "Well, what I sorta want to know is...what exactly happened? I knew Mordin wanted to examine you after finding out about you drinking that krogan ryncol thing...and I knew that the crew carried you back in here, but I was in the shower for awhile, cleaning up after the mission in the slums, so I don't know what all of this is even about. What happened that was so bad?"

I sighed and leaned back a bit on my bed so that I was sitting back as far as I could without laying down. "Well..." The details were a little fuzzy in my brain, but I told him what happened as best I could remember. I told him that I went in, let Mordin give me a physical, and then...

"Ugh," I said, grimacing as I got up to the beginning of the worst part. "Mordin told me I had to take my shirt off so he could scan my stomach. And when I did, Kelly walked in! After that... I'm not sure what happened. Maybe it's because of that stupid ryncol or whatever medicine Mordin gave me, but... I just lost it. I yelled at him, and I knocked some of his stuff down, then I ended up falling down and knocking him over, too." I winced again, looking away to stare at the wall. "Then I find out that apparently Joker and EDI saw the whole thing."

"Oh...oh _dear_," HK said, blinking after I finished the complicated and confusing story. "Of all the people...Kelly? Kelly the...well, we know. And one thing you have to expect on this ship is for EDI to see and hear everything...maybe Joker, too, though I've always been unsure about that, but dang. However, we've all had our embarrassing moments...and the Normandy isn't highschool."

Well, of course I knew this wasn't highschool. I was grateful for what he said, but at the same time... that didn't help much. "Hey... can you do me a favor?" I asked, then I blurted it out before he could say anything. "Could you maybe... find Abby and tell her what happened?" I just wanted to have at least a few minutes to myself, and I figured Abby would want to know what happened. And I did not feel like repeating the story again.

HK nodded, standing and turning to the door. "Sure, sure...and just stay calm...I know its hard right now, trust me...this is a doozy on all of us. But we have to at least try to keep control," he said, sounding uncertain even as he said that.

After that, he left.

Once I was sure he was gone, I located my CD-player on the nearby table and grabbed it. After listening to "Telephone" and "Angel of Darkness", along with a few songs by "Celtic Woman", I began to feel better. Music always helped.

But then I felt like I wanted to get moving again. So I took the headphones off and put the CD-player aside, and left the room. If HK had found Abby, he might have told her the whole story by now. And I didn't really want to talk to them at the moment-more specifically, I wanted to avoid another "Abby-lecture" if I could.

Somehow I wound up in the elevator and I ended up going to another level of the ship. I stepped out and found myself on the bridge level. I stepped out and I felt relieved that Kelly wasn't there. Maybe she was getting some sleep or something to eat, I wasn't sure. I just didn't want to have to pass by her.

I walked through the bridge, keeping my head down and trying to ignore everyone, and simply headed toward a certain lab. I went through the doors, and walked in to see the salarian scientist standing over his table. From what I could remember of how the place looked before, it looked a lot more organized now. And he seemed to be working busily on something.

I swallowed, unsure why I was even here. Then again, I knew that there was a good reason to be here. I slowly moved forward, feeling as though my feet were dragging through molassas. "Um, Mordin?" I said as I neared the table, and then I spoke quickly. "Hi um, I wanted to apologize for... what happened earlier. And... um, thank you. I feel a lot better now." I stared down at my boots.

Mordin looked up at me, actually smiling when he saw me. "Ah, good, you are awake! Was afraid that effects of ryncol mixed with medicine and treatment damaged you, but was sure that you'd be fine. And apology accepted, just glad to see you feeling well."

I smiled sheepishly. "Thanks again," I said, and... well, that seemed to be that. I still felt embarrassed, but at least he seemed okay with it all. "Cya." I turned to go.

I headed back into the elevator, once again with no real destination in mind. I decided to down to the level where the mess hall was. I could use a drink at least.

When I arrived, I found that the guy who cooked-I couldn't remember his name, and I didn't ask what it was-and he was friendly enough. By talking to him, I also found out that what happened to me in Mordin's lab had spread through the ship a bit, and I noticed a few people were subtly staring at me. Well, part of my mind rationalized, out in space you probably had to have something to talk about... things would get mundane otherwise.

Didn't make me feel any better, though.

I guess something about the way I talked made it clear to the chef-guy that I was not in a chatty mood because he simply gave me some juice and we exchanged brief farewells. Then I had to decide where to go next. I was not going to sit down at one of the lunch tables and have everyone staring at me or whispering about me.

Somehow I found myself wandering down the corridor toward... the armory. Why? I have no idea. Maybe I was curious if Garrus had heard any rumors about what happened with me in Mordin's lab. And well... at least I was starting to feel better. I could drink water and feel assured that it would stay down. Plus... well, I had already made a pretty big fool out of myself. I doubted anything I did now could be worse.

I hesitated briefly as I approached the door to the armory, then I walked in. As usual, the turian was standing over the console inside, doing some sort of work in there.

I stepped to one side of the door, then plastered a smile on my face as my hand tightened around my glass of water. "Hiya, Garrus," I greeted him in what I hoped was a friendly tone.

Garrus turned around from the console, looking at me with the facial expression he seemed to have. "Ah, Sarah. Is there something I can do for you?" he asked.

I shrugged a little, starting to feel a little awkward. I kicked myself mentally, realizing I should have come up with something to say before walking in like this. "Well..." I took a long sip from my glass, giving myself a little time to think up something. "How're things going in here?" I finally asked.

"Great, actually. Shepard upgraded the cannons right after she got back from recruiting Mordin, with my help of course...and I've been working on getting those in," he said, in a friendly enough tone, but still that cool one that Garrus always had. "I'd ask how things have been going with you, but I have...uh, heard quite alot about you today..."

I couldn't be sure if I was blushing now or not. I did turn away from him though, focusing intently on my glass of water. "Yeah uh... I just went and apologized to Mordin." I wasn't sure why I told him that. Maybe because it seemed like it mattered somehow. Or because I couldn't think of anything else to say. Or maybe in a distant, clumsy way... it was sort of my way of apologizing for whatever stupid things he'd heard about me doing.

"The Professor himself is...odd, so I don't think it would be out of the ordinary for him...I heard about him sometimes on Omega," Garrus said, shrugging. "It could have been much, much worse."

I turned my head to look at him again, smiling. "Yeah, you're right, it could have been," I agreed readily. I then finished the contents of my glass and then turned my full attention to him again. "Um... is it okay if I just... hang out in here a bit?" I asked. I almost added "with you" but I chose not to at the last minute.

Garrus raised an eyebrow. "Uh, sure, I suppose. Don't see any harm in it." he answered.

I smiled more brightly and then moved over to the nearby crate to sit down on it. I set the glass down on the edge beside me and leaned forward a little, folding my hands together in front of me. Then I found I couldn't think of anything else to say. This was getting kinda stupid, wasn't it? I couldn't just keep coming in here, having to make up things to talk about on the spot.

Then again, why did I keep coming back here? _Because you think Garrus is awesome, that's why,_ part of my mind retorted. So... I guess the bigger question was... what did I want now? I got to meet him, and I have already talked to him several times. If I kept coming around like this, with nothing to talk about except small talk, it was probably going to annoy him and embarrass me sooner or later.

As I pondered this, I realized I must have been making some funny facial expressions, and my eyes had been darting around the room. Garrus was still standing near the console, but he was looking in my direction.

"Are you...alright? You look like something is on your mind." Garrus asked, raising an eyebrow again.

"Um... yeah, something is," I acknowledged sheepishly. I turned my face to look at him, but my eyes were focused on the floor.

"Um, well..." Garrus said very slowly. "I'm not good at this type of stuff like Shepard is, but would you like to talk about it? Don't expect any great wisdom, though. The Commander is the best with this type of stuff."

"Actually it's not something I could talk to anyone else about anyway," I said truthfully. "I mean, uh... it's about you." Good grief, hopefully I wasn't going to make things worse.

"About me? Does it have something to do with Sidonis?" Garrus questioned, sounding like he hesitated at the last word.

"Not... really," I replied, nervously fiddling with my hair. It made me glad that I had kept my long hair instead of cutting it. Gave me something to do with my fingers. "It's just... I..." What was I going to say, exactly? I was so sick of getting tongue-tied around him! "I... _really_... like you."

A silence fell in the room.

Then I swallowed, hard. No! I did NOT mean for it to sound like _that!_

Garrus blinked a few times, silent for several seconds. "Uh...wow, I'm sorry, its just...that is unexpected...we only just met, and I don't know too much about species liking another species...since there were no other turians on board, I just sort of assumed that kind of thing wouldn't...uh, nevermind."

_Okay, crate, you can open up and eat me whole any time now, _I thought. I almost wondered if Joker's suggestion of putting me out the airlock would be such a bad thing right now.

I cleared my throat, forcing myself to look at Garrus. "Um... I didn't mean to just blurt that out and I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable..."

"Its...well, ah, crap, I'm horrible at this...but I just wonder how. I mean, I know you 'see' things like with Sidonis, but...we've only known each other a very short time, and have had all of three conversations. How can you...like me?" Garrus questioned.

"Um... well..." At this point, I figured blunt honesty was probably the best. "Yeah, I've seen things, and... I... I've really seen some things about you I like." I made a face, knowing I was stumbling over words again. I forced myself to continue. "I know you're... different from other turians. You like to get things done the best way you can, without anything in your way. And your father didn't approve when you left C-sec."

"I must say, if there's one thing that impresses me about you, its your vast knowledge of things...though I've been hearing alot about that ever since I rejoined Shepard," Garrus commented. "But yes, you are right...you seem to know me well. But, uhhh...I really don't want to be rude, but...you may know me well, but I still don't know you..I hope you didn't anticipate on me returning the feelings...damnit, this is a bitch to explain. I really don't want to hurt you, though."

I nodded. Somehow it was getting a little easier to breath again, and to speak. Maybe it was because I'd seen how he was going to react now, and at least he didn't react strongly or leave the room or anything. "I know, I didn't really expect anything," I told him. "You're right, you don't know anything about me. But I guess I wanted to... clear the air."

Garrus nodded back. "I understand...sometimes, maybe, it is better to get it out in the open, though I wouldn't know...but I understand your reasoning, and I appreciate you understanding."

I nodded again. "So um... what do you think of me?" I asked in spite of myself. "I mean... can we be friends at least?"

"Yes, yes...I don't think that would be a bad thing. I'll admit, I like honesty...I can't say I really trust anyone on this ship except Shepard, not really, but I admire honesty...I've dealt with enough of lying and betraying for one lifetime. So, I may not trust anyone totally, and I may not be all warm and cozy...but being friends wouldn't be so bad." Garrus answered.

I beamed. "I appreciate that. And... I understand. Honestly I have a hard time trusting anyone a whole lot, for reasons I won't go into. But I think it's been harder for you, because all of your men were killed... and the ones who were still alive when you got there didn't last long." I didn't care anymore if Abby would kill me later or not.

"You know more details than I thought, but I don't think I'm shocked at this point...but yes. I'll get justice, though...my own brand of justice, once I find Sidonis...hopefully, that will be soon." Garrus said, though strangely enough, he didn't flat out press me for his location.

"Tell me something," I said, leaning forward again. I was beginning to feel a bit bolder now. "Why haven't you asked me where he is? I mean, what he did to you and your men has been tearing you up inside for all this time, and you've been dying to find him and kill him. So why aren't you trying to get that out of me?" I was glad he wasn't, truthfully. But I wanted to know _why_ he wasn't.

Garrus tilted his head slightly. "Multiple reasons, really. Do I want to know where he is? Hell yes. Am I going to kill him? Hell yes. The pain hasn't gone away...its still there, and I am ready for revenge...but for one, I was only just recruited by a person who I thought was dwas dead for two years. A good friend. I need time to let that soak in, and, I can't start making demands from her after only just coming onto the crew...it would be wrong, and she has a mission that I respect, and am going to help her with...petty personal issues are not a top priority in the main agenda. Also, I didn't want to pressure you...I was tempted, and it may sound strange, but I don't want to mess with whatever you have...visions, senses, whatever. I know you are not helping Sidonis, so I see no need to drag you into some cruel interrogtion like I would do to someone who actually was. When the time is right, I'll know." he explained.

I nodded a little. "I'm... impressed," I told him after a moment. Since he just said a moment ago that he admired honesty, I was oddly encouraged to go right on talking. "I mean... when I first blurted out that name around you, I thought you might threaten to break my neck or even shoot me like you did to Harkin."

_Oops._ And triple oops.

"Ha, I was tempted to when I first wondered if you were working for hi-wait, Harkin?" Garrus asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Oooooops," I said, putting my hand over my mouth. "Nothing, nothing, just forget I said anything." I looked at the door, wondering if I should make a run for it.

"What does Harkin have to do with any of this?" Garrus asked, still in a gentle tone, but a firm one.

"Uh..." Images from the game flashed through my brain. Harkin being kicked between the legs, Garrus threatening to break his neck, threatening to shoot him in the leg... I stared at the person before me with widened eyes. I knew that Garrus had a gentle side, definitely, but he also had the potential of being dangerous.

"Harkin... has talked to Sidonis," I finally said, choosing my words carefully.

"So...he knows where he is?" Garrus questioned, beginning to pace. "So...Harkin may be helping Sidonis...then that could mean that he's on the Citadel, if Harkin still hangs around there...wait, no, no...I need to wait. I want to kill Sidonis, but not now. For the reasons I said. Not now."

I got to my feet. "I'm sorry," I told him. "I shouldn't have said any of this. But... please don't hurt Harkin, okay? He's a criminal but... um..." I shook my head. "Nevermind, maybe I should just go." However, I didn't move.

"You're a very nice girl, but what I do to Harkin depends on how cooperative he is when I find him," Garrus said, lowering his tone as he finished the sentence. "I don't know whether to thank you or not, but I'm not mad...Sidonis will pay. Its imminent now."

"Yeah, and there's three possible outcomes to that," I muttered, slowly moving toward the door.

"Outcomes?" Garrus said, sounding partially confused. "In my eyes, despite whatever you may know, there is only one: Sidonis will die...he'll pay for what he did to my men. That I will make sure of."

"Well actually there's only two outcomes, I'm just counting all the things that I did in the ga-er, I mean, that I saw in my visions. Let's just say, whatever happens-or however it happens-you'll be satsified with the results in the end." I nodded toward him, then I turned toward the door and started to leave.

At the very last moment, I turned back to look at him. "Hey, you know..." I paused, choosing my words carefully. "I was wondering if maybe you could help me something."

Garrus began to turn away, but then he looked back at me. "Yes?"

I simply blurted it out. "Can you teach me to fight?"

"Teach you to fight?" Garrus repeated, blinking. "What exactly do you want to learn?"

"Well... hand-to-hand," I answered simply with a little shrug.

"I do know hand to hand very well, and I suppose you are going to...need to know how to fight if you want to save your species," Garrus said slowly, as he stared right at me. "But are you sure?"

"Yeah, sure I'm sure," I told him, blinking a little. "Why wouldn't I be sure?" I felt surprised and just a tad offended, wondering if he was thinking I couldn't fight. I know I might not look up for it, and I probably wasn't up for much fighting right now, but... was he comparing me to real fighters he'd known?

"Um, well...I don't mean to offend you, but its...well, I am a turian that is...quite a bit bigger than you." Garrus answered.

I folded my arms, feeling a bit... cocky in spite of myself. "I have a feeling we're gonna find some things out there that are even bigger than you," I told him. "And if I happen to run into something big and dangerous... it's probably not going to be nice enough to warn me that it's stronger than me like you just did, and it probably won't give me a chance to run away."

"Hmm...I'll admit, you got me there...fine, I'll try to train you." Garrus said.

I smiled triumphantly, although the realization of what we just agreed on hit me as well. My smile faded a little. "Is this gonna hurt?" I found myself asking.

"Yes, yes it will," Garrus answered very bluntly.

"You mean... that's a guaruntee? Even the first time?"

"Well, it depends on how much training you have had..." Garrus told me.

"Well... my dad told me about a few things I could do if I ever got in a bad situation somehow, though I never really have been," I shrugged. "Other than that, well..." I cocked my head to one side, narrowing my eyes. "How accurate do you think the action scenes in... movies are?" I asked.

"Well...alot of the time, I'd say they are much lighter than the actual battles. I've learned that while fighting Saren and working as a merc..." he answered, shaking his head.

"I guess... I don't really know anything then," I finally said. "So uh... what would the first thing to learn be?"

Garrus held up a single pointed claw. "Number one," he said seriously, "is to avoid the fight when you can. Just because you know a few moves doesn't make you invincible. Anybody can take down somebody with the right amount of luck. Got that?"

I nodded. "Yeah I think that's pretty obvious," I stated firmly.

"Number two," Garrus stated a bit more stiffly, "is don't sass the guy teaching you. You learn the basic lessons first, or not at all."

I knew I was going to have to keep a lid on my... opinions and my feelings here, so to speak. And to keep my impatience in check. In many ways, I knew that I did not make a very good pupil in some areas. Why? Because I preferred to be doing something, or being allowed to do it right away, not simply stand there and listen to the teacher. Yes I knew that verbal lessons were important, but I felt that things stuck in my mind better if I could actually... practice them.

I did not learn my way around Corel Paint by sitting around reading the manuals all day long, I did a lot of experiementing. But well... I also knew that this was very different from writing or drawing on my computer. And maybe this was why I shouldn't even be in a military situation. But thanks to the wish, I was here, and I felt I needed to learn this. It was either that or stay on the ship all the time or cower behind someone who had a gun anytime I felt threatened.

"Okay," I said in a more respectful tone. "Got it."

Garrus gave me this long, slow look, like he was appraising my mental toughness. "A fight never goes the way you plan it," he said finally. "The guy that wins has a flexible mind, adaptable. Plans never go off without a hitch. But since you won't be doing a hostage extraction any time soon," he chuckled, "we'll work with the basics. The general obstacles we encountered during our hunt for Saren were the usual-big guys with big guns and superior advantage.

"Always rely on your teammate. They're watching your back at the cost of their lives. Unless you're fully prepared to die for the guys on your side, then you'll never be fully effective. Teamwork. Take your orders from Shepard and follow them to the letter, because she's in charge.

"I suppose we'll work on target practice later," he mused. "Right now I think we should get you outfitted with shields at the very least. They'll stop any high-velocity missile like a bullet, but a punch is hardly going to be at that speed. I suppose I'll show you to break a few bones. That should be fun."

I blinked a little. Frankly, any person who enjoyed playing games and watching action movies as much as I did enjoyed watching people kicking the hell out of each other, especially when the good guys came out on top. But... the actual thought of me breaking someone's bones, literally? My eyes widened as I thought about what that might be like... the sickening crunch and a moan of pain as someone went down, face twisted in agony... I swallowed, not liking the thought one bit.

"The next time we stop at a civilized area with a viable human populace we'll go shopping for paintball guns," Garrus said. "They're not as efficient as the military tranq darts, but they sting. Target practice in the cargo hold should do you up nicely. Actually..." And at this he lowered his voice. "Your friends could probably use some help, too. There's a rumor going around that the other girl tackled a charging krogan with a knife and won. Example of pure luck. She should never have won that fight. It's no wonder Chakwas X-Rayed her chest for broken ribs after you left."

"Abby did THAT?" I blurted out, surprised. I would have thought even she would have enough common sense not to do that. And she thought I was stupid for drinking ryncol? Frankly, I wasn't sure which was worse. Unintentionally poisoning yourself, or running the risk of being smashed into a mass of broken bones and flesh.

Well... assuming the rumor was true, if she EVER mentioned the ryncol episode around me again, I was going to bring that up. My hands clenched at my sides. I wasn't going to do or say anything, at all. But I was feeling a bit... pissed off, I suppose. I mean, WHAT a hypocrite.

Garrus obviously wasn't expecting my strong reaction. "Yeah," he said slowly. "Shepard was bragging about her when she came by to talk. They let HK and Abby tag along with them without weapons. Another test, apparently. A krogan circled around the lines and smashed the boy in the face. Would've killed him if Abby didn't ride on his shoulders." He actually laughed. "She literally threw her arms around that thing and stuck that knife right up it's trachea. Stupid, stupid tactic, but hey, it worked. And I bet she'll be allowed to carry a gun more often now."

"Wait just one damn minute," I snapped, taking a step closer to Garrus and glaring up at him. "Are you telling me that the krogan hit HK and then Abby attacked the brute and won?" I could feel my breath quickening a bit in my chest as I tensed up. Apparently while I was lying around in the medical bay, both of my friends nearly got themselves killed out there. That wasn't supposed to happen, although I knew I should have suspected it was possible for it to happen here.

In the game, this was all merely fun, and if someone died... you could just feel bad about it for a while, then restart the game. But here... now...

How could either of them just totally act like nothing had happened down there on Omega? Or was it because I'd been so focused on my sickness and my embarrassment that I didn't even think to ask them? Still... they should have said something. I huffed a little and took a step back from Garrus.

"Basically," Garrus said dryly. "Things like these happen," he added unnecissarily. "A friend gets hurt, it drives all other thoughts from your mind. Piggybacking a krogan is probably the best and only thing she could have done in the situation. And from the other stuff Shepard was saying, those two watched each other's backs like you wouldn't believe." He was silent, and his large, reptillian face suddenly seemed a bit more approving. "I don't know why Shepard is letting you guys tag along, but we've certainly had weirder people. And experience teaches more than any inside-lesson can. What's the lesson you can take out of that story?"

Ugh. I hated it when people asked me stuff like that, because for all I knew, they could be asking me a trick question. "I think I get what you're saying... out on the battlefield you just have to... act, especially if others are in trouble, not be worried about getting hurt, right?"

My anger and indignation over the matter was fading a bit, even though I still felt a bit pissed. In a way... I was actually starting to envy Abby now. I wasn't sure if I could have done that if it needed to be done. And I had seen HK just a short time ago... so I knew he was fine.

"Out on the battlefield," Garrus said softly, "just make sure you follow the orders to the letter and make sure everybody gets out alive. And don't be afraid to die, because we all do eventually."

And on that solemn note, he turned back around. "We'll have to continue this later. Give me about another day to get these calibrations rigged for the new teeth, and then we'll go have some fun downstairs."

"Yeah, okay," I said, still feeling a bit dazed. "Thanks." Without saying another word I left the room.

With that I walked back over to the mess hall area. There weren't as many people there now, only a couple. And they were talking about the latest planet to be attacked by Collectors. I ignored them and, even though they glanced at me, they kept talking about their current subject.

With that I got a small bowl of soup from the chef guy and took a seat to eat it. Figured I might as well keep my strength up. After I was done... I guess I would go find Abby and HK.


	10. Fight Club

**(Abby)**

"And so she's alive!" Jacob said, looking up from his terminal. He smiled just enough to allow the faint sheen of his white teeth to appear over dark lips. "That's good. Break anything?"

"Nah," I answered. "I'll just be sore a couple days, but I really don't see how you can escape that. I was pretty lucky, and Doctor Chakwas is very good at her job."

"She's the best," Jacob agreed. He came over and slapped my hand. "Hey, good job out there. Both you you. Did better than I expected."

"We can do better, though," I said, though secretly I was pleased with the praise. "Can I have a real weapon next time?"

You could've thought that killing more than a few sencient beings would have dented my outlook on life, and maybe it did. Seeing Daniel die before my eyes certainly had. I'd had enough time to think it through on the shuttle ride back, though. And in the end, really, it was simple:

They were shooting at us. They died.

Easy, right? There were always going to be casualties in a war—and this _was_ a war—but it was the realization that we could have talked the batarians down that twisted my gut in circles. _Everything's going to be different now. _How many more people would die if things didn't play out exactly as planned? How many innocents would I inadvertately kill because I didn't specify in the convo, 'Hey, let's make sure she has pure Charm and Intimidate scores!'

We hadn't thought it would happen, though. It was just a cheap trick, and I don't think anybody in our small group thought that it would _really_ work. And if we were sent here...

It was real. An alternate universe, perhaps? After the mission, if we survived, would we be sent back to where we came? Would we even _remember?_ I couldn't imagine that I could forget it, but sometimes things worked out like that, didn't they?

And what if we _died?_

_No, don't think about it. Focus and don't screw around._

Jacob, for all of his initial weirdness in the game, was actually an easy guy to be around. He didn't treat me like some crazy girl, which was fine by me. All the odd looks people were throwing me were getting old fast. He was a guy I could respect easily, just like my first Aikido sensei. "Yeah, I think you pretty much qualify for the small stuff," he said smoothly. "I think Garrus is going to make sure you and the other two are up to stuff tomorrow. Think you'll be up to it? You don't have to brave out that bruise, you know."

The bruise was blue and stretched up from my left thigh to my upper chest in an inky splatter. I wasn't going to be running marathons any time soon, but with Doctor Chakwas's administrations I was sure it would fade in time. "I'm good," I said, chuckling. "Are _you_? You did more of the fighting than I did."

"Pss, I'm good. I'm always good." He turned back to the terminal. "How's HK doing? Nose still attached?"

"Oh, yeah. Chakwas got the inflammation under control while she took my X-Rays."

"Good. That's alright, then."

I began to wander around the room, towards the pistils. "Where's Commander Shepard?"

"In Miranda's office, I think," he said. "Or downstairs welcoming the new guy."

"Zaeed."

"Yeah, him. Interesting fellow."

_You have no idea. _"Mmm-hmm."

"Hope he turns out to be a good catch..."

I shrugged my shoulders, deciding not to answer that. "Then do you know where we're going next?"

"Purgatory. There's a convicted felon there that the Man's managed to loosen up for us. Goes by the name of Jack."

"Ah."

"Know anything about that?"

I was struck by a sudden, horrible thought. "Keep your weapons with you at all times," I said, trying to emphasize this point very, very seriously. "Don't give 'em up, no matter what."

"I wasn't intending to do that," said Shepard, walking in. "Why? Know something?"

I gave her The Look.

"Ah, of course, you can't say," Shepard said, holding up her hand with a small grin on her face. "I remember now."

Her smile was just a bit too patronizing. "I'm not screwing things up this time," I said. "I'm _not_ lying. After everything we've already done, how can you still think we _are?_"

"Relax, relax, I'm just playing with you," Shepard said. "I belive you have some kind of precognition. But I'm naturally suspiscious, and until you do earn your place in the crew, then you're all going to have to work hard."

"I understand that."

Shepard's eyebrows twitched in surprise, but she said nothing of it. "So, here's what we're going to do," she said, crossing over to lean nonchalantly on the table. "I'm bringing you with me to Purgatory." _Shit._ "We're going to extract Jack. Hopefully there will be no krogans involved this time." _No, not at all... just two heavy mechs... a shield system... and a _lot _of baddies... _"We'll be there in six days. I suggest you use that time to train."

Jacob shifted his weight uncomfortably behind me; I heard the fabric shift. "You'll do fine, kid," he said, but I could hear a slight edge to his voice. Could he see the shock in my shoulders? "Commander's got her reasons."

"I don't like bringing a kid there," said Shepard, watching my eyes intently. "But I'd rather have you with me where I can see you."

That rankled. "Under_stood_," I said. My voice came out a bit stiffer than I'd originally intended. "I'm not going to make you believe us thoroughly. I can't. But I hope you start to realize that we're not here to sabotage your mission."

Shepard nodded. "I understand," she said, echoing my previous statement. "Mr. Taylor and I have some business to discuss. If you'd like to find your friends, go ahead."

Her words were blunt, but her tone was neutral. "Got it." _'Get the hell out.' _"'Bye, Jacob."

I didn't even bother to glance up the bridge at the cockpit when I rounded the corner to enter the elevator. But apparently going to Deck Three wasn't to be: Kelly turned away from her duties and said, "Abby! Good job out there. You did _really_ well."

Okay, maybe Kelly wasn't _so_ bad...

"Thanks," I said, forcing a smile. "How's it going, Kelly?"

"Oh, business as usual," Kelly said. She beckoned for me to come closer, so I sat on the dias leading up towards the galaxy map. "Your friend Sarah seems to be recovering well from her expeditions in the Afterlife," she chuckled. "HK is very polite. Why do you call him that? It seems like a nickname, of some sort."

"It is," I agreed. "We... er, never met before. We've known each other for years, though."

"How is that possible?" Kelly looked extremely interested.

"We were penpals. He, Sarah, and me, plus a few other people. Other people flitted in and out of our little social network for a while, but we're always the constants in the group. We've seen pictures of each other, too. But never really heard each other's voices, or seen each other in person. It's very different and strange."

"I bet it is," she said. "What kind of penpal group was it?"

"A writing group," I answered. "We got together on the 'net and wrote stories about our favorite things. Been real good friends ever since."

"Wow," said Kelly, impressed.

I smiled grimly. "Thanks. It was always fun." Maybe she knew enough not to question me like Shepard, because she didn't inquire any further about it. She turned back to her terminal, humming to herself. "Thanks for the clothes, by the way," I added with a smile.

"Oh, it was no problem," said Kelly. "I'm glad it fits."

"I'm going to find my friends. It was nice chatting with you." And it was. Surprising, actually. Kelly beamed at me as I stood, and I smiled back.

I found HK and Sarah in our little area. It was becoming more of a meeting place lately than a brig, even with EDI listening in on our conversations... and Joker, probably, too. I pat HK once on the shoulder as I passed him and climbed to the top bunk of my bed. Seeing them both immediately improved my mood. "Feeling better, Sar?" I asked, crossing my legs.

Sarah smiled a little. "Well, I think I'm over the ryncol episode if that's what you mean," she said as she got up from her bunk.

"Good," I congratulated. "Because we're heading to Purgatory, and Shepard wants me along." I had the strange idea that Shepard might have just been dragging us behind her tail just to get us killed and out of her way. Paragon Shepard wasn't above being down and dirty, I remembered, a dark shadow passing over my mind as I thought about the 'Paragon' choices in Zaeed's mission. I studied the faces of shock on the others, and knew they understood. "We'll be there in six days."

"Purgatory..." HK commented, taking what sounded like a deep breath. "Thats going to be a mad house, er, space station...will you be alright there?"

"I think this mission is gonna seem even uglier than whatever you guys saw on Omega," Sarah muttered. "You know, Jack seems cool in the game, but... I'm not sure if I really want to meet her."

I grinned. "You kidding? This is going to be great-you know, if she doesn't kill me. And if we make it through the prison..." I knew EDI was listening, so I added, "unmolested."

I was trying to get myself ready for it. I needed a good spar, though. I hadn't sparred with anybody since my last night in Aikido... and how many days ago was that now, exactly? One, two, or three? I'd do the mental math later. No reason to stretch out my brain on pointless things like counting days when I probably wouldn't have Algebra I class for a long time. And if we all lived through this, and carried on to Mass Effect 3, I probably wouldn't have class ever again.

I liked that idea. Too much.

Guns. I needed some gun practice. I didn't even bother to brag about me taking down an armored krogan with a switchblade-I was too nervous about the upcoming event.

"Jack is a great person but...uhh...I don't know how much I would want to talk to her myself," HK commented, shaking his head. "Just be careful in the prison. Sarah's right, that is worse than Omega."

"Thanks," I said gratefully. "Part of me's wondering why she's bringing me, though. I don't know if she's taking any of you guys. She'll probably let us know soon..." I glanced at the door and gripped my knees hard. "At least meeting Jack will be an... experiance."

HK nodded. "Oh, it will...Jack's interesting. This whole team is interesting, and even more interesting when actually meeting them. But everything seems to be going as best as it can for the most part...but I'm still shaken up about Daniel."

"You wanna stay here?" Sarah mused out loud, apparently feeling a little concerned.

I was appalled at the idea. "Yes way! I want to go. I've been in prisons before, and, really, as long as you keep a knife where nobody can see it, you're good." I grinned at this obvious answer.

"This...isn't going to be your standard prison, though," HK said, blinking.

Sarah rolled her eyes, looking a bit annoyed. "I meant HK," she said in irritation. "I already know you're not bummed out about Daniel, Abby."

I raised an eyebrow.

HK looked surprised. "Oh, oops, sorry," he said, seemingly embarrassed. "Umm...well, if Shepard asks me to go, I will...but I am still shaken up after Omega and seeing all that happened. Though, Abby was there, too, and she is going..."

"I already thought it through," I mumbled. "And I was shaken about Daniel, too. I'm just not going to go off whining about it. People die. It happens." And she better understand that.

"I understand, its just...I guess I'm still disturbed by it because _I_ was the one that lunged forward. _I_ caused the shot to go off. It was because Shepard wasn't making the right dia-" HK started, but then glanced to EDI's terminal. "Because Shepard wasn't saying enough to convince the batarian, but still...I just feel like...I just feel like it could have gone differently if not for me."

"Hey I understand," Sarah said, holding up a hand. "I mean, I wasn't trying to say that you were wrong to be to be bothered by what happened, HK. And I didn't mean to imply that you were a cold fish or anything like that, Abby. I was just trying suggest that maybe HK would feel better if he stays here this time around."

And let me go kill some more people. I didn't know whether I should be pissed or enthused by her confidence in my uber-awesome assassination skills. "Yeah," I said. "But for now, let's forget about it. Alright?"

HK nodded. "I understand, alright. Now is not the time to focus on who is going to Purgatory, anyway."

"Yeah well, I didn't mean anything by what I said," Sarah muttered, shrugging in irritation.

I didn't roll my eyes... with effort. "Shepard said I'm going with her. If she wants the rest of us, I'm sure she'll call... or something. Wonder if we'll get any Loyalty Missions, huh?"

"Depends...maybe? But the question is...how the heck can we even have loyalty missions? Everyone's is something personal, and how can we have anything personal when we are in a timeline where we have nothing personal in our lives except each other?" HK wondered outloud.

I had no clue what my type of mission would be.. but then again, did anybody on this crazy crew? "Maybe we're not supposed to know yet. Like everybody else."

"True...I don't think any of them know whats going to happen to them yet." HK remarked, nodding in agreement.

"So what," Sarah said with a shrug, "maybe we'll just have something randomly come up? Maybe get a random message through Kelly or something?"

I held my head in my hands. "Uh, no. No. No. Bad idea. Let's just go with being cheerfully knowledgable about our fate and stuff like that."

Sarah shrugged. "If any of us have bad dreams about our futures, I don't want to hear about it."

"I'm going to be totally quiet on that part," I muttered. I'd had a dream last night about Commander Shepard putting a leash on us all and feeding us to her fish, which turned out to be just toy sharks. Then Shepard fed us pie. It was confusing.

"Depends on what kind of futures we even have now," HK muttered beneath his breath.

_"True."_

And then we went to sleep.

I woke up soon after I drifted off, blinking stupidly in the dimmed light as I tried to remember where I was. Rubbing my eyes blearily, I looked around before sitting up as quietly and stealthily as possible, trying to make no rustle of movement that would wake up the others sleeping quietly all around me. Sometimes I had to remind myself that these weren't only being used as a holding pen for my friends and me, but also as a living quarters for the crew. It was only lightly populated, with nearly half of the beds vacant and emptied. I took a peep below and noticed Gabby, from Engineering, sleeping quietly below. I leaned back, a little disappointed, and moved slowly, inch by inch, towards the ladder. One foot under the other, slowly, slowly... My bare feet hit the warm deck without a sound, and I slipped towards the exit.

There was no way I could disguise the quiet hiss of the door opening, nor the bright rectangle of light that escaped into the room. I got out of range of the motion detector as soon as I was out in the hall and ducked into the women's restrooms. Empty, thank God.

Something I couldn't help but notice in the original game was how you could see the showers, plain as day, if you opened the door. Thankfully, our wishes seemed to have expanded it and made it longer and deeper. Privacy screens around the showers and toilets offered a quiet sanctuary for those who needed to _think._

I looked at myself in the mirror, bracing my hands against the counter. I drummed my fingers against it, caught in thought, and eventually took a towel and bathing soap into the showers. The hot water loosened up my tense muscles and eased away some of the aches and pains around my chest. The bruise was still there, inky-black in the bright bathroom lights, but it was beginning to fade with the medication Chakwas had me taking.

I dried myself off, feeling strangely awake despite the time on the analog clock above the mirror. The fact that it was two in the morning didn't concern me at all. We had six days before we had to be really awake, right? I squeezed out water droplets in my hair and wrapped it in a tight braid that would keep it out of my eyes, then, deciding that I probably shouldn't go back to the room in case I woke somebody up. There was already enough distaste regarding us circling the ship, and I sure as hell wasn't going to let them have another thing to add to the list.

And with that enchanting thought, I went to the kitchens to get some food. Munching on a slice of bread and ham, I wandered around for a while before finally deciding to head back to the room anyway. I climbed into bed at two-thirty and hid underneath the covers.

At five o'clock on the dot we were awakened by a general call from Joker up at the cockpit. I stumbled out of bed, yawning, and followed the congregation out as they went to the kitchens. Jacob, Garrus, and Miranda were sitting in an obvious group at the far end of the table, talking softly as they dug into their respective meals. I grabbed a bowl of cereal from the bar and gestured for HK and Sarah to take a seat with me close by their group. Sarah needed no prodding—she was the one with the crush on the turian—and HK just looked mildly curious as he sat down. Unsurprisingly, they both looked tired. I wondered if they'd had as much trouble sleeping as I did.

"Hi, guys," I said, digging into my food.

Miranda nodded in acknowledgement, her mouth too full to answer, and Jacob said, "Hey."

"We're going to get started on a few basic drills today," Garrus started. "Jacob has decided to help me out, and Miss Lawson said she would pop in after a while."

I was suddenly excited. "What kind of basic drills?" HK asked, obviously concerned for our mental and physical wellbeing.

"Shepard only gave you a crash-course in actually firing a weapon," Miranda stated. "And the others didn't get the lesson at all. We'll start there, then actually get into the target practice."

"That's the standard crap," Jacob said. "Afterwards we'll see if you can hold your own in a sparring match."

_Heaven._

"Then Shepard's orders," Garrus added. "Hand signals. Nonverbal communication."

"Omni-tools," Jacob said.

"All that fun stuff," I said with a grin.

Sarah leaned forward just a little, a thoughtful expression crossing her features. She was looking in Garrus's general direction. "What will these sparring matches be like? I mean... I assume they'll be up close and personal?" Then she looked a little sheepish and sat back a bit, glancing down at her food. I could imagine what she might have been thinking; that this might be a chance to get "up close and personal" with her favorite turian.

I didn't roll my eyes, but I did shoot her a look. Sparring matches weren't meant to consumate romantic feelings. I considered telling her that later, after breakfast, but dismissed the idea. Hopefully the three of them would be smart enough to pair her with Jacob or Miranda.

"Groundfighting," Garrus clarified. "We'll have some mats set out to take the falls, but we still have to be careful. We'll do the quick basics before actually doing the sparring. Arm locks, joint pins, pressure points, demoralizing blows. And most of all, how to create distance. If you can't get yourself distance in a fight, you're screwed."

"Ma-ai," I said.

"What about your eye?" Jacob asked.

"Ma-ai is a Japanese word. It's the distance of space between yourself and an opponent," I clarified.

Sarah was paying a lot of attention to her food at the moment, stuffing her face. She wasn't going at it like a hungry pig, but it seemed to be a way to keep herself occupied during a conversation which she had no idea how to contribute to. She was paying attention, I could tell that much; her eyes would occasionally dart to whomever was speaking.

And her eyes definitely lit up when Garrus spoke, even though he didn't even look at her directly.

At this point however, she put down her utensil and glanced up. "You know," she said, "I don't really why you make all of this martial arts stuff sound so hard. I mean, yeah I've never really done it or anything, but... surely it can't be all that hard, can it? You just give a good slam into a sensitive or weak area and your opponent will go right down... right?" Her eyes glanced around the table at everyone-her gaze lingered on Garrus a little longer, then she glanced back down at her food and picked up her eating utensil again.

I blinked, and I could feel my mental hackles rising. I opened up my mouth to reply, but Miranda got there first. "You'll see that it's not what you're used to in the vids," she said. "Just ask the krogan."

Sarah nodded a little, taking Miranda's words into consideration. "Um, I didn't mean that I think it's all fun and games," she stated, sounding slightly defensive. "But..." She shook her head a little, as though realizing how her words must have sounded. "I guess it just looks like it's fun in movies, at least sometimes. I know that when you're out there in the field, so to speak, it's life and death. But I guess I just thought..." She trailed off, fiddling with her fork again.

"You thought what?" Jacob prompted.

"...That somehow these sparring matches might be fun, since we're all friends here and this isn't totally serious," Sarah finished, eyeing everyone again. She frowned slightly, as though realizing she had mispoken again.

"Practicing is fun," I agreed. "As long as you're practicing with the right people, and these guy'll be alright. It's the people like Michael you have to worry about."

HK smirked. "Well, I don't think the Illusive Man would have let anybody like Michael on to the ship."

"True! Thank God for small miracles." I grinned. "But yeah, practicing will be fun. New stuff to learn, great people to learn from."

"How long have you been training?" Miranda asked curiously.

"Five years of Shaolin Kempo, two years of Aikido," I answered. "Since I was seven, basically. I'm fourteen now, about to turn fifteen."

"Good," Garrus said. "but like I said, the sparring won't happen for a while until we're sure you can take it."

Sarah looked a little confused. "But if we're not going to try sparring right away, what are we going to be doing?" she asked. Part of me began to wonder if she was even paying attention here.

"Uh, weapons stuff, and disarming stuff," HK said. "And joint locks."

"When can we start?" I asked excitedly.

"Right now, if you want," Jacob said, frowning a little. "I have the SMGs and the heavy pistils moved downstairs in the cargo hold with nonlethal rounds in them."

"I'll come down later, Jacob," Miranda said, standing. "Keep an eye on them."

Jacob stood and we all threw our trays away in the disposal canister. The elevator ride down was short, but the confined space was awfully crowded with all of us gathered in there. I could imagine Joker eavesdropping on us, and wondered when exactly I was going to meet the greatest guy in the Mass Effect series. Instead of stopping on the Engineering deck, we went down one more level... to a place that could only be seen at the high strung ending of the game. As promised, the weapons were all spread out for us in a neat line.

I debated for a little bit over the M-6 heavy pistil Mordin had given HK, but eventually decided to learn more about the M-3.

Jacob began to teach as Garrus positioned small bottles precariously around the room. EDI's activated blue ball watched at her terminal. "This is the M4 Shuriken," he said, picking up the smaller pistil on the far end of the line. "It's a semi-auto SMG—a submachine gun. "Unfortunately, this is the only type of SMG we have so far. It fires in three-round bursts, but the accuracy is a pain in the rear. "Pretty effective against shields and biotic barriers, though, so I suppose it makes up for it. We don't have a lot of stopping power here for those big armored guys. Twenty-four shots per clip, and you can carry up to ten clips in reserve. So that makes for two-hundred forty. You reload by pressing this button _here,_ which pops the chamber out and gets rid of the heat sink. Don't reload in the middle of an oil spill, or in the middle of any flammable shit, because these things are _hot _when they come out."

I nodded, glancing at the others. HK and Sarah looked like they were paying very close attention. "How bad is the recoil?" I asked.

"Not too bad," he supplied, "but keep a tight grip on it. I have a few ammo clips here. We're going to learn how to reload fast and effectively. Ammo is on the left hip. Each clip has a special mixture of alloys that make it stick to a gunbelt only, so it won't stick to your armor. When you have to reload, duck under cover and eject the heaksink with this button. You might have to press it down pretty hard. Heat sink will pop out. Feed this clip in to the bottom cell like so, and the gun will do the rest of the work. Here, try it."

He tossed the gun to HK. He paused a moment, trying to remember how to work it, or probably trying to remember the exact steps involved. He ejected the heatsink and placed the other one in. Jacob nodded and handed it to Sarah.

Sarah hesitated a moment before she actually took the offered gun. Her face scrunched up a bit as she looked at the weapon, turning it over in her hands. She simply held it, not really doing anything with it.

"Is something wrong?" Jacob asked her.

"Uh..." She frowned. "Can we go over that one more time?"

Jacob showed her one more time, patient.

Sarah nodded, apparently absorbing the info. "Um, one more question," she said slowly. "What kind of gun is this again... and do all three of us have the exact same gun?"

"It's an M4 Shuriken," Jacob said. "We have a good supply of them on the ship, so this is what you'll be using most of the time until we can find something even better."

She nodded and then focused on her weapon for a moment. She aittempted to get the ammo into it... only to drop it on the floor. "Oops," she said apologetically, then bent down to snatch it up, and tried again.

Jacob's eyes tightened momentarily, but the consternation was gone before I was even sure I'd seen it... but I was really struggling not to burst out laughing. It was something Sarah would do, alright. I loved my friends. Jacob eventually had to go over and hold her hands-literally-as she did it. When she finally did, she handed him the weapon with the air of somebody relieved to have it out of her hands.

Then he handed me the gun, and I felt like Christmas had come early. I'd been going over the movements over and over in my mind, trying to nail them down to as much perfection as possible within that short amount of time. In Aikido, the Sensei would go up and call upon another student to help him out (or, more accurately, to be the test dummy) and he would do the move over and over, about four times, and we had to recognize and remember what the attacker's various attacks were, and how the defender was supposed to respond. We watched hand movements, foot placement, where he distributed his center of balance, which pin he used, and whether it was omotewaza or uruwaza. Reloading a gun was like doing a two-step defensive move in Aikido. Fun and easy.

Jacob nodded in approval when I finished, then turned around. "To aim, line up this small piece of metal on top with the target. There is an auto-corrector with the older guns if your aim is off, but those aren't entirely accurate. Trust your instincts more than technology, because trust is something that can easily malfunction can get you killed." He lined up with the target, one of the bottles Garrus had put up, and pulled the trigger. A loud _crack-crack-de-crack-crack-crack_ echoed in the large room where Shepard would one day fight for her life, and I tried not to flinch as the bottle broke into millions of small, sharp glass shards.

"Obviously," Jacob said, "the SMGs aren't the best for accuracy. I still hit it, but I used five more rounds than I needed to because it's a semi-auto. Heavy pistils are better hitters, but I need you guys to get used to this first. Garrus, clear the fire zone."

Garrus came over towards us and I caught a whiff of his otherwordly, alien smell. It smelled somewhat... good, actually. I was surprised at myself. I just hoped Sarah wasn't going to shoot one of us with the SMG. I nodded a greeting at Garrus and turned towards Jacob. He handed the gun to HK.

HK took a long time lining up his target, making sure it was right in his sights. Even when it was, he was hesitating. I could see the tense set to his shoulders and realized he was afraid of the recoil. i could feel my heart thrumming in my chest like a pair of bird's wings as he licked his lips and pulled the trigger. The recoild made his arm go upwards, making a vertical line of fire. Only one of the six shots his the target. "Sorry," he apologized, handing the gun over to Sarah. "You really have to keep a strong grip on it."

"That was still a good shot!" I congratulated.

Sarah took the gun carefully, as though it was something contaminated. She looked it over in her hands for a moment, looking it over. "Okay..." she muttered. Then she put both of her hands around it and held it out in front of her, stretching her arms out as far as she could, as though she wanted to hold it as far away from her as possible. Then she squinted, as though having a difficult time aiming it properly.

I drifted over to her. "Just relax. Line it up and fire."

Sarah nodded. "Uh huh." She did relax her arms a little, brought the gun down a bit, aiming carefully. Then she squeezed her eyes shut and pulled the trigger, right at the exact same time.

The recoil caused her arms to jolt a bit, and the shot missed the target entirely. But she did hit something.

She hit EDI's terminal. I guffawed in disbelief as EDI fuzzed and winked out of existance. HK watched in horror, and Jacob let out a small curse. "Uh, probably not the best thing to have done," he muttered. "Sorry, EDI," he said louder.

EDI's voice came over the intercom. "Please inform Sarah that I do not like my functionalities tampered with, or else I will be forced to take action." Her voice had hit a low note, one betraying slight anger.

I spoke before I had even thought about it. "How could you take action? I thought there were safeties."

"I could, for example, let Commander Shepard know of the incident, which would confine her to the ship for lengthier periods. Also, please inform Sarah that I have full audio surveillance of everything she has done aboard the Normandy, and that I know of every conversation she's had with a certain male crewmember."

Sarah's face was bright red. She was shocked into silence.

"Aw, c'mon, EDI, don't be like that," Jacob said, but I could hear a note of curiousity in his voice. "It won't happen again, alright?"

"As you say, Mister Taylor." EDI cut off, and we were once again alone... but I knew she would still be watching and listening.

Sarah's eyes were wide, her irises darting around the room as she took a couple of steps back. She was looking toward me and HK, and glancing toward Jacob. I noticed she avoided looking in Garrus's direction altogether. "I'm sorry," she swallowed. "Can I have... can I go for just a few minutes?"

"Sure," Jacob said hesitantly. "Take a ten-minute break."

I watched her leave, slightly concerned, but this was something she would have to work out on her own. I wondered how much she'd told Garrus, though, and wondered if she'd said anything... bad. I watched her enter the elevator and leave. HK and I exchanged a significant look, and I could tell he was thinking along the same lines that I was.

"Well," Garrus said, breaking the tense silence, "that was... illuminating. Remind me not to get on EDI's bad side."

"She'll be fine," said HK. "It's just a bit stressful right now, and I totally understand where she is coming from."

Oh, but he _knew._ He knew as well as I did that Sarah said something to Garrus. I had a clue about what it was, and I was wondering if Garrus was just play-acting or sincerely didn't know that Sarah had a crush on him. That was why they called it a _crush,_ after all, with all those crushed feelings...

Jacob got immediately back to the lesson. The heavy pistils were larger, but they carried more stopping power and better accuracy than those measely SMGs. I chose the M3, my favorite out of all of them, and hit the target on the first try. HK did, too. I fired the M6 just for fun, but it seemed off somehow. Not for me. HK, however, was a pro at it. It had already saved his life before, and he seemed to have grown attached to it.

"Are we going to learn how to fire an assault rifle?" I asked. "Or a sniper? I really, really like sniping."

"I don't know, I'm kind of fine with these two," HK said uneasily.

"You won't be a pro all at once," Garrus warned. "I think some more practice with the pistils will do you good, actually. Since there are only two of you left, and a ton of bottles..."

"Abby takes left, HK takes the right. We'll set them back up later."

This was by far one of the best moments of the training. I made sure to aim carefully before pulling the trigger, but I quickly realized that all of those yearsof videogames and the Wii had greatly developed my hand-to-eye coordination. The targets went down quickly and effectively. HK and I finished at about the same time, and we exchanged a grin, flushed with our success. "That was a lot of fun!" I squealed.

Jacob laughed. "Easy, now, don't go swinging that around."

I hadn't been swinging it around, but I handed it to him anyway. "What are we doing next?"

Six days can pass like the blink of an eye. At the end of every day I was worn out, mentally and physically, but I was _happier_, far more happier than I could have ever could have been if I'd just been left to wander the ship at my leisure. Jacob, Garrus, and Miranda were all excellent teachers and I learned more from them than I could have ever imagined. Miranda was an excellent tactician, and she knew Commander Shepard more intimately than her own mother, so it was obvious she would be teaching us each how to respond to her commands and hand signals. We went over a brief history of the Commander's fights and tactics with Garrus, too, who was a first-hand witness. Realizing he would never make great soldiers out of us with less than a week, he implied heavily on _trust._ Trust your comrade, and watch their back. Jacob and he had similar styles, but I found myself gravitating to Jacob more. As repulsive as he'd been to my female Commander Shepard in the game, he was actually a nice guy. If I ever got out of here alive, I promised to myself, I would write a very long Shepard-Jacob fic that reported accurately on his character.

Sarah was timid and moody whenever she came into contact with Garrus, which wasn't surprising in the least. But I did manage to get her to spill what EDI's comment meant, and I seriously considered right then and there to just hit my head on a wall to emphasize my frustration.

HK was great at picking things up, if you gave him time. And he was _motivated,_ too, much more motivated than I thought he would be about learning how to kill and disarm people. He'd pretty much mastered that heavy pistil by now, and he _creamed us_ at target practice. I now had a new goal I wanted to accomplish before the end of our stay here: beat Garrus in a sharpshooting contest.

We _did_ learn a few things about sniper rifles and assault rifles, but only I was given the all-clear with the sniper rifle. When we'd gotten time off I was researching the type of snipers we would encounter (from what little I remembered) and had memorized by the time they showed them to us how to disassemble it, reload, and the best sniping positions.

The best, _best_ part, though, was the sparring, which they'd been putting off until the fifth day, the day right before we'd be hitting Purgatory.

A few years back when I was still taking Kempo I would spar once a month, the last Thrusday of every month to be exact, with the other guys. Since I was the only girl in the class, I had to try harder, push myself harder. I had conflicting views about how to fight, though, and took a kick to the head that ended up breaking my jaw. The best thing about it was that I kept fighting. We didn't even know it was broken, but it hurt like you wouldn't believe for the next few weeks. I couldn't eat an apple, and I had to chew very slowly. Eventually it healed—wrongly. Even now, years later, if I open my mouth too quickly it snaps and hurts, hurts, _hurts! _I didn't like it when objects rushed towards my head, and would often flinch and block it before I even know what I'm doing. It took supreme self-control for me to stay perfectly still when Garrus launched out a viscious punch that stopped only a millimeter away from my chin.

But I wasn't afraid. No, I definitely wasn't afraid. For all the good Aikido had done for me in tempering down my violent tendencies, I was _way_ too excited to hit somebody than I should have been. After going over and over and over the basic locks, pins, and grabs that would work on any humanoid alien, Jacob and Garrus reluctantly cleared an area for us to begin fighting for real. They both started out first, and Garrus won the first match by a hair. Jacob won the second. Then they asked for a victem.

It was only right that I would volunteer to go first.

Jacob was large, strong, and intimidating in a way only an adult could be. I remembered bleakly the muscles underneath his shirt, and realized that a gutpunch would be out of the question. A groin shot would be bad, too. It was all about angles, outmaneuvering him, backing him in to a corner.

Aikido focused on the primarily defensive side of life. In Kempo, we _terminated._ I tried to fall back on Aikido when he punched at my face.

I moved as his hand came up, grabbing his outstretched first in a simple kotegaeshi. He crumpled to the ground when I torqued his hand the exact right way, 'pushing the button' as I called it. He grabbed at my leg, which I'd stupedly placed in front of him, and I fell down atop of him.

He had the advantage now, and we both knew it.

He put me in an armlock that would have impressed a krogan, and I had to consciously relax my muscles so I could be flexible enough to escape... somehow. I heard a grunt of disbelief as he pushed my arm up further and further, and I started laughing. I twisted deeper into the lock, knowing that he'd hit the nerve in my arm that would pain me soon, and I jerked my head back in to his face. But I couldn't get up. I knew I was beaten, then.

Dammit.

I tapped out, and he immediately let go and helped me up. His hands lifted up under my armpits and set me on his feet. He began to examine my arm. "Did I hurt it?" he asked anxiously. I shook my head. "Damn," he whistled. "Garrus, come over here and feel this." He was shaking my arm up and down, and I kept it consciously relaxed. "It's like a wet noodle."

"Huh. Interesting," said Garrus. He took my other arm and put me in a police armlock they used back on Earth. Even when he pressed up as high as my arm would go, there was no muscular resistance. "That would have torn so many muscles I don't even want to think about it," Garrus said, shaking his head and releasing my arm.

At least I'd impressed the fictional turian. That made my day. "Thanks."

"Alright," Jacob said. "Sarah's up next with me."

Sarah eyed Jacob cautiously. She seemed to be thinking about what she'd just witnessed and wasn't entirely sure if she knew the basics all that well. "Um," she finally said, taking a step back, "can I go last?"

"Nope," said Jacob. "Better get it over with."

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I sucked in a deep breath and slowly moved toward Jacob. Did I seriously think, just a few days ago, that sparring would be _fun?_ In many ways, just learning basic moves and defensive postures, along with firing a gun, had been bad enough. But now I was going to have to fight with someone. I knew that Jacob wouldn't really hurt me, but I did not like the idea of him touching me, regardless. I had a phobia for head-locks or being pinned down in any way.

Well, at least I wouldn't have to spar with Garrus. That would have _really _made me feel uncomfortable.

I stepped onto the mat and faced Jacob, standing several feet away from him. I wanted to be a safe distance from him, at least from the start. It gave me... a slight sense of control, at the very least.

A sense of control that he immediately negated by taking one large stride foreword. His hands clenched into fists, and I stiffened, aware that he was about to hit me. I braced myself for the punch, and was totally surprised when his leg shot out and tripped me up. I hit the floor with a cry as the breath was knocked out of me. But instead of finishing it, he gave me time to stand up and get my bearings.

I scowled at him as I stood up, knowing that he was giving me a fair chance here. I was deeply grateful for the fact that he didn't move in while I was down. But I also felt frustrated because I knew that he was just giving me a fair chance here, something that an enemy out on the field wouldn't have done. I was sure we both knew that.

I thought quickly, trying to decide what I was going to do. On impulse, I bent my knees as I went into sort of a defensive crouch, holding my left arm out in front of me in a defensive posture, readying my right arm at my side in case I needed to throw a punch.

Jacob sighed. "Stand up," he ordered. "Getting down like that is only going to get you a kick in the face. Control your center, control your line of attack. Stop telegraphing with your right hand."

I straightened up, a bit stiffly. Okay, so I had only "borrowed" that posture from a Power Rangers stance I had seen once on youtube. Okay, maybe that was a stupid example to go by anyway.

I watched him closely, waiting for him to make some sort of move. He didn't expect me to make the first move... did he? I was totally not going to start a fight. Not even in a sparring match.

Thankfully, he didn't wait. He came up close and placed his fist underneath my chin, knocking me back a couple of paces without hurting me. He punched towards my chest, and I tried to move, I really did, but either I was too slow or he was simply too fast. I crumpled up as the wind was driven out of me.

I sucked in a couple of deep breaths, placing my hand over my chest as I tried to get air back into my lungs. I glanced around, aware that the others-Abby, HK, and Garrus-were still watching the entire thing. I didn't really look at them, although I knew they could see that I was getting creamed here. It probably didn't even look like I was trying!

Just then, I got an idea. Well, I wasn't sure if it was a good idea, but it was worth a shot at least. And I always did things the weird way anyway... right?

I sat up and groaned softly. I winced dramatically and placed a hand over my chest. My plan was to try and convince him I was hurt and then... maybe kick his shin or head-butt him in the forehead if he got close enough. It might work at least enough to make it seem like I could really do something... right?

"I didn't hit you that hard," Jacob admonished softly. "Come on."

"No, I think I might have broken something in my fall," I stated, wincing for effect. I really hoped he would buy it. Either that or I was going to have to get up soon or risk looking like a big wuss.

"I hit your diaphram, not your chest," he said. Either way, he took a careful step foreword. Still not within reach, though.

"I didn't hear anything pop," Garrus said. He was standing close by me. During our training I'd learned that turians have super-sensitive hearing. "Nothing could have broken."

I shook my head, thinking fast. "No, not broken," I replied. "But I think I might have pulled something. I slept wrong in my bed last night and I've been hurting all morning." I turned my face toward the mat, grimacing again for the added effect and hoping they would buy this. Then I lowered myself down onto the mat, on my side, as if it hurt too much to keep sitting up.

I tried not to eye either of them too closely. I didn't want to give anything away. I allowed my eyelids to flicker a bit but I was trying to keep an eye out. If either of them came close enough-I didn't care which one-I was going to smack them, one way or another. Somehow, slamming my head into one of their foreheads seemed like a very satisfying idea right now.

Jacob appraised me with an amused look in his eyes. Abby coughed politely. "If you can't take it, get off that mat," he said. "Head up to Chakwas's or watch the next fight. Either way, since you're hurting too much to continue I suppose we shouldn't wail on you any more."

Right at that moment, I chose to simply make my move, such as it was. Apparently they weren't going to come closer or touch me, so that wasn't going to work. But at least they seemed to think I was injured.

So then, as quickly as I could muster, I scrambled to my feet and simply leaped toward Jacob, aiming to tackle his legs so that maybe, just maybe, I could knock him down.

He simply stepped back, and I fell to the ground in a heap. "Nice try," he complimented, "but you might want to work on your acting skills a bit more. If you'd really pulled a muscle, or tore something, you wouldn't be in that much pain. And I could see your shoulders tensing up. Relax. Get up and let's try it again."

I huffed a bit as I pushed myself up, shoving some of my hair out of my face. "Okay," I said with a scowl. I was really starting to feel my temper flaring. "Bring it on, bastard." When I looked back at this later, I knew I wouldn't be able to believe I said that. But right now I was in the perfect mood for it, and this was no time to be gentle. I was figuring that much out.

He cocked his head like he was surprised, and I heard Abby giggle. I didn't see the punch that knocked me back a couple of steps, nor the one that pushed me in to the cargo crates. He stepped back, allowing me to recuperate.

I breathed in and out heavily, then I practically leaped to my feet and stamped my foot. I scowled at Jacob as if I was going to murder him. I was really, really getting frustrated now, to the point of feeling angry.

I simply stood there, glaring at him for a long moment, then a noise escaped my throat that sounded somewhere between a scream and a battle cry. I then lunged at him, a bit wildly. I wasn't thinking, I was simply acting.

He reacted quickly enough, knocking me to the ground again. "Don't lose your temper," he said forcefully. "You'll only get hurt."

I was getting SO sick of being knocked down. So I stayed down and simply scooted myself toward him, then attempted to aim a good swift kick at his shin, from the floor. It connected, but it didn't nearly have the effect I was hoping for. Apparently his clothes had an extra layer of protection at the shins. "Calm down, girl. Sheesh."

At least I was still close enough to touch him. I lurched forward and grabbed his leg, then I wrapped one of my arms around it as tightly as I could. That move seemed to take him by surprise, at least a little. I then reached up and grabbed his hand, gripping it tightly. I wasn't sure what I was doing-I was just trying to get something, anything, accomplished here.

I pulled his hand near my mouth and did something that I was sure shocked everyone in the room. I parted my lips widely and stuck Jacob's index finger into my mouth and bit down HARD. I could feel my teeth sinking through the skin and I could taste blood.

Something connected hard with my head, and I knew no more.

* * *

**(Abby)**

I gasped and ran over just as Sarah's limp form hit the floor. Jacob walked away, holding his finger with disgust on his face. "That was uncalled for!" he snapped, digging through the first aid box. His finger _was_ pretty mangled. Blood dripped a steady beat on the steel floor. With one hand he got the bandages out and disinfected his finger with a spray. "I _told_ her not to get angry."

"I agree," said Garrus, checking her vitals. "Looks like she'll be out of it for a while. I don't think I've ever seen a human move their knee that fast, Jacob: I'm impressed. But don't you think you went a bit hard on her?"

"Yeah, well, you don't go around biting your instructor on the finger. I know gunny sergeants that would have done worse to her for it."

I was giggling to myself. Sarah, Sarah, _Sarah._ She just _had_ to lose her temper. All of that 'rage is powerful' stuff from Star Wars doesn't work so well in real life. Now she knew it. Sometimes the burned hand teaches best, so they say. Sarah wasn't going to be leaving herself vulnerable and bite somebody again any time soon, that was for _damn_ sure.

Somewhere up there, EDI probably approved.

"Is she going to be okay?" HK asked concernadely.

"Oh, yeah," Garrus said. "She'll have a nice bruise on her temple, but oh, well."

"You _were_ winding her up," I told Jacob. "You knew she wouldn't calm down. You kind of deserve that, just like she deserves the K.O."

"I thought she could handle it," Jacob said, shaking his head as he ripped off a bandage with his teeth. "Here, Abby, come help me with this."

I took it off for him and placed it over the wound. She'd opened a centimeter-wide gash in his finger, alright, and it was dripping blood. "_Dang_ that girl can bite."

"Well, umm..." HK started as he walked over, looking half shaken and half shocked. "The enemies attacks sometimes are...unexpected I guess...wow..."

"HK'S NEXT!" I announced.

HK's eyes widened. "Umm, well...I guess Jacob is ready?" he asked, looking to the bitten man.

Jacob rolled his eyes. "I got bit, not shot. Come on, let's go."

I giggled. Jacob shot me a look and I giggled again. He just turned away and walked into the ring, looking far more comfortable now that the crazy lady had been taken care of.

HK just shook his head, and I knew it probably was out of fear for what was going to happen to him...but also knowing HK and how he had to worry about everything and everyone, he probably still was concerned for Sarah, too. However, he walked into the ring, and took a deep breath.

He looked right at Jacob. "So how do we start?"

"You ready?" Jacob asked. He nodded. "Then we just fight."

* * *

**(HK)**

I almost shuddered, but tried to keep my fear back, even though everyone in this room, minus the knocked out Sarah, knew how scared I probably was. Sure, I had gotten through Omega and had grown quite used to using a gun, but this was much different.

I knew some moves to fighting, but I rarely had actually fought. I preferred diplomatic solutions, but this was Mass Effect. There were _no_ diplomatic solutions.

"Okay, I'm ready," I finally said.

What the _heck_ do I do?

Jacob opened up the same way he did with Abby, punching straight for my chest. It was up to me to figure out how to deal with it.

What fighting instinct I had kicked in, and I immediately ducked, but he had gotten a good shot in. Unsure for what to do for a couple of seconds, I figured out something very random to do.

I was not some jellyfish that could be turned every which way, and I couldn't move like some could, but I could at least try to do this. I stayed close to the ground, and swung my legs towards his, trying to knock him off his feet.

"Good!" Jacob congratulated, turning his leg to block the kick. "Take my balance. Control the center."

To be honest, I wasn't quite sure what that meant, or the last part anyway, but as he turned his leg, I did see an opening. There was a weak point that not many people seemed to think of, but I knew it. Raising my foot again, I slammed it as hard as I could into the back of his knee.

Jacob toppled foreword, rolling on his shoulder. He came up behind me, his fists held on guard. He grinned. "Good!" And he moved for my chin.

I had to think for a quick millisecond. My thoughts were like speeding cars at the moment. It would be ridiculous for my skinny arm to try to grab his large muscular one, so I immediately pulled both of my arms in front of my face, and clasped them together in a blocking manuever.

"Dodge him," Abby said. "Break his nose!"

I heard Abby's words, and knew it was something I should have thought of two seconds ago, but you couldn't expect someone who had barely fought to know everything, right?

His fists came through my blocked arms, swiftly punching them aside, and then he hit my chin. I stumbled backwards with a grunt as I felt the crashing pain, tempted to clutch it, but I quickly reminded myself that I couldn't do that.

I saw him come closer to try to hit me again, but this time, I did take Abby's advice. I swerved to the side, and used my elbow to slam into his face.

Jacob lurched backwards, keeping one hand up to ward me off as he felt his nose experimentally. Abby's laugh was like a high-pitched whine in the back of my head, and I barely paid any attention to it. Did I actually just break Jacob Taylor's nose? Blood smeared his face, and I could remember the exact noise my elbow had made when I slammed it into his face. It was sickening. "Are you okay?" I asked, coming closer.

"Yeah, no problem. Good job," he said, patting my shoulder. We both relaxed, and Abby came on to the mat holding a wet washcloth. She tossed it to Jacob and hugged me around the shoulders. She was laughing too hard to say anything.

As comforting as the hug from Abby and the pat from Jacob was, I did feel slightly guilty. However, Abby had told me to do that, so I should have known that if I made the right move it would...but still, I couldn't savor a victory when hurting a potential friend. Heck, I could barely savor a victory after hurting anyone.

"Umm...wow...I'm...I'm sorry," I said, even if I felt I shouldn't be apologizing. Jacob now had a bitten finger and a broken nose, and I felt a bit bad about that.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

My eyes opened. The first things I knew was that my head REALLY hurt, and that I was lying down. I blinked. I didn't know why I had a headache, but my bed felt awfully hard...

No wait. I wasn't in my bed. I wasn't even in my room. I was on the floor. Why was I on the floor? And why did my head hurt so badly?

That's when the memories came flooding back to me. Oh, yeah, that's right. I had been sparring and... the last thing I remembered was biting Jacob's finger... did I really do that? And what the hell happened?

I groaned, reaching up to touch my head. I quickly yanked my fingers away. Damn my temple hurt just touching it. I glanced around a little. It looked like everyone was over by the mats, and not really paying much attention to me.

I scowled, knowing that this sore spot on my temple, and the fact that I had just woke up on the floor, couldn't have been an accident. I slowly sat up and then carefully got to my feet. Then I looked around. I was actually considering just seeing if I could slip out of the cargo bay without any of them noticing me.

I could hear a commotion in the room, and both HK and Jacob looked worn out. Abby looked excited, and I could hear Jacob telling HK that something was no big deal and to not worry about it.

However, as their conversation died down, HK looked to me. "Umm...hey there, Sarah." he said, sounding hesitant.

I wasn't sure what kind of expression I had my face, but it definitely wasn't a cheerful expression. I felt my eyes tighten. I looked around at each of them, and then I gave a little nod toward HK. That was the only greeting any of them were going to get out of me right at this moment.

"I'm finished," I muttered, and I turned on my heel and began to move toward the door, ignoring the throb in my head. Good lord, I thought I was going to be done with headaches after getting over the ryncol episode.

Abby was suddenly at my side. "Hey, you alright? You took that knee _hard_."

I stopped, turning to look at her. "Well," I snapped, raising my voice so that everyone-including Jacob-could hear me. "I'm up off the floor, aren't I? That should be good enough."

"Congratulations," Abby said stoically. "Are you leaving now or something?"

I gave her something like a "duh" look. "Let's see, I'm walking toward the door. So... yeah I guess that must mean I'm leaving." I only looked at her; I did not look at anyone else.

"Oh, jeez, there's a jump in logic I couldn't have possibly figured out on my own," Abby snapped. "You coming back?"

"No," I said simply.

I could see Abby's eyes flashing dangerously, but I was too pissed to care. But quick as the flash came, it was gone. "Want me to come up with you?"

"No... that's why I'm walking out," I stated. "I want some time to myself." I glared at her, part of me almost daring her to try and stop me.

She seemed to know it, too. "Heh, alrighty. See you later."

"I will say one thing, though," I said snippily. "I think..." I stopped, waving a dismissive hand. "No, nevermind."

"Yup, nevermind," Abby said cheerfully. "When you're ready to be civil, come back." She turned on her heel and went back to the sparring ring.

For some reason, that set me off. Maybe it was because I was still steamed up over what happened on the sparring mat with Jacob. I turned around and followed her, then ignored everyone else as I talked to her. "You know something?" I snipped. "When we all agreed to make that STUPID wish, I had no idea it was going to be like this. If I had known that it was going to be like this, I never would have made it with you guys. I wish I hadn't even told you guys about it."

I took a step back, sucking in a breath. "I think I'll just stay in my quarters for the rest of this trip," I muttered.

Abby's shoulders were tense, and she wasn't even looking at me. She said nothing. Everybody seemed to be in the thrall of tense, angry silence.

Part of me knew I should just turn around and leave right now, while the getting was good, before I dove in too deep. But I was still mad and my hurting head wasn't helping matters. And part of me wanted to keep throwing verbal punches, since it seemed as though I sucked at throwing physical ones.

"What are we doing here, anyway?" I went on. "Let's face it, the three of us aren't fighters-" I looked at Abby and then HK, just long enough to include him into this with my gaze, "And we're not up for this kind of nonsense." I waved a hand toward Garrus and Jacob, referring to them as if they were Mass Effect mascots right at this moment. "We're just a group of writers with too much imagination for our own good. We shouldn't be here, and I don't think we should be expected to learn everything that they can do."

HK spoke up after being mostly silent. "Thats enough!" he said, in a somewhat firm tone. "Everyone needs to take a minute and calm down. We are going to have to literally fight for survival, and we can't let a simple training session bring us to _this_."

I drew in a deep breath. "Okay," I said a bit more calmly, holding up a hand in a passive gesture. "I'm sorry I got so snappy. I'm just not used to all this." I nodded toward him and Abby.

"But," I continued, my tone taking a darker edge again, "I'm through with learning how to fight. If you guys are doing okay with it, don't let me get in your way. But obviously, I'm not going to get anywhere with it." I then looked past my friends and scowled at Jacob, then at Garrus. For the moment, I had forgotten any awkwardness I had felt around the turian before. "If that is alright with everyone here," I added, still glaring toward the two military men.

Jacob spoke up, next, after fully cleaning up what looked like a bloody face. "You do know what we're heading into, right?" he asked, crossing his arms. "We all have to be in top shape, or we're not going to live through this."

"You can't just give up," Garrus interjected.

I eyed Jacob's finger as he spoke. There was a bandage on it. I must have gotten him good, then. And HK must have gotten him good in the face. I smirked a little in spite of myself. _Excellent. _

I turned to look at Garrus when he spoke up. My soft spot for him kicked in at least a little. "You saw what happened back there," I said, speaking to the turian and ignoring Jacob. "The only time I was able to do anything to Jacob was when I bit him, and we all know how THAT turned out." I gingerly touched the sore spot on my head again. I knew I would have to look in a mirror to see how bad it was later.

Jacob just shook his head at me. He probably wouldn't be too willing to talk to me after what had happened.

"So you aren't the best fighter right now," Garrus stated. "Abby didn't exactly do well in her sparring session, either, but we don't just give up. We all have to learn at some point. Do you really think Jacob and I never had to learn the way to do this stuff?"

I shrugged. "I see your point, but I'm just not a fighter." I folded my arms. "And I don't want to be."

"We can always drop you off at a safe location," EDI's voice chimed in.

"Well maybe you should," I snipped.

"Sarah," HK said, blinking as he stared at me. "Do you really want that? I think you'd regret it."

Abby was studiously ignoring me.

"You know, I just want some time to think about all this," I muttered. I was still angry but well.. part of me knew that I really would regret it later if I didn't at least try to make amends right now. "I'm sorry, everybody, for being so snappy. And I'm sorry if I offended you guys. And..." I forced myself to look at Jacob. "I am sorry I bit your finger. But," I added, tapping the sore spot on my temple very lightly, "I think we're even now, at least."

I turned away. "Please just give me some time to myself," I said, and then I walked away from the ring and out the door. I was going back to my quarters.

* * *

**(Abby)**

_O Queen of dramatic exits, I salute thee. _Jacob just snorted and itched his nose, but Garrus looked vaguely interested. "It's probably a good thing she's not a Cerberus agent," he said offhandidly. "I don't think she has the right temper for the job."

"Brat," Jacob muttered.

_I'm going to Purgatory tomorrow. Alone, with Shepard and whoever she brings with her. Alone. And Sarah knows this. And she thinks _she _has the right to create drama on a ship where we're all going to be fighting for our lives? Oh, she is _so _damn blessed that I don't hit people first._

But if she had hit me, I would have-

No, I couldn't think about that. If I did, that would only make me angrier.

Oh, but it would be satisfactory...

"Glad to know she keeps our best interests at heart," I muttered. "_Really_ helping us out. Great."

HK sighed heavily. "Listen, I think we are a little too worked up right now...we can't let friction keep growing and growing," he said, looking to all three of us. "Shepard won't like it, and its not going to help the mission. This entire thing is effecting us all in different ways, and I think its really effecting Sarah."

I rolled my eyes. "Well, until she grows some common sense, I'm not bothering with it," I grumped. "Purgatory is tomorrow. If some inmate jumps me, I want to be able to defend myself." Inmate, prison guard... what was the difference there, anyway?

And so, without Sarah, practice continued.

* * *

Jacob and I retreated up to Deck Two, carrying the weapons between us in one large shopping bag he probably lifted from some old granny on Omega. The rest had gone away to do their thing, but Jacob had _insisted_ I help him. So here I was.

I heaved the bag on to the table and began to sort them out according to type and numeral. "What she said really got to you, huh?" Jacob asked quietly.

I pursed my lips. "It's always the crap closest to home that hits you hardest. I should know that by now."

"Still, though, it's gotta be hard to take stuff like that. Right before going on the prison ship, too." He lowered his voice. "And from what I'm guessing, it's not going to be all fun and games there."

"No... no it's not."

"It's alright, you don't have to tell me what happens. Just keep the guns close, right?"

I nodded. My mouth was suddenly very dry. "Don't let the guards take them from you," I whispered.

"That's the reason I wanted to help train you guys this week. I know Shepard's got her heart in the right place, but you're... legit. She should know that by now. Maybe she's just being cautious, I don't know, but the thing is—I don't approve. I don't like her forcing you into a situation where you _know_ shit's going to hit the fan. Were you in any of those dreams or feelings you had about us?"

"No, I wasn't. That's why we're all so afraid. We're tampering. We shouldn't be here. It's against the laws of something, that's for sure. Depending on the choices commander Shepard makes, I know who will live, who will die, and what will happen for every next stage of this mission. I do. But with me, HK, and Sarah in it? We're invisible. And those dreams, they won't just visit us again with _us_ in it. We don't get feelings about ourselves."

"I'm sorry about that," Jacob said. "Wish I could help."

"You did. I'm going to kick some butt tomorrow because of you."

"Those guards are going to betray us."

"I don't need to answer it. Just go in like you normally would and everything will turn out okay for you. Okay?"

"So your friend _knows_ you're going to walk into some serious crap tomorrow and goes off on you guys like that?"

"She's like that. She cares..."

Apparently my tone was disbelieving, but he was wise enough not to press further. "You'll do good," he said. "You have to, if you wanna live. But you watch my back, I'll watch yours. Deal?"

"Deal." We shook on it.


	11. Jack

**Celestial-Insanity: **I just want to say thank you SO much for all of the reviews and kind words!

* * *

(Sarah)

I stepped into the elevator, thinking deeply about everything that had happened. I'd spent a considerable amount of time-I wasn't sure how long-in my room. The room I also shared with HK and Abby, that is. It was just nice and easy to think of it as "my room" because, well... it made it seem more "homey" to me.

I really didn't mind sharing a room with them. After all, when I was sixteen I shared a room with two of my younger cousins for a few months. And frankly, sleeping in the same room with HK and Abby was much better than that. At least they didn't have a TV on at full blast or have an alarm clock that went off EVERY morning just so they could sleep through it while it kept me awake.

I shoved those thoughts aside. This was NOT the time to be thinking about that. The fact was, I had blown it pretty badly back there. Not only did I mess up big time, failing a fight, I also made pretty much everyone mad at me. EDI didn't think too highly of me right now, Jacob was mad at me, and Abby was mad at me.

I knew that I would need to apologize to each of them... especially Abby. And I needed to do it before she left. Something might happen to her out there, after all...

But there was something else I really needed to do first. That was why I was in the elevator. I punched the button and rode it up to the top level of the ship.

Once there I stepped out, moved toward the door of the captain's cabin, and took a deep breath. Then, after a moment's hesitation, I rapped my knuckles on it, making certain I did it loudly enough to be heard. I just hoped she was in.

"Come in," Shepard's voice, calm and controlled as always, said. Once I entered, I saw her at her desk. She looked like she was going through her private terminal, but I could also see her glancing to a picture of a man right next to it. It was Kaiden Alenko. I may never have played the first game, but I recognized him well enough.

"Commander," I said, speaking in what I hoped was a formal tone. "I was hoping I could speak with you. It's important."

"Is it to talk about your actions earlier?" Shepard asked, turning towards me. Her voice was not mean in any way, but she was being quite blunt.

I felt my mouth go dry. I also wondered if my face had paled at all. "Um... actually it has something to do with that," I finally murmured.

Shepard nodded, looking unsurprised. "Well, then speak freely." she said encourangingly.

"Okay," I said slowly. I knew that "speak freely" meant I didn't have to act ultra respectful or stand in a stiff, "at attention" posture, most likely. But I also had to be careful not to sound disrespectful or rude or anything.

"Well Commander... um, is it okay if I sit down?"

Shepard didn't say a word, but nodded as she gestured to the one extra chair in the room.

"Thank you," I acknowledged as I went over and sat down in the chair. I folded my hands tightly on my lap as I looked at her. "Commander," I began, "I want to talk to you about... Purgatory."

Shepard nodded once again. "Is there anything I should know?" she asked.

"Well," I said, leaning forward and looking at her intently, "I think you should know that it's going to be as dangerous as hell when you go over there. You're going to be lucky to come out of there alive."

She actually raised an eyebrow. "Not that I expected anything less, but I thought this was going to be a simple pick up. We pick up that prisoner called Jack and leave...Cerberus already negotiated his release with the prison."

I was shaking my head. "Oh no, all hell is going to break loose after you set foot in there. It's a trap, Shepard. The leader of that place is gonna play nice at first and act like everything is standard as usual. But then he's gonna turn the table on you and try to capture you, once you're deep enough in. Because you're valuable."

Shepard blinked, but didn't have too harsh of a reaction. Not yet, anyway. "What kind of prison _is_ this? I knew it was nothing regular, but this sounds stranger than I expected."

I sat back in my chair a bit. "It's a prison where the most violent criminals and prisoners are sent," I answered. "They are kept there, and kept under strict control, by the enforcers. And..." I smiled in spite of myself. "You're gonna find out that Jack isn't quite what you're expecting either."

"I know about the most violent prisoners being kept there," Shepard said, seeming to ignore the last part of my statement for the time being. "But why would someone try to lock me up just because I am valuable? That doesn't seem very justice-like."

"Those people seem to have their own unique methods of doing things," I answered. "I mean, they even torture prisoners and beat them up. Just because they can. They have guards who do that sort of thing regularlly."

Shepard didn't make a move, one way or another. "The bottom line is, I am going to have to fight my way out of this highly secured place," she said. "And what was that about Jack?"

I already knew Abby would kill me for this if she found out. Well, if we reached friendly speaking terms again after what happened down in the cargo bay...

Still, I decided there was no harm in going one step further. "Well, maybe it's best if you wait and see her for yourself," I said, intentionally making a slip.

Shepard gave me a look, probably of shock. "Her?" she repeated. "Hmm...the dossier never mentioned her exact gender, I don't even know her last name. Either way, she is needed on this team, and I'm going to have to get her and myself out of that prison. What else?"

"She's a powerful biotic, in case you don't know that," I said. "Like, she's like a biotic _god,_ and she will wreck havoc all over the place before she gets here. And the only way she'll agree to come aboard is if you let her have access to Cerberus files, because she _hates _Cerberus."

"I really won't mind doing that," Shepard said, shrugging. "Miranda may, but I don't. Is that all?"

"There is one more thing," I said as I stood up. "Please, _please_ don't tell anyone, especially my friends, that I told you all of this. I wasn't supposed to tell you any of this and... they'll kill me if they find out."

"I won't, but I hope you know that I am leading one of your friends into danger...however, she already knows that, I am sure, and she has yet to object to it." Shepard told me, staring right at me. "And I am surprised they didn't kill you after the incident downstairs...which we do need to discuss."

I sank back down into the chair. I almost thought I heard a slight "thump" noise as I sat down in it. I should have known I couldn't just walk in here and then walk back out again, just like that. "Okay," I finally said, deciding to get this over with. I looked at her, waiting for her to continue.

"I try not to be strict, and I know how hard this is on everyone here," Shepard began, still sounding very calm. "However, I still have to run a tight ship, and my crew has to be ready for whatever lies ahead...I asked Jacob and Garrus to train you for a reason. I didn't anticipate on you trying to bite the man's finger off."

I swallowed, nodding. "I'm sorry," I said, and I knew I was going to have to say that again at least three or four more times after this, to certain individuals. "I was just frustrated because I couldn't even lay a hand on him. I lost my temper and I just wanted to get at him and do some damage any way I could." I looked down at the floor.

"You can't let yourself lose your temper like that in battle, or it will get you killed...and you need to learn these things if you want to be here. Survival isn't guranteed, so we need everyone to try their best. I am not going to give you some big speech, because you probably have had enough of that...but I still needed to address it." Shepard finished.

"Yeah I know," I nodded. I pointed at the bruise on my face. "I think this is the price to pay for it, too," I added, trying to show that I had indeed learned something. "And Jacob knocked me out. I know that if that happened during a battle..." I glanced down at the floor again. "I'd be dead, not just knocked out and left to wake up with a headache."

"The stakes are higher than ever now, and I just need everyone to know that," Shepard said. "But that is all I have to say on the matter."

I nodded. "I understand," I said. "Um... I was wondering about something though." I pressed my lips into a thin line.

"Yes?"

"Uh... do I _need_ to continue learning how to fight?" I knew I was on her turf here. I couldn't exactly continue to live under the illusion that I had full say over whether or not I could simply hide away in the crew quarters... or in the bathroom or something. I was on her ship, so... she was the one who decided that, I knew. Whether I liked it or not.

Shepard nodded. "Yes. It may not be pleasant, but we all were in that learning stage at one point...and we are going up against a huge threat. Everyone has to give it their all." she answered.

"But... I'm not good at it," I stated. "I heard that HK gave Jacob a bloody nose and he didn't even get knocked down as much as I did. And Abby has actual experience in martial arts. But me?" I shook my head. "No way. I couldn't even defend myself or launch a successful attack... until I bit Jacob's finger." I bit my lower lip.

"Like I said, we were all at that learning stage at one point. We all started out knowing next to nothing, but we can learn. We have to...and once we get the hang of it, it gets easier and easier. We can't just give up. If I acted that way, the Reapers may have already wiped out all of civilization." Shepard told me.

"But you're a natural," I protested. "I mean, I know it probably wasn't easy for you at first, but I just think some of us weren't really... meant to fight. Some of us weren't really designed for some things. I'm not a fighter, and I'm certainly not a people person either. I'm no good in the military, Commander. What I do best is write, among... other things." I shrugged dismissively.

"There may be some exceptions, yes, but alot of the great fighters had to train alot to get to where they are. You shouldn't have that attitude about it...it may just take some time." Shepard shot back.

I stuck out my chin. "What if I choose to have this attitude about it?"

...Did I really just say that?

"Then you won't get anywhere, or you will have to really force yourself through it," Shepard simply responded.

"What if... I choose not to?"

"Then you very well could die on this mission," Shepard said.

I was silent for a moment. In truth, I didn't know if me, Abby or HK would survive to the very end. We could help and make sure Shepard did everything she could do so that we could make sure nobody else died... but what about us? We would just have to be very careful, and do our best.

"Well, can I be completely honest about my feelings here?" I asked slowly.

"I prefer honesty over lies," Shepard said with a nod.

"Okay," I said. I got up from the chair and started to pace unevenly around the room as I spoke. I was getting too restless to keep sitting in one place. "I hate all of this," I muttered, lifting a hand to indicate the ship around me. "When me and my friends first popped up here, I wasn't expecting... it to be like this."

I paused, unsure how to continue. How could I tell her that I was used to seeing things from the point of view of a computer screen? That I had seen her mission many times already and I had the luxury of watching it as a form of mere entertainment? And that now, suddenly, it was reality and nothing about it was fun at all?

"It's just..." I walked back over to my chair and sat down again. "I'm a civilian. I should be living a perfectly normal life, not getting scared over whether or not I'll die, or if my friends will die, or... learning things I should never have had to learn... like fighting."

Shepard was silent for a moment. "I don't understand how you can know everything about this but then hate it, but we can drop you off somewhere like the Citadel." she said.

I thought about that for a moment. "Knowing about something and then actually going through it and seeing it up close and personal are two completely different things," I stated, raising a finger as I spoke. Then I dropped my hand, realizing that that could be seen as a condenscending gesture. "And um... I guess I'll think about that," I muttered.

"But, let me say this: If you were to leave, then it would dissappoint your two friends, I am sure...and I doubt that they will leave. Also, I do think that you are useful on this mission." Shepard told me.

I blinked. I knew she was right, it _would_ disappoint HK and Abby if I left. But I chose to put that aside for the moment. "I don't see how I'm useful," I said. "I mean, think about it. HK and Abby know all the same things I do. In fact, Abby probably knows the most because... she remembers things the best. So it wouldn't be that big of a loss if I left. But," I added quickly, just to clarify, "I haven't decided yet if I... want to leave. Unless you just want to kick me off, of course." The corner of my mouth quirked a little.

"I don't want to kick you off, and I don't want you to leave, but I am leaving the option open. And you all are equally useful, even if you know the same things...and I am also still not sure what to think of you all. I know what you are saying is true, I know you are not here to kill me, but it still gets confusing from time to time, and I also know that it wouldn't be the best idea to let any of you out of my sight." Shepard explained.

"I'm not sure what to do," I finally admitted. "I hate being here, but I also don't want to leave any of you. Especially my friends." I looked at her with a firm expression, wondering if she could magically give me some pearl of widsom to make the decision so much easier.

Yeah... I tended to do that with nearly anyone I spilled my guts to.

"If you want, there is also a rather dark theory to all of this: You may die either way. If you go with me and don't train, you could still die...along with me, or without me. If you go live a normal life and I die, then the entire Galaxy is doomed."

I nodded a little. "I guess I would like to help out however I can," I finally said.

Shepard actually smiled lightly. "Then stay, and at least try to forge on and train...thats how you can help." she simply said.

I tilted my head slightly to one side. "Is Jacob... mad at me?" Ugh, I sounded like a timid kid the way I said that.

"Well, you did bite his finger...I think he is still pretty angry," Shepard replied with a nod.

"Yeah, I figured as much," I murmured with a nod of my own. "The main reason I was asking was because... well..." I pursed my lips.

Shepard didn't say anything, waiting for me to continue.

"If I need to learn to fight... I was wondering who might teach me now," I muttered with a shrug.

"Jacob is a grown man, I am sure that he'd be able to get over it and train you...but if it had to be someone else, there is always Miranda, or Garrus...and myself, but I typically am pretty busy around the ship." Shepard answered.

I figured as much. Part of me wondered what it might be like to train under Shepard... then again I knew that she could probably just as well knock me on my butt. She might be a woman, but she could be even fiercer than Jacob in battle, paragon of virtue or not.

"I'd rather not train under Miranda," I murmured with a shake of my head. "I mean, she's a good person and she does her job well. But it's just... I know she would expect nothing less than perfection, and she still looks at me and my friends like she thinks we're spies."

Shepard sighed, nodding yet again. "Garrus is skilled in hand to hand combat, but he excells at shooting...it may take you patching things up with Jacob, as you will be seeing him around, regardless. Your friends' training is far from over, too, and both of them are continuing on with both Garrus and Jacob. You should probably work with those two, as well."

I nodded. I figured as much. "I'm just curious about one more thing," I said. "What does... Garrus think of what happened in the cargo bay? Did he say anything?" Okay, so I cared way too much about my favorite turian character's opinion on things. Sue me. But well... I also needed to know since I would be seeing him around a lot, too. And apparently I would still need to work with him. I just wondered if I would have to give him an explanation, or possibly an apology, too, just to keep things from feeling awkward.

"From what I know, he wasn't upset by it, much...I think he may have been indifferent to it, but I haven't spoken to him alot about it. Either way, I haven't heard any significant complaints from him." Shepard said with a shrug.

"Okay," I said with a nod. Apparently that was going to be the easy part, then. I wouldn't have to say anything to Garrus. "May I go now?" I asked. "I have some apologizing to do," I sighed.

Shepard nodded, turning back to her private terminal.

I got up from the chair and moved toward the door. I found myself hesitating as I neared EDI's terminal over there. I slowly turned toward it, sucking in a deep breath. "EDI?" I said softly, trying to keep my voice down, but I sure sure Shepard could hear me anyway. She was only a few feet away, after all.

I simply figured that I might as well get this over with. EDI just moved to the top of the list... since she was everywhere anyway.

"Yes, Sarah?" EDI asked, her blue head popping up.

"I wanted to apologize for what happened down in the cargo bay, where I blew up your terminal," I said. Okay, so it hadn't been as dramatic as an explosion. I'd merely damaged it. But I was trying to communicate my sincerity. "I'm sorry I did that. It won't happen again."

"As an AI, I am not programmed to have emotions...but I know human emotions and thoughts very well, and believe you to be sincere. I accept your apology as best as I can, and hope the friction between us does not continue." EDI told me.

I nodded. "Thanks, EDI," I said. Well, that seemed simple enough, at least.

I cast a quick glance over at Shepard. She was still looking at her private terminal, focused on it. So I turned and left her quarters.

I figured I might as well talk to Jacob next. After all... he deserved an apology more, didn't he? I did take a chomp out of his finger, after all. I still needed to talk to Abby as well, but... she could wait.

Eh, I was probably just putting it off in a way. Sometimes apologizing to a friend could be a lot harder than apologizing to someone who wasn't really your friend. There weren't as many deep feelings involved there.

I arrived on the bridge level and walked quickly toward the area where Jacob usually was, ignoring the people I passed by the best I could. I walked through the doors and entered the station where Jacob was.

"Um... Jacob?" I said softly as I approached him.

Jacob turned from whatever he was typically doing when someone approached him, and narrowed his eyes when he saw me. "What is it?" he asked coldly.

Yup, he was still mad. I looked down at the floor. "I came here to apologize," I told him. "I'm sorry I bit your finger. I shouldn't have done it." I opened my mouth again, but closed it quickly. I figured I shouldn't try to give him the same explanation I'd given Shepard. He would probably take it as nothing more than an excuse.

Jacob's facial expression didn't really imply anything. "You really need to work on your temper," he simply said after a moment.

I folded my hands behind my back and shuffled my feet a little, not quite looking at him. "Um... I agree," was all I said. "How's the finger?" I added after a moment.

"Its still got a bandage on it, but its fine. Look, I don't really hate you, but you can't just go around doing that after making a few wrong moves. And then wake up and storm off in a huff." Jacob replied, leaning against the wall.

"Yeah I know," I said, taking great care to keep my tone civil. "And I am sorry for that. But... I've never been in the military and I have never even been in a fight or anything." I hoped he didn't think I was trying to make excuses. But surely some part of him HAD to understand that.

"Yeah, I get it...but neither have your friends, and you're a full adult. But I can get your side of things, I guess." Jacob said, nodding ever so slightly.

"So... are we good?" I eyed him carefully.

Jacob actually laughed. "Don't worry, I'm not Miranda...I'm still frusterated about the whole thing, but yeah. We don't need shit like this on the ship, and it'd be stupid to hate you over a bitten finger, even if it was pretty crazy."

I smiled a little, feeling a bit relieved. "Yeah, thanks," I murmured. "I guess I was wondering just cuz... well... I talked to Shepard, and she feels that I should still try to learn to fight. And I guess I agree." I watched him, waiting for his response.

Jacob smirked. "Trust me, you do need to learn how to fight. You can't bite a Collector," he said, before pausing. "And I know what you're getting at. I'll still train you, if you just keep your cool and stay calm. It won't work if you go bezerk at every little failure."

My smile widened into a small grin. "Yeah I see what you mean. I'll try to do better," I said. Then in spite of myself, I asked on a sheer whim, "What do you think would have happened if I bit Garrus instead?" I couldn't resist the urge to snicker a bit.

"Uh, then he'd be the one you would be apologizing to right now...but he may not have reacted like I did. I dunno, I haven't worked with him long enough to figure out everything about him." Jacob answered.

"Heh, yeah," I said. "Well... I guess I'd better go apologize to Abby now," I said with a small sigh.

"She seemed pretty pissed, but not as much as I originally was...she'll probably be okay." Jacob said. "But you do need to apologize. How you acted was uncalled for."

"Yeah," I murmured in agreement. "Cya later," I added and then turned to walk out. I had to go and find Abby now. I began to rehearse what I was going to say to her in my mind.

I didn't have to look far. I could hear her voice floating down the hallway from the other room. She was holed up in Mordin's lab, sitting crosslegged on a cargo box as she watched him go about his work. Her eyes flickered to mine when I walked in, and Mordin looked up, too. She nodded in acknowledgement, but otherwise made no greeting, and Mordin simply looked careful and said, "Sarah. Hello. Effects of ryncol gone I see."

I coughed a little, nodding at him. I gave him a small smile. "Hi Mordin. And... yep." That was all I said.

I then turned to look at Abby. Yep, I could tell she was still pissed. Part of me wondered if she'd told Mordin anything about what happened but... well, did she really need to? I was pretty sure it was all over the ship by now.

"Hey, Abby," I said, moving toward her. Part of me wondered if I should ask her if we could talk somewhere else, instead of in front of Mordin. But maybe it was a good thing Mordin was there, I don't know. At least someone could intervene if we started yelling at each other again, perhaps.

"Hola," she said. Well, at least she was going to be civil... even if it was in another language.

I decided to get this over with. "Abby, I'm really sorry for what happened down there in the cargo bay." I kept my eyes locked on her, and kept my back to Mordin; I was trying to pretend he wasn't even in the room. "I shouldn't have acted like that."

A corner of her mouth twitched, like she was either going to smile or was trying to bite back a retort. I stood on the spot for a moment, watching and waiting, and finally she nodded. "All right. We good now? You're not going to be dropped off anywhere, are you?"

I smiled a little, nodding, although my heart wasn't really into smiling. "I'm good if you are," I said slowly. "I apologized to Jacob and EDI and... I talked to Shepard." I fell silent, hoping we could just end the subject right there.

She chewed that over. "And what's the verdict?"

I shrugged. I really didn't want to talk about this now, not right before she was leaving on a dangerous mission. She didn't need anything to worry about while she was fighting alongside Shepard in a dangerous place. "Things seem okay," I said simply, hoping she would accept that answer.

Irritation flashed in her eyes. "Sarah, are you leaving or not? Like you threatened to do downstairs. I'd kind of like to know that part."

I narrowed my eyes a little. Couldn't this subject wait, at least until I'd had more time to think about it? Until after the Purgatory mission, at the very least? Still I knew that there would be no weaseling my way out of this one. "I haven't decided yet," I finally answered. That was the best answer I could give her, and at least it was honest.

She sighed and got up, stretching. "All right. Let me know," she muttered, and I could tell she was slightly hurt. "Apology accepted. Thanks for the help, Mordin." She grabbed an omni-tool off of the table and fitted the wires on her left arm. She glanced back at me, her face impassive. "So... breakfast? We're getting there soon."

"Yeah," I murmured on impulse. I was actually responding more to the "getting there soon" part than agreeing to go to breakfast. "Um..." I pressed my lips into a thin line for a moment, trying to figure out what to say. "Actually... I said some things to Shepard about how I feel about being here, and... she said she wants me to stay. And I kind of told her I would like to stay. But at the same time I'm still... trying to keep an open mind on leaving or staying."

"You...!" Abby glared at me for once, and her hands balled in to fists at her side. She turned away, her shoulders tense. "Whatever. See you when I get back."

I watched her go, and then I watched the door close behind her. Once I was sure she was out of ear range, I turned to look at Mordin. He seemed to be busy with something or other but I could also see him glancing at me. I knew he was paying attention to the entire thing.

"Well," I muttered out loud, "I guess I better not leave. Don't need anyone throwing a huff like when I randomly left msn."

"Leaving when we need you most?" Mordin asked, and he did not sound like the kind and caring salarian doctor that he was in the game. "I cannot stop you, but I wish I could. But you know what we are up against: Collectors. They will continue to kidnap entire colonies, planets, even, maybe. I'm still hypothesizing. But to leave your friends to face them alone? Repugnant. Maybe ryncol still affecting your brain. Maybe not. Either way, she has a right to be angry." He looked at me with piercing, bulbous yellow eyes, "I will say no more on the matter."

I stared at Mordin for a moment. I suddenly realized that if I did leave, I wasn't just going to disappoint HK and Abby here. Probably the entire crew was going to look at it like a cowardly act, possibly even a betrayal of sorts. After all, they were all dedicated to the cause. None of _them _were going to run out.

Just then, I got a very wild idea. I was probably crazy for even considering it. But I was the one who always had the weird, crazy ideas, right? And Shepard herself had done-and would soon do-some crazy things herself. Like sleep with alien. I smiled slightly.

Well, there was no harm in asking about it, at least. "Hey," I said slowly, looking up at Mordin. "I'd like to... ask you something."

"Yes?"

My mind was racing now. I felt... excited, and scared at the same time. But all I was doing right now was talking about it, so I didn't need to worry. Yet.

"Well, as you've probably heard, I didn't do too well in that sparring match down in the cargo bay," I said, then started speaking faster so he wouldn't have time to comment on it if he wanted to. "I was wondering if there's a way that I could... get an edge. Would it be possible for me to become a biotic?"

"No," said Mordin. "Biotic potential in humans very limited, very rare. Only those who were exposed to the variables in utero would have the potential. All biotics within the same age group, by definition. Children in the Alliance's Ascension Project, adult members of this crew-all around the same age, because of element zero exposures. Therefor, impossible for you. Enjoy being normal."

He looked around at the technical readouts behind him, and browsed through a variety of slides. "Can strengthen your shields, can even place small medi-gel inserts within your circulatory system. You can learn to hack, which is useful. Improvisation. That is useful, too. Captain Kirrahe once hit a charging krogan with a vacuum cleaner." He chuckled. "Learn what you can. It will be hard, but anything that is easy is not worth accheiving."

My face fell as disappointment set in. I then winced when he mentioned hacking. I liked computers but I doubted I could ever be THAT good with them. Still, I wasn't about to give up entirely on the whole biotic idea... yet. I had one more question I wanted to ask. "What if I somehow let myself get exposed to element zero now, even though I'm an adult?" I asked curiously, and a bit hopefully.

"You would die," he said simply. "Don't think of those things. Cerberus does horrid experiments as a means towards that end. Absolutely horrid. _Evil_. People die for that research."

I nodded, still feeling disappointed. Still... it actually gave me a bit more hope. In many ways, the main reason I'd been so bitchy lately was because... well, that's how I got sometimes if I felt useless or unable to accomplish anything. But the simple fact that-as Mordin just suggested-that I could found another way to be useful besides fighting... well...

"You know," I said, placing a hand on his desk and leaning forward, "I'd really feel better about staying here if I didn't feel so damn useless, or like I'm not good at anything. How many other things are there I could learn around here, do you think, besides fighting?" I wanted to know.

Mordin actually had to stop and think about that. "Commander Shepard explained your... situation," he said, "and since you're not part of regular Cerberus crew... hmm. Help Rupert in the kitchens. He needs it. Help Doctor Chakwas. There are many things you can do aboard a ship besides fight constantly."

"Hmmm," I mused. "I definitely have experience in cleaning and washing dishes, you know? I did that quite a bit back home." I chuckled at the thought.

"Then do that," Mordin said. "You don't have to be a part of the assault team to make a difference. With your demeanor that probably would not be the best place for you, anyway. If you picked up slack around the ship, Shepard would be grateful. The operation will run much more smoothly."

I actually grinned. "Thanks, Mordin," I said. "I think I'll go talk to Rupert." My sour mood was draining away now, to be replaced with relief and something akin to cheerfulness. I reached over and gave him a light pat on the shoulder.

"Ah, well, it was my pleasure," Mordin said. "Goodbye." And he went back to his work like nothing had even happened.

"Bye," I giggled, and then I was out the door and heading toward the elevator again.

* * *

**(Abby)**

I was dressed and ready for a quick trip to Purgatory. I still wore Kelly's brown tanktop, her jeans, and her many-pocketed jacket because there was no armor availible for me quite yet. But just like on Omega I had shield overlays that would stop a high-velocity projectile from penetrating unless they were completely drained. The M3 was strapped to my right hip, and my knife (which I'd stolen from Rupert, actually) was resting nicely in it's shiny new holster. There was an omni-tool on my left hand, which I only knew the basic functionalities of. I probably looked like an undersized Shepard or something, because I sure as hell _felt_ like an idiot. A lethal idiot, but an idiot nontheless.

HK came to see me off. We were waiting by the airlock, alone except for Joker at the cockpit. I only glanced at him shyly before turning my back to him so I could watch for Shepard and whoever she wished to bring with her. I loved Joker a ton, but I'd have to talk to him when I had some downtime.

"Okay, I'm officially completely freaking terrified," I muttered to HK.

HK seemed to hesitate, slightly. He knew Purgatory was insane. However, hopefully he'd dish out some of that HK-style advice.

"Well, just remember what we've learned...its only been a week's worth of training, and we have alot more to do, but what you have should get you through it, since you also have Shepard and two other team members along. Just...don't get too worked up," he said.

I let out a nervous laugh. "Yup, not getting worked up at all... nopity-nope-nope-nope. Totally in control. Grawr."

"Stay calm," HK instructed. "I know how you feel, believe me. But you know Shepard can make it through this, and now she has an extra person along."

"Grawr de grawr grawr grawr grawr," I muttered. I consciously relaxed my shoulders. "Okay. Ready now." I blew out a long breath when I saw Shepard, in full armor, exit the elevator. Jacob and Zaeed were right behind her.

Zaeed. Wonderful. I wondered when we were going to take care of his business on Zorya.

"Here we go," I muttered.

"Arriving at Purgatory," Joker called over his shoulder. "Lining us up with the airlocks."

There was a slight rumble underneath our feet, and a jolt as the Normandy slid smoothly into place. Jacob gave me a reassuring nod as he approached, and I gravitiated towards him. He pat me once on the shoulder. Zaeed stared at me quizzically with his different-colored eyes. Originally I'd thought his eyes were very cool-looking, something that just made him seem more bad-ass, but now I just knew why they made him look so unnatural. One of his eyes was the color of the blackest night, and the other was so light that his pupil contrasted vividly against the brightness. When I looked at his face, I couldn't decide on which eye to focus on.

"This kid's coming with us?" he asked, disbelieving.

"Yes," Commander Shepard said. "She'll help us out. You have a problem with that, Zaeed?"

He snorted. "Hell, I'll bite. Better to get experiance in the field than holed up on Five anyway."

So he'd been watching our 'practice' then. Oh, well, everybody else probably had, too. I didn't know why I was suddenly so embarassed about it, though.

"It's just a simple pick-up," Shepard assured us. "But Purgatory is a dangerous place. Keep your weapons on you at all times."

"Yes, ma'am," I said.

Zaeed snorted. "At least she takes orders well."

I cracked a smile I didn't feel.

"Transmitting our verification code, Commander," Joker said, twisting around in his chair to look at us. "They say to come on aboard."

_Oh shit. Oh shit. Oh shit. Oh shit. _This was going to suck. "Let's go meet the welcome party," Shepard said. "Move out."

I waved a little half-heartedly at HK as the door slid closed between me and the safety of the Normandy.

* * *

Purgatory was everything the game made it to be, then more. A game could never convey the sense of creepy-crawly atmosphere, nor the way that the overhead lights only made everything seem darker to my eyes. Our footsteps echoed in an unpleasant way on the metal flooring. I could see the Normandy docked precariously outside the large viewscreen, though I tried not to look at it much.

There is a sixth sense in humans, often unseen and unheard, that makes itself apparent in only the most dangerous of situations. It was the sense that made the hair stand up on the back of your neck, the feeling that you were being watched, the _knowing_ of the deadly intentions coming your way soon. I could feel the crushed hopes inside this dull, dreary, _scary_ place. Psychos, for the most part, and there was an overwhelming anger in the air.

Or maybe I only felt this way because I knew of the inhabitants and what went on. Either way, I wanted out.

I followed Shepard, keeping my outward appearance calm and in control. I almost did a Han Solo and placed my hand on the butt of my pistil, but I wasn't _that_ confident. Guards in Blue Suns armor, holding assault rifles casually in their hands, stood waiting for us at the bottom of a slight ramp leading up to the main observation tunnels.

"Welcome to the Purgatory, Shepard," said the turian in front. His face was covered by his helmet, as seemed to be the custom among the guards. "Your package is being prepped and you can claim it shortly. As this is a high-security vessel, we will need you to relinquish your weapons before you proceed."

_No. No. Shepard, you better tell them HELL THE EFF NO! _

"I'm keeping my gun," Shepard said cooly. _Yeah, you tell 'em, girl. You're my favorite._

The door opened at the top, revealing the baddie in all of his glory. "Everybody stand down," he said. "Commander, I'm Warden Kuril." So _that_ was the name. Ha. I wondered who would kill him. Maybe Zaeed. Wouldn't that be lovely? "This is my ship. Your weapons will be returned on the way out. You must realize this is just standard procedure."

_Go to _hell_, you creepy, weirdo, stupid little... turian-thingy. You're an ugly turian. I don't like you. Go away and die already. You suck. A lot. _

"It's _my_ standard procedure to keep my gun," Shepard said. Still civil, still good. I was beginning to _like_ Bioware. Then I rememebred Thane's romance scene, and abruptly tried to forget it.

I could feel Kuril's emotional state change, _harden_, as he tested his will against Shepard's. It was the classic trick you saw in movies (and dogs) all the time: look them in the eye until they backed down. Shepard wasn't some scared puppy, though, and she could play hardball with the best of them—and win. The confrontation lasted just two seconds, and it was Kuril who conceeded defeat... as I knew he would. "Let them proceed," he said. "Our facility is quite secure enough to handle four armed guests. We're bringing Jack out of cryo, and as soon as the funds clear you'll be on your way. If you'll follow me to Outprocessing for the pick-up, Commander...?"

"Let's go," Shepard said, gliding foreword smoothly. I fell in line behind Zaeed, glancing around at the other guards as casually as if I was just a random sightseer. Jacob nudged me along.

The door opened, leading into the observational tunnels. I glanced this way and that, amazed at the sheer _size_ of it all. If there was ever a prison like this back home... Huge machines, bigger than I'd ever seen in my short life, moved cells out of their containing rooms with apparent ease. I wondered if the cells had some kind of artificial gravity within them to keep the occupants from tumbling around with the movement.

Who had jurisdiction here? Whose legal laws did these so-called 'guards' follow? I knew the answer, even though I hated it. _Greed._ "Cellblock Two," Kuril stated, gesturing around us in a fanciful manner. "As you can see, we keep a tight control over the population. Each prisoner's cell is a self-contained, modular unit. I've blown a few out of the airlocks as an example."

How could he announce that so _calmly?_ You don't just go around _blowing_ people out of airlocks!

"This ship is made up of thirty cellblocks identical to this one," said the baddie. "We house thousands of criminals. We can put the whole place in lockdown in under a moment's notice." _And you will. _Kuril paused his tour to look very seriously at the Commander. "Nothing goes wrong here." _Irony. Oh, the sweet smell of _irony.

"Let's get on with this," Shepard said, crossing her arms.

"Anybody ever try and scarper on you?" Zaeed asked as the Warden turned around, leading us further down the tube.

"We're in space," he replied. "They have nowhere to go, and they know it." No legal jurisdictions, either. I remembered Jack's story about being gang-raped by an assortment of prisoners and guards, and then how she killed them each seperately and painfully. It was why she was in cryo. I wondered if the Warden knew the entire story. "But still, we exercise extreme caution."

I glanced out towards the right. Two prisoners in orange slacks, human, were beginning to tussle. "These are dangerous individuals," Kuril said matter-of-factly. The batarian guard watching them activated his orange omni-tool, and a shield system popped up to seperate the two in an impenitrable bubble. "We have _many_ ways to control the population."

_I don't like you. _Kuril led us through a door to a more familiar-looking area. "I'm going to go confirm that the funds from Cerberus are cleared," said Kuril. "Outprocessing is straight down this hallway. Just keep going past the Interrorgation Rooms and the Supermax Wing."

I wondered if I should ask him what form of tortures they used, because I was actually pretty dang curious as to how they got the psychos to actually _talk_, if they said anything. But I kept my mouth shut and just tried to look mildly entertained. Kuril's eyes flashed to my face for a moment, and I tensed, expecting an attack of some kind. He turned away and walked out. "I'll catch up with you later... Shepard."

Jacob placed a reassuring hand on my shoulder. I nearly jumped—I hadn't realized he was _that_ close. "I don't like him," he stated in a quiet voice.

"Should've questioned him more about the way they do things," Zaeed said. He scratched absent-mindedly at the tattoo on his neck, glancing out the tunnels towards the grounds below. "I was curious about how they keep the place running."

"They're in space," I said in a small voice. "There are no legalities here. These men can do whatever they want to their prisoners. They blackmail the planets who send them, charging fees just to keep them here. And if they stop paying, the Warden says that they can't keep 'em any longer, and says they'll have to dump the inmate off back on his world at an unspecified place and time."

Shepard scowled. "The Council condones this?"

"Maybe they should put a Spectre on it," I joked.

"It probably won't be that simple," Jacob muttered.

I heard the screams long before I saw him. A human cowered on the floor in one of the Interrorgation Wings, crying out in unendurable pain as the turian guard pounded into him again, and again, and again. Outside the bulletproof glass, another turian watched calmly. I remembered the inmate's name with a jolt—Billy.

"That's sick," Shepard said disgustedly.

I turned away, my hands balled into fists at my side. _Stop him_, I begged inwardly. Shepard paused, watching for a second, but the turian just waved her away. "Move along."

Shepard moved along. I watched in disbelief. She even passed up the other guy, the talkative one. _What? Why?_ "Hey, hey, guys, come over here!" said the inmate. He was knocking on the glass. "Pick me!"

"Shit," muttered Jacob.

On a sudden impulse, I distanced myself from the group and placed myself directly in front of the third man in line, the one that nobody would talk to in the game. He looked at me, a self-satisfied expression on his face. He was sitting on the floor, cross-legged, and rocked back and forth gently on his butt. "Hello?" I asked softly.

He looked up at me, his eyes hazed and foggy with waking dreams I couldn't even begin to fathom. "I hear you screaming in my head," he told me. "It's nice... yeah."

Jacob took my arm. "What the hell are you doing? Come on."

_Shit._ "Coming," I said, throwing one last glance over my shoulder at Billy. _Commander..._

Zaeed wasn't saying anything, but I thought I heard a slight sigh from up ahead. Shepard led the way through the door straight ahead. I couldn't help but be impressed by the big, bad-ass doors they had going for them. It would take some serious demo charges to blow them up. "Outprocessing is through the door on the far side of the room," said one of the tech unconcernedly, typing away at his computer.

_Here we go! _Shepard calmly led the way. The door opened and she would have stepped into it, probably thinking it was an elevator, had I not grabbed her shoulder and shook my head seriously. She took another look at the room beyond and, with a sneer, stepped away from it.

"My apologies, Shepard," said Kuril's voice over the intercom. "But you're more valuable as a prisoner than as a customer. Drop your weapons and proceed right into this open cell. You will not be harmed."

"Go to hell," Shepard retorted. "I'll send you there myself."

The next words were a general call to all on Cellblock Two. "Activate systems!"

Zaeed pushed me behind on of the heavy-duty desks—no need, I was heading there already—and I hastily grabbed for my pistil. Zaeed took up cover next to me and began to spray an arc of covering fire at the doorway. The Blue Suns must have already appeared. Damn, they were faster than they were in the game. "Go, go, go!" Zaeed yelled.

I glanced up, firing carefully at the heads of those who were rushing in. Shepard took off, running towards the next rows of desks in front of us. A few rounds were harmlessly deflected off of her shields before she hit cover.

I ducked underneath cover again when they began to pay attention to me, feeling as though being hit in the head with a high-caliber sci-fi bullet wouldn't be the best way to end the day. And _where was the music? _Could it have been too much to ask for some music in the Team MilkyWay wish of ours? My iPod was back on the ship, but I doubted I'd actually listen to it right now if I even had it. Bummer. It seemed like such a good idea at the time.

The gunfire was loud in my ears, scaring the hell out of me. I took a deep, deep breath, and retrieved the rest of my courage so I could pop up and spray a few rounds of my own in to their midst. Shepard's body was outlined with a subtle heatwave detectable even from my angle. She made a flipping motion with her hand. A shockwave of pure energy lashed out from her fist, throwing everything this way and that in a disjointed heap. I fired at them while they were on the ground, feeling absolutely horrible about the killing even though I knew it had to be done. "Shepard is loose!" Kuril snapped. "I repeat, Shepard is loose!"

_The Abby is loose! The Abby is loose!_

"We need to get to the Supermax wing before they all converge on us!" I told Zaeed. "It's where Jack is."

He nodded. "Shepard, let's move!"

A FENRIS mech—no, more than one—turned the corner at a surprising speed. They ran for us as we tried to exit. I jumped backwards and to the side, already firing, but Shepard took care of them with another Shockwave. She looked slightly drained, though, and gestured for Jacob to take the lead while she recuperated.

We fought our way up the hallway, and I experianced a very scary experience when I felt rounds deflect off of my shields with a jolt. After gunning down the scientist in charge of the cryo unit, I bent down and picked up a heatsink from his body. Any queasiness about touching dead people soon vanished.

"If we hack that control panel, every door in the cell block opens," said Jacob, examining the commands and functions with an expert flick of his fingers.

"It'll be the only way to get Jack out of cryo," said Zaeed. "Do it, Shepard, we'll deal with the political bullshit later."

She looked at me. "Do it," I urged her.

"Hit the button, Jacob," she ordered.

There were three heavy mechs downstairs in the cryo room, guarding it from unwanted visitors. They glanced up as a large iron claw came down and deliberately unscrewed Jack's cryo cell from the floor. I leaned against the window, watching and waiting, wondering if she would look anything like she did in the game...

Jack's eyes were closed, that much I could tell. But I couldn't see any of her tattoos, not a single one, because she was dressed in an orange prisoner's jumpsuit. It made sense, I supposed, for her to wear the same uniform as everybody else, but I was still shocked. But the jumpsuit was tight enough around the places that counted for Jacob and Zaeed to stop and stare. "_That's_ Jack?" Zaeed asked.

Shepard nodded. She didn't even seem to be surprised. _Maybe Tim told her about it, _I thought.

And then Jack woke up. She began to struggle while the mechs looked on, confused. What were their orders for this? Then she freed one hand. Then the other. She pulled on the neck brace and freed herself, rubbing her jugular to relieve some of the ache there. She glanced up to see the mechs, pure anger bubbling to the surface of her face. She braced herself against the cryo pod and yelled, launching herself at the middle-most one and out of sight. There was an explosion beneath us that nearly threw us off balance.

"We've got to help Jack, come on!" Shepard snapped, running for the door that would lead us down.

A synthesized female voice spoke from the intercom: "_Warning, Warning."_

Another explosion. It rocked the hallway so hard that I nearly tripped over my own feet. "Sounds like heavy fighting," Jacob grunted, steadying himself.

It probably took us ten seconds to get to the bottom of the ramp, but it took another twenty for Jacob to cut through the lock leading into the chamber. What we saw blew my mind, even though I knew about it. I couldn't imagine how the others felt.

Three heavy mechs lay in a crumpled metal heap on the group, their armor so twisted and warped that it was a wonder how they still retained their shape at all. Only one of them had self-destructed.

Shepard took one look at this mess and grinned. "I want her."

* * *

The entire place was in an uproar, and it was getting worse. Jack was running, killing everybody in her way, and we were stuck behind taking care of the lucky guys she left behind. The entire Cellblock was in flames, and the extinguishers weren't working. Warden Kuril was yelling orders over the intercom, sounding harried and breathless, but I was barely paying attention. Sweat stung my eyes as I ducked beneath cover and reloaded, taking a brief respite from the fight. _We have the bridge, _I thought. _One heavy is down... just a ton of baddies left. And another heavy mech._

Some idiot had activated both heavies at the same time, and even with the other one taken out, Number Two was still trying to flank us by coming up the stairs at the other end of the walkway, firing at our exposed heads. I screamed as a concussive missile blasted in to my cover, jolting my body hard against the railing. "_Shepard!"_

"_Keep your head down! _Don't look up, it's focused on _you_, understand?"

"_SHIT."_

"Stay calm! We're disabling it as fast as we can."

_Well disable it faster!_ "Okay!"

"You have to be my eyes. Relax. Tell me if anybody starts to come up on the bridge behind Zaeed, okay?"

"Nobody yet."

"Just tell me when."

Zaeed was downstairs taking cover from the menegerie of Blue Suns mercs, attempting to flank them. Since he and I had taken down the first heavy mech—me from above, him from below—he was moving much easier. "I need a biotic to deal with the asshole behind the left corner barrier."

"I got him,"Jacob replied.

I squealed again as another missile hit my cover. I wondered why it didn't simply blow it to pieces, and me along with it, and had come to the satisfying and relieving conclusion that sci-fi metal was just _awesome. _"I think this guy wants to bring me home with him," I joked half-heartedly.

"Well, we ain't selling," said Jacob. "You hold tight. I'm going to draw it's attention away from you. Set up the Overload program."

I nearly dropped my gun in my haste to activate the omni-tool. I scrolled down the different functions and chose a shortcut Mordin had made specifically for me just this morning.

"_Done!_"

"Okay... I'll tell you when... now!"

I stood, waving my omni-tool in the mech's general direction. A green light winked from my palm, confirming that the program had been carried out. A second later, blue electrical arcs spun around the machine, disabling the shields.

"Aha!" Jacob yelled. I thought he'd been hit, and felt instantly afraid, until he said, "Good work!"

"Warping him up," Shepard said in a calm voice. I heard a crash, and risked a look: the white armor had fallen off of it's body in a rumpled heap not common to metal at _all._ So _that_ was what Warp did. Nice. I squeezed off a few more rounds, aiming for the optics.

It hit the ground smoking.

"It's gonna blow!" Jacob yelled. _Where was he?_

I ducked anyway. A _boom_ sounded, and metal flew. When I risked another look, I noticed that some of the heavy mech was now buried in the steel walls. _Wow._

"I have ten more guys holed up down here," Zaeed said. "Nine."

"They're coming us the stairs," I announced with a calm I didn't feel, peeking over cover to fire off a few more rounds. "Two less now, though." Hey, at least I was getting the hang of this damn thing. Everything was bathed in a red, fiery light that gave an unreal sense to the proceedings, like it was some kind of strange dream.

"Squad—shield status!" Shepard quipped.

"Twenty-five!"

"Fifty!"

"Ten!"

"Zaeed, pick off the ones heading for the bridge. Jacob, lay me down some cover fire at those barricades." Shepard took off as soon as she figured her orders were being taken care of, running hunched over to the end of the walkway, which would, I figured out, flank the enemy. _See? This is why she's the tactician. She _knows _this crap. _

Since I had no orders to the contrary, I popped out of cover once more and helped Zaeed take them out. You could have danced to the statacco rhythm of gunfire.

Eventually, it all went silent.

"Report!" Shepard snapped.

Jacob, who I just realized was in cover two barricades ahead of me, glanced back at us to see if we were all walking. "We're all good, Commander."

"Reload and get your bearings. We're not done yet."

No, we most certainly were not.

I forced myself to get up from my crouched position and loot the bodies of all availible clips I could hold on my gunbelt as my shields restored themselves back to full power. There was something dark obscuring my vision, but when I wiped my hand over my eyes it seemed to help. I stumbled over towards the jagged metal of the last heavy mech we'd had to take out, raking my eyes over its' charred white chassis. "Don't you think that using security mechs so soon after the geth attacked the Citadel is a bit stupid?" I asked, knowing they'd pick it up in their earpieces.

"C-Sec's numbers were in record lows after the attack," Jacob grunted from behind me, stretching his back. "It was either sanction the things or let the gangs take control. Soon as businesses got the okay from the top, people started to buy them out like crazy. Somewhere out there, somebody's making a damn good of a living."

"The Citadel should've put sanctions on proper use," I muttered.

"They did," said Zaeed. "It doesn't stop them from appearing all over the black market, though."

I frowned and knelt next to the mech's eviscerated torso, poking the wires with my finger. "Don't touch that," Shepard snapped, coming up behind me. "It can still shock you." I quickly backed away, and Shepard turned towards the next dead body and scrounged for ammo clips.

I wiped my hand over my eyes again to fix my eyesight, and caught a streak of crimson blood painted across my skin like a stripe. Frowning, I probed the area more with my fingers, finding a long, jagged cut from my eyebrow to the center of my hairline bleeding profusely. When did _that_ happen?

Probably when the first heavy mech exploded only a few feet in front of me. Oh, well. I let it be.

"All right," said Shepard, "let's move out."

I lagged behind, as usual, still keeping a lookout. "This place is in _bad_ shape..." I whispered. All of those bodies, just laying out there like that... I felt horrible about it. The ship hitched a little bit as an explosion rocked the inner wings, and I could have sworn I saw one of them twitch. Zaeed passed the turian body, casually reloading his gun as if he didn't care what these Blue Suns had done, and then I realized that it really _had_ twitched—twitched it's finger towards the gun laying too close next to it.

He held it in a three-fingered death-grip and aimed for the back of Zaeed's head. My pistil was up and raised before I'd even consciously thought about it—_crack-crack-crack! _The rounds hit the turian's exposed head with a sound that vaguely reminded me of the sound a melon would make if it were pierced by a knife: the squishy noise of an unstoppable object sliding deftly in to the core.

The turian relaxed, dead. My hands were shaking. Zaeed glanced back at me in surprise, then at the turian. "Shit. Good work, kid."

I nodded grimly and kept the gun out, just in case. I wasn't putting it away again.

There was another connecting hallway, safe and sound for now, with a first aid kit and a secluded safe housing ammo for the guards. We took all of the medi-gel the first one had to offer and skipped the second, though we filed away its location for later. Shepard took one look at my head and had that concerned-parent look on her face, but I wasn't going to buy it. "Warden Kuril's in the next room," I said quietly. "It'll wait."

"And how the bloody hell do you know that?" Zaeed asked.

"I'll explain later, Zaeed," Shepard said. Jacob took a step closer to me, examining the injury with careful hands. "It'll have to wait, Jacob."

"Ma'am, this is pretty deep..."

"We're good," I said. "Seriously."

"She said she's good, Jacob. We can't patch her up now, anyway. Smear some medi-gel on it and let's go."

"You'll need the medi-gel, Commander," I said. "Go on, let's go."

They were silent for a second, contemplating. I was grateful when Zaeed broke in, saying, "Oh for God's sakes, she's not going to die. Get a move on!"

I nodded in thanks and led the way towards the door, opening it from the side like I'd been taught. I could hear gunfire. Shepard led the way, followed closely by the rest of us. I came out last, pistil held out and trained on any idiots who dared to stop us. Kuril stood on top of a large podium in the center, brandishing his assault rifle. Blue tech armor boosting his shields glowed fiercly in the red light.

The bodies of prisoners lay in his arc of fire.

"You're valuable, Shepard!" Kuril yelled, taking a potshot at her with his rifle. We hit the cover, narrowly avoiding the shot. "I could have sold you and lived like a king!" He panted heavily, foam crusting the sides of his mouth like a rabid dog. "But you're too much _trouble!_ And at least I can recapture Jack."

A round thudded into the cargo box I was using as cover, and I gasped despite myself. "_Not happening. _You're just a two-bit slave trader," Shepard said loudly, "and I don't have time for it."

"_I_ do the hard things civil governments are unwilling to do!" Kuril roared. "This is for the good of the _galaxy!_"

"He's going to send his minions at us first," I said as the first rounds thudded into my cover. "We _have_ to kill the shield system to take him down."

"What shield system-? Oh." Shepard sounded disgruntled. Apparently she found it.

"There are three generators," I panted. "Don't hit them yet. We can't kill Kuril, but he can't shoot at us yet, and _he_ has the high ground."

"Understood," said Shepard. "What's the best way to deal with this situation?"

"They're coming at us from three sides. We'll take the left and go around. Sound good?"

"Good."

I ducked a stream of fire heading in my general direction and let loose with my pistil. Here were five of them in front of us alone, not even counting the ones on the upper balcony with the high ground. We'd have to get up there _quick_, or we were screwed. Shepard seemed to be thinking along those lines, too, because she wasn't even aiming the the threat in front of us, but instead at the people trying to come down the ramp to flank us.

I had to honestly wonder at that point if anybody had _ever_ outflanked Commander Shepard, because I didn't want to be the bad luck charm that made it a first. "I'm heading up, cover me!" Shepard snapped. She didn't even wait for Jacob to say okay. She ran full tilt up the ramp, sliding smoothly into cover as soon as her feet touched level ground.

_Crack-crack-crack-crack-crack-crack!_ I downed the sniper taking a bead on Shepard, then ducked back behind to reload. The movement was becoming instinct to me now. "Zaeed, you next," Shepard panted. She disappeared to the other side of the wall, leaving room for Zaeed. The merc ran as fast as he could, but I still felt a moment of pure terror when I saw those rounds thud into his shields.

"Shield status?"

"Ten. Give me a moment to recharge before I make another run."

"Agreed." One of the men from the upper balcony was lifted into the air quite suddenly. Jacob gunned him down with ease. "Good shot, Mister Taylor. Abby, we are _not_ supposed to hit the shields, correct?"

"Yes," I panted. "Not yet."

"There's no chance of Warden Kuril slipping through a back door or anything, is there?"

"No. He's saving his ass while his minions get killed. He thinks he can overwhelm us. He's just in it for the creds, Commander, not his life. He probably thinks we'll be dead soon, anyway."

"Understood. Zaeed, we're going to switch positions. Shields ready?"

"They're at fifty percent. They'll hold."

"Switch... now!"

Zaeed disappeared from the top, but Shepard never appeared. She must have taken cover somewhere else. "Jacob, you come up here, now," she said. "Abby, you okay down there for a moment?"

There were still three guys left. "Fine!"

Jacob pulled another one out of cover with his biotics, and I put a round through his temple. "Coming, Commander."

Jacob left. Breathing heavily, I took my knife out of it's sheath and held it in my hand, blade against my forearm so it wouldn't get in the way, and hit them again. The two remaining ones began to flank me, sneaking around on both sides. There was no way I was going to be able to hit one without leaving myself vulnerable to the other in the process, but if one got close enough, he was going to find out that I'm a gung-ho ninja with a knife... or something.

I fired at the closest one anyway, trying to keep the other in my perephial vision. My first victim fell behind cover to recharge his shields. I held my breath and sprinted up the ramp, jumping the last three feet. I rolled on my shoulder, coming up right next to Jacob. I glanced around him and fired off a few more shots, hoping to get a parting blow in at least. The one under cover fell back. I couldn't see the other guy.

"Press foreword. Jacob, take the barrier ahead of you. Zaeed, with me. Abby, stay on the tail side and pick off the guys we miss."

_Where is that other guy? _I lined up my pistil with the head of the commander of the Blue Suns. He wore tech armor over everything else, so I _knew_ this had to be him. I fired off a few shots, but it did nothing more than grab his attention.

Then I remembered something...

Everybody pressed on ahead, taking away from of the aggro from me and giving me a sufficient amount of time to grab the sniper rifle laying in the lifeless hands of the guy I'd killed for it. A giant smile on my face, I cocked it, made sure the ammo was in it, and took a peek through the scope. _Oooooh, this is _nice! I sighted up and fired. The commander went down.

I laughed.

I sighted through the scope again, waiting for a blue head to expose itself. _There._ I missed and cursed, knowing that the lives of my newfound friends were at stake. "Just so everybody knows, I have a sniper rifle. Don't shoot the idiot with the sniper rifle. Enjoy your day."

I was grinning as I searched the battlefield, squeezing off shots when I could.

The muzzle of a pistil was placed against my temple, too close for the shields to kick in. "Bye-bye," my Blue Suns stalker whispered. I was on my knees, he was bending over. I dropped the sniper rifle and twisted inside of him, taking out his leg with an outward slice, just like I was taught. I grabbed my pistil from the ground next to me—the idiot didn't kick it away, _sloppy—_and brought it around towards his head-

He rolled over as I did so, palming me in the face. He got on top of me, holding my hands apart while I tried to kick him with my feet. He was helmeted. "Get off!" I cried, struggling fruitlessly against his hold.

He grabbed me around the chest and lifted me to my feet—literally lifted me—and threw me down the ramp. I hit the ground, my shields already thudding as rounds bounced off of it. Panting hard, I ducked behind cover. "Shepard, on your _six!_"

"He's coming down the ramp, I see him!" The man was suddenly thrown sideways as Shepard's biotics slammed into him. He hit the wall hard enough to break his neck. He slumped to the ground, dead.

I checked my shield display and waited patiently for them to recharge, calling out enemy positions to the others from my safe spot here. When the shields were at seventy-five percent, I bolted back up the ramp, grabbing my weapons. "I'm hitting generators one and two," I said.

It exploded, and one of the large, thick lines keeping Kuril's blue shields up vanished with a _pop._ I moved to the next one, extinguishing his safety one more time. Somebody hit the last one, I didn't even know who, and Kuril, with no cover and no possible way to keep us off, shouted in his fury.

I Overloaded his shields. Shepard crushed his armor, mangling it to his skin. He cried out in pain as the metal pieces pierced his organs. He jumped off the edge of his podium, screaming, and landed, stomach-first, on one of the barriers. Blue-colored blood dripped out of his open mouth. Jacob took two steps, just two, and put his pistil to Kuril's temple. The shot sounded like a punctuation mark to a very long day.

"Abby," Shepard said, panting, "where is Jack?"

"Upstairs, where we came in," I answered, leaning against the railing as I tried to catch my breath. "Think you're ready to meet her?"

"Yes," Shepard said. "Is everybody ready to head out?"

"Oh, I suppose," I said.

"We're good, Commander," Jacob said.

Zaeed merely nodded. I stumbled towards them, feeling lightheaded. Jacob sat me down and applied a sweet-smelling glue to my forehead as he scanned my biometric signs from his omni-tool. "We need to get you to Chakwas," he said, hiding the results from my eyes. He helped me stand up.

Shepard frowned at the results and made a grunting sound in the back of her throat. "Let's go."

* * *

_There she is, breaking turian necks and thinking nothing of it,_ I thought wryly. Shepard took out the batarian running for her, and Jack, all lithe grace and bad manners, glared at him, tensing to strike. Slowly and deliberately Shepard put away her pistil. "What the _hell _do you want?" Jack snapped, clenching her fists.

It was... odd, not to see her in her usual leave-nothing-to-the-imagination outfit. With the prison slacks on, she almost looked normal.

"You're in a bad situation and I'm going to get you out of here," Shepard said calmly.

"Shit, you sound like a pussy," Jack said, pacing. "I'm not going anywhere with you: you're Cerberus."

"I'm here to ask for your help," Shepard said testily.

"You show up here in a Cerberus frigate and want to take me away somewhere? You think I'm _stupid?_"

"This ship is going down in flames, but we can get you to safety and we're asking for your help."

"Oh, just knock her the bloody hell out and take her," Zaeed said, waving a dismissive hand.

"I'd like to see you try, fucker," Jack sneered.

"It might just come to that," Shepard said icily.

"You'd have to kill me," Jack stated. All was silent for a moment. "If you want me to come with you, make it worth my while."

"What are you thinking?" asked Shepard.

"I bet your ship has loads of Cerberus data files. I want to look through them, see what they got on me. You want my help, let me go through those databases." She crossed her arms resolutely.

"I'll give you full access," Shepard said, quicker than I expected, like she'd already thought this through... or maybe she was bluffing. _She better not be bluffing!_

Jack jabbed a finger in her face. "You _better_ be straight-up with me."

Shepard nodded.

"So why the hell we standing here?"


	12. So Mordin gave you sex advice

**(Sarah)**

I felt... content, in a weird way. Rupert was more than happy to get an assistant, and now I had found something that I could actually do on the ship without feeling useless or inadequate. Of course it took me a while to figure out where the cleaning supplies were, and I knew it would take a while before I could learn some of Rupert's... more unique dishes. (But hey, working with stanard ship rations was hard... right?) But right now, I was in the middle of cleaning the men's bathroom.

I spent quite a bit of time just scrubbing the floor, trying to get all of the dirt and grime up. It looked almost as if Rupert had only been cleaning the toilet bowl and the shower, and leaving the rest of the bathroom a mess. Then again... I could assume that he was a busy man.

_Well,_ I thought, _at least now we have a woman's touch around here._ I snorted at the thought. Who would have imagined that I would be on the best ship in Mass Effect 2, on my hands and knees doing _cleaning,_ while Abby was out there fighting for her life?

...Part of me wondered if EDI was somehow watching, and if she was getting a kick out of seeing me on my hands and knees. Gosh I hoped not. I didn't want to think that she could see it every time one of us had to use the bathroom.

I was up to my elbows in soapy water when the intercom blinked on. "Man your stations, folks, Shepard's back and we're busting outta here!" I could feel the slight weight of the artificial gravity as it began to work harder to compensate for whatever g-forces Joker was putting the ship through now. We must have been making quite an exit.

I remained as still as I could, wondering if I should grab ahold of my cleaning bucket to try and keep it steady in case things got really rough. I took my hands out of it and grabbed onto the edge of the toilet seat for support, yet all things considered it didn't jar me too much. I figured the ship must have had some decent stabilizors.

Once I was sure that I wasn't going to get sent flying into the wall or sent sliding across the wet floor, I grabbed the cleaning rag and decided to get on with what I was doing. I figured I was almost done anyway.

After a little while I finished cleaning the floor and I did my best to mop up most of the water with a towel. After all, if people came in here with their dirty shoes on while the floor was still wet, that wouldn't exactly be a good thing, would it? I still had to clean the toilet, because Rupert asked me to do that too. But that could wait a moment.

The door to the men's room opened with a very audible hiss. Startled, I glanced up to see who was intruding, words already half-formed in my mind that would make them leave, when they died on my lips. Jack raised one eyebrow. "What the hell are you looking at?"

I realized I was gaping at her. I closed my mouth and blinnked a couple of times. "Uh..." I cleared my throat, grabbing the towel I had been using up off the floor. "What're you doing in here?" I blurted out. "This is the men's room!"

Jack snorted. "So? What the fuck are _you _doing in here?"

"Cleaning," I said, indicating the towel in my hand, along with the bucket of soapy water and the damp floor. "Now what're you doing in here? The women's restroom is down the hall from here."

"Shepard's gossiping with the Cerberus cheerleader in there," she said, a look of intense dislike upon her face. "So I'm here. I'm just going to take a piss and get changed. Get back to your... cleaning, or whatever the hell you're doing."

I stared at her with widened eyes. In many ways this woman definitely had an... intimidating look about her. And yet for some reason I also felt as if I was dealing with a swarm of bees here; if you left the bees alone or didn't aggravate them too much, they would leave you alone for the most part.

"Uh..." I muttered, suddenly unsure what to do. I simply moved out of her way and grabbed my bucket.

Jack was wearing orange prison overalls, something I hadn't... been expecting. She carried pants and what I supposed was five or six leather belts in her hands. She wriggled out of her clothes and dumped the ones she must have scrounged up from somewhere on my nice, clean floor. The overalls were stained with red, orange, and blue blood. I looked away politely when I realized she wore no undergarments, like a _bra_.

She sat down on the toilet, naked as a jay-bird, and took a very long pee. I could feel my face heating up as I struggled to do something with my hands. The stream didn't stop for the longest time, and when it finally slowed to a trickle and ceased she held out her hand and said, "Toilet paper?"

My lips pressed into a thin line and I looked at her with widened eyes. I couldn't even imagine what my mother would say about this woman if she'd seen her. I quickly glanced around, but then I remembered that I had taken out the toilet paper when I started cleaning. I put it... out there somewhere. I didn't even remember where at the moment.

"Uh..." I swallowed. "I need to go get some. Wait here and I'll go get a roll, okay?" I didn't really wait for a response; I simply opened the door, got out, and closed it behind me. I did have more decency than SHE apparently did, after all; I wasn't going to leave the door open for the whole world to see her.

I looked around, trying to remember where the heck I left the toilet paper. Then I remembered; I put it behind the kitchen counter. So I walked over there, smiling innocently at anyone who happened to glance at me, and grabbed the two rolls of toilet paper.

I then walked back toward the men's restroom, still smiling. But as I approached the door to the men's room, I noticed that someone was coming. I glaced up to see none other than Zaeed approaching.

I flinched a little in spite of myself. He looked as though he wanted to go in.

He glanced at me, as if looking me over, then said simply, "Uh... you might wanna wait for a bit, girl. Can't you hold it in?"

What was with this ship? Was it considered okay to use whatever bathroom you felt like using at the moment or something? "Uh, I'm just the cleaning person," I said simply, and I shoved the toilet paper rolls at him. "Here," I said. "All I wanted to do was put those in there. So uh... have fun."

With that I turned on my heel, just as he opened the door to go in. Then I broke into a run, not wanting to be there in case chaos broke out before me. I just wanted to get somewhere safe... fast.

I ran as quickly as I could, my mind racing as I tried to quickly decide where to hide. As far as I was concerned, the two biggest bad-asses were now in the same bathroom, violating each other's space, and I just wanted to spend a few minutes behind a door or a bulkhead or something until I was sure they weren't going to blow a hole into the side of the ship.

I paused at the door to Miranda's office... then decided no way. So I turned away from it and sprinted in the other direction, moving straight down the hallway toward the door to the armory.

I went in through the door, and noticed that Garrus wasn't there. Well that suited me fine; I only wanted to hide anyway. I dove behind one of the crates in there and simply... stayed there, on the floor, listening to the "hum" of the ship and to my own breathing for the next few minutes.

Suddenly the door opened, and I cringed. Although I doubted that Jack or Zaeed would have any reason to... well, come in here. I stayed where I was for a moment as I heard footsteps approaching the terminal. Then I slowly peered out from behind it.

It was Garrus. It looked like he was doing something at the console. And I doubt he noticed me.

Very slowly I sat up, peering above the crate. "Hey," I said, smiling cheerfully as though nothing was going on. "What's up?"

Garrus glanced up, his mandibles tensing up as his body reacted to the sudden stress. "What are you doing in here?" he asked, staying a good ways away.

I moved out from behind the crate and sat on the edge of it. "Um... hiding."

"May I ask from whom _now_?" Garrus sounded like he was getting testy. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea.

I shook my head a little, standing up awkardly and moving just a little toward the door. "You don't want to know," I said. More specifically, I didn't want to talk about it. "Just tell me one thing... is it safe out there? I mean, you didn't hear any screaming or yelling, or anyone getting smashed against the wall or getting shot at while you were coming here... did you?"

He frowned... if turians could frown. "No... Maybe I better go check, though. What did you _do?"_

I blinked, then scowled. What made him think I did anything at all? "Uh, forget it." I shook my head, hoping he would just forget it. I was preparing to sprint... again.

"No, no, tell me," he said. I noticed he was wearing his pistil on his side. "Does this have anything to do with the crazy criminal Shepard just picked up?"

"Yeah kinda." I was staring at the door, but I stayed where I was. "I um..." I paused. "I got very nervous. Let's just leave it at that."

"What did you do to him?"

Now I glared at him. "First off, Jack is a _she,"_ I said. I was getting tired of him acting like I had done something terrible, like provoked someone or whatever. "Secondly, I didn't do anything. I was just doing my job and cleaning the men's restroom because Rupert told me to. Then Jack comes in saying she wants to use it to change her clothes. So she takes off her clothes and sits down on the toilet, then asks me for toilet paper.

"So," I went on in a huff-finding that it felt somewhat good to rant a little, "I go to get her some. I then saw Zaeed coming. He wanted to use the bathroom. So I simply gave him the toilet paper and ran here because I didn't want to be there in case hell broke loose."

I sucked in a deep breath to inhale more oxygen into my lungs, and waited for his reaction.

"Oh, dear," Garrus said, scratching his head. He turned around and locked the computer console. "I suppose I better go make sure they don't kill each other... stay out of trouble," he warned, and then he was gone.

Yeah, he could handle them if he wanted to. I would just stay here... and hide behind the crate some more.

And I did just that.

He came back about ten minutes later with the most bemused expression on his face. "Uh... you're... safe." He coughed and unlocked the console, then just stared at it for a few seconds before getting to work... or writing up a resignation email for Shepard.

I slowly moved out from behind the crate again. "You sure?" I asked, glancing around the room.

"Uh, yeah... she went downstairs wearing the weirdest outfit... I think all the males here are going to be very interested in her..."

"Um... yeah, I think I can imagine," I said with a nod. "Thanks, Garrus." I turned to go.

"Zaeed is taking a cold shower, so you might not want to... go in there."

We would never know exactly what happened in the bathrooms between Zaeed, Jack, and Garrus, but I had an inkling that it had to be something horrible to take Garrus by surprise like that. I felt my face heating up again.

"Yeah, okay," I said dully, and then I hurried out the door. Right at this moment, I didn't care about shirking my duties. I was going back to the room I shared with HK and Abby and listen to some music... or something. Just ANYTHING to try and unwind my nerves after this.

Abby wasn't in there, like I'd kind of expected she'd be. Neither was HK.

So I simply grabbed my CD player and plopped myself down onto my bed... hard. I put on the headphones and listened to "Telephone" by Lady Gaga at full blast, hoping it would sooth my nerves and make me forget about what just happened.

* * *

**(HK)**

"Hmm. Getting closer and closer to finishing counter measure for Collector seeker swarms. Thought I almost had it, but turned out to be countermeasure for bee stings. Ah well, progress is still coming along. Hopefully, Shepard will be pleased with the results." Mordin said, constantly walking around the lab.

I listened to him drone on and on, tuning out on occassion. I loved Mordin, but sometimes you couldn't understand half of what he was saying, especially with his confusing way of communicating.

However, he wouldn't be Mordin if he wasn't like that, would he?

I had come to see him simply because almost everyone else had been out in Purgatory, and I had no interest in spending too much time with the crew or Miranda. Shepard and Abby had just returned, but I hadn't gotten the chance to see either one of them yet.

Things had been...very interesting. Sarah had apparently become a janitor now, which was strange, but it fit her...Sarah had always done a good amount of housework, from what she told me. And she had such a hard time with the training, maybe she could work better as a crew member than a party member. And in Shepard's eyes, or Paragon Shepard's eyes, the crew was just as important as the party.

And _Jack_ was here. I liked Jack in the game, but it would be scary to be around her in real life. She was one of the...weirder party members. I felt comfortable around Jacob and even Garrus, after all the training, as well as Shepard. But the verdict was still out on Miranda, Zaeed, and now Jack.

I could hear some commotion in the briefing room, though. One of the voices sounded like Shepard's.

"You know, Mordin, this has been fun and all, but I think I'm going to go see what everyone else is up to in the next room," I said, smiling at him as I stood up from the chair I had been in.

Mordin nodded. "Alright, must continue work anyway."

I turned and left, going out into the small corridor, then taking a sharp left into the briefing room. Inside were Miranda, Shepard, Abby, and Jacob.

"Shepard, you are not authorized to just hand out Cerberus files!" Miranda yelled, irritated like she always got in the game. "Especially not to convicts!"

"It was the only way that she would join the team," Shepard argued calmly. "And she is under our watch. I doubt she can do much harm."

Miranda just shook her head, conceding to defeat. I had always wondered how she truly felt about being under Shepard's leadership all of a sudden. Sure, she had worked for two years so they could eventually be at this point, but still...a top Cerberus operative, then a day later under the command of someone that wasn't exactly Cerberus.

I looked at Abby, she looked...a bit roughed up. "Wow, what happened to you?" I asked.

"A heavy mech exploded in my face," she said a bit ruefully. "But it was fun." She grinned that Abby grin of hers, and Jacob pursed his lips in disapproval.

My eyes widened, though I wasn't shocked that she had enjoyed it. "Are you okay?"

"You really should get down to Chakwas." Shepard suggested, turning to look at the young girl.

She felt her head gingerly and winced. "Alright. And... give Jack the files!" She ducked out of the room, leaving me standing there wondering. She poked her head back around the corner. "Come on, HK!"

I shrugged at the three left in the room, then turned to follow Abby. We walked out of the briefing room, and headed towards the elevator. "So, I take it that you enjoyed Purgatory?"

"Uh... no." She sounded serious, too. "It was... gorey. Really gorey. And we didn't make all of the Paragon choices. We skipped Billy's cell..."

My jaw dropped. I was beginning to get concerned, and was suddenly alot more grateful that we were away from everyone else. "This is...this is alarming," I said, lowering my tone to a whisper as we boarded the elevator. "First Daniel, and now Billy...I am not sure if the Charm/Intimidate bars even exist anymore, but she's...not saying the right things."

That almost sounded wrong in itself; to say that someone wasn't saying the 'right' thing, but it was the only way to put it.

"I know," she said worriedly. "And the fighting... the fighting isn't what we've experianced before, even at Mordin's. It was crazy out there. Like a madhouse. We were just slaughtering everything. I killed a lot of humans. By the time we got to Jack I was just ready to get it the heck over with."

I nodded, actually agreeing with Abby on fighting for once. "Its just...this is all becoming alot more real. I wondered if it would from the beginning, but now I know it. Its not just a simple game anymore. Its just...I want Shepard to be able to say the right things in the conflicts. To say the right things in the loyalty quests...if not, it could be disasterous."

I shook my head at all of this as the elevator stopped, and we stepped out onto Deck 3.

"Exactly. That's what I'm worried about. I'm not gonna lose Tali or... other people. Totally not doing that. We can't. But if we tell Shep exactly what happens... wouldn't that screw everything up? And there is this thing that may or may not happen that I have no control or idea over. Before we got here... there was another DLC that was about to be released, called Overlord."

"I really have no clue...so far, it seems like all the downloadable content already exists in this. So anything in the future that is going to be released is likely already here...the question is on whether we end up actually doing any of that content, aside from Zaeed and Kasumi," I speculated. "By the way, when does she come into this?"

"Oh, Shep has the email," she said. "Probably the Hammerhead email, too. When we go to the Citadel, it will be to pick Kasumi up, I bet you. We'll probably do her mission while we're there, too." She stumbled a bit on her way to the MedBay and winced. "Okay, I think Chakwas should take a look at me. I didn't even feel whatever it was hit me."

I nodded. "Good idea...I'm assuming she'll want to examine you without any interference, so I can just stay out here," I said. "See you later?"

"Sure," she said. "I'm _starving_! We'll get dinner."

I nodded, as Abby walked into the MedBay. After the door shut, I took a deep breath and looked around. There were those two eating, or talking, at the table like usual. Rupert was at his station, but the one difference was that I could see Zaeed walking in.

"Your new assistant is bat-shit crazy," he commented.

I blinked.

_I don't want to know._

I walked away from them, deciding to not even listen to what was going on with Sarah now...but no one had screamed or blew their top yet, so I assumed it was nothing major.

However, I saw Miranda approaching. At first, I thought she was simply heading back to her office, but she was staring right at me. She had a hardened look on her face, but what else was new?

"You," she said. "My office. We need to chat."

"Ummm...okay then..." I replied slowly, raising an eyebrow while I turned to follow her. I wondered what the heck she could want.

We entered, and she took her place behind her desk, and gestured for me to take a seat in front of it. I did so, and felt like I was in the principal's office.

"Apparently, Shepard has decided that you will go on the next mission. She and Jacob both believe that you can handle it, and they wanted to give Abby a rest after all that happened on Purgatory. Since your other friend has taken up the local janitor role, you were the obvious choice." Miranda told me, folding her hands while she stared at me. "I will be going on this mission, as well, and I hope that you are up for it."

My heart dropped, and I wasn't sure what to say. I had done considerably well in shooting lessons...I had grown attached to that gun that Mordin gave me, and was using it well. I was able to beat Jacob at sparring. I had been trained well, but I still needed alot more training before I was an expert, and Korlus was far worse than what I had encountered on Omega.

"You handled yourself well enough on Omega, and that was before you got proper training," Miranda continued. "But every mission seems to get worse, and we are recruiting a krogan. This will be no piece of cake."

"Trust me, I know..." I said, trying to muster up some kind of meaningful sentence. "I-I...I'll try to do my best."

I had no clue what else to say. If Shepard wanted me to come, I would...technically, wasn't I under her command now, anyway? And I was not going to outright refuse it, either way...if Abby could handle Purgatory, I could handle this.

But that didn't stop me from being nervous. Maybe my nerves would be a bit more controlled than they were on Omega.

Oh, and of course, there were a bunch of mad krogans on Korlus, courtesy of Okeer and Jedore. Krogans had just become my favorite enemy on Omega.

This time, though, I would have a gun, and proper hand to hand skills.

Miranda was silent for a moment, and I wasn't sure what she was thinking. After a moment, she exhaled a large breath, and stood up. "You know, I am well aware of my reputation around here. I also know that you three probably hate me more than anyone, because of how I first reacted to your...presence. I still do not have a complete opinion on you, but I want you to know that, especially with all the training I oversaw, I have adjusted to you...and I am not doing this just to lecture you. I want you to realize how high the stakes are."

I was actually impressed. The only one you ever saw Miranda open up to was Shepard...even if this wasn't exactly opening up. "I don't think any of us hate you...and we know just as well as anyone else how high the stakes are, with all the...info that we have, and I totally understand what you are doing." I told her.

"Humanity is at risk, and we all have to be at our be-" she began.

"The entire galaxy is at risk." I corrected. For some reason, I had to interject that there. I always got tired of them preaching on and on about humanity in the game.

Miranda shot me a look. "I don't see asari and turian colonies being abducted."

"True, and I understand that humans are the ones being hit hard right now...but we all know that the Reapers are behind this. They aren't out to just get rid of humans, they are out to get rid of all organics. This is much bigger than Cerberus's ideals." I explained, though right after the words escaped my mouth, I realized that I should have termed the last part better.

"Cerberus's ideals?" Miranda repeated, looking shocked and frusterated. She wasn't raising her voice at all, but I could tell that what I had said got to her. "Cerberus is the only thing trying to properly protect humanity. Humans need something to rely on, and the Alliance doesn't cut it."

"But Cerberus takes it to the extreme. Really, Miranda, I like you...but I can't really agree with Cerberus. I'm of course going to work with them...and the Illusive Man probably has good intentions, but don't you think that sometimes the group gets a little...erm, insane?"

Miranda still looked surprised. "You truly are an interesting group," she commented. "I don't think I've ever heard a human talk like this. Most typically complain about humans and the treatment they are given...yet you endorse it?"

"The humans got a Spectre and Council seat long before the volus and elcor did, that's for sure." I told her, smiling slightly.

I was surprised that I was doing this, or part of me was...but I had never been exempt from having little debates like this in real life. It was never anything violent, but when I had a strong opinion like this, I didn't hold it back for too long.

Miranda scoffed. "How in the hell could a volus Spectre even exist? Or an elcor one? They are not able, HK...humans are. It took far too long for a human Spectre to exist, much less a Council member."

I shrugged. "You do have a point, but still...the only things humans are the victims of right now are colony abductions. And that is why we are all here, on the same ship: To stop it. So lets not get too deep into discussing something that was rectified two years ago, if you want to call it that."

"That is something we can agree on. Just be ready...even you can acknowledge that having a krogan on the team will be risky." Miranda warned. "Now, I have to get back to work."

I got up and began to leave...indeed, having a krogan on the team would be risky, she was right there. Especially when it wasn't even the krogan they expected to get.

And then it hit me.

I stopped immediately once out of Miranda's office.

"Dangit, dangit, dangit..." I muttered, deciding to continue walking once the initial shock wore off. I had to go to our own quarters to think about this.

I was going with Shepard to get Okeer...but Okeer was going to die, and I knew it. No one else did, but I did...and conflicting thoughts began to grow in my head.

I could tell Shepard all about what would occur on Korlus, about how Jedore would end up killing Okeer through toxic fumes...and we could somehow save him. But wouldn't that dramatically alter everything? Grunt would still be along, but with that nut of a scientist, he would likely be very different. And who knew what else Okeer could possibly do.

On the other hand, I could just stay silent...let Okeer die, and everything would continue on like normal. In the end, it was alot more safer option...but I'd be sending someone to his death. And then, it would probably come into question on why we let him die in the first place, because everyone knew about our abilities by now.

I approached our quarters, but I stopped when I saw Sarah peacefully listening to music. She probably didn't want to be disturbed right now, especially after whatever happened with Zaeed.

I sighed, turning back around. I had to discuss this with somebody. I just had to.

As much as I hated to disturb her after all that she had gone through on Purgatory, I felt like I needed to talk to Abby about it...she sometimes could offer words of wisdom on these type of things. So could Sarah, but she had been a bit strange lately.

I headed for the MedBay.

Once inside, I saw Chakwas sitting down at her desk...Abby was on one of the beds. It looked like Chakwas had just finished up with her.

"Ah, Dr. Chakwas, hello...I am just here to discuss something with Abby."

Chakwas nodded. "Alright...she must stay in bed, for now though. She has a concussion...but I will leave you two alone. I probably should go see if anyone else from the mission has injuries, as well."

Chakwas left, and I approached Abby. "Hey, uh, I really hate to bother you but...I need to talk to somebody." I said, my alarm present in my voice.

Her face was completely scrubbed clean of the blood, though a nasty-looking gash stretched from her eyebrow to the center of her hairline. Orange medi-gel sealed the wound, and it looked like Chakwas has just finished stitching the skin together. A raised brown bump on her right temple made her look like she'd just walked out of a car accident. Her brows furrowed when she saw me, and she nodded, concerned. "What's up?"

Her wounds nearly made me shudder, but I was just glad that she was alive at this point. "Miranda told me that Shepard is taking me on the next mission. I'm going to have to fight through Korlus," I explained, gulping. "But...thats not what is bothering me. Its, uh, Okeer. He dies in the game...we all know that. But now...I know he's going to die. All three of us do, and I...I am conflicted on the entire thing."

"Shh," she said sharply, her eyes flickering over to EDI's terminal. She pursed her lips and glanced out the observation window at the crowd of people heading for dinner. "It's... a sacrifice we're gonna have to make. If we go against a fact, save somebody when they're supposed to die, can you see how different that would make things? Remember what Wrex said: Okeer is frowned upon in all krogan cultures, and what he was doing was morally wrong. If we save him? Who knows what will happen?

"I don't think-look, I'm just as conflicted about it as you are. I don't want to let somebody die. But..." She just shook her head. "Sorry, that's the best I can do."

I nodded. She had valid points. "I know...and its not even anything personal, because we'll see him for all of five minutes...and I think he's too weird to even have on the ship. Its just the idea of letting someone, anyone die...its disturbing. But you are right...it may be disasterous if we actually saved him. It's just going to be hard to walk out of that room, knowing that his life is about to end. But at least he'll get his wish...in a weird way. Grunt will grow and prosper."

"Here we go with the Vulcan metaphors," she sighed, then cracked a smile for my benefit. "Look, I'm not saying... okay, maybe I am saying it. Okeer will live through Grunt. We're just going to have to... accept it, somehow."

I had no clue about anything Vulcan or Star Trek-related...maybe Sarah should have been involved in the conversation, so I didn't know about the metaphors.

Then, suddenly, Abby's words a minute or so ago made me think of something else.

"If we're going with sci-fi stuff," I said, surprised that I actually came up with this. "Maybe I've...figured out a way to put it. It vaguely resembles Sacrifice, by Karen Traviss, remember? Mara had to die to push her kid in the right direction, or the results could have been horrible...that's basically what happens here."

Abby loved Karen Traviss to death. The similarities weren't lost on her. "Huge difference, though," she stated. "Mara's the awesome one. Okeer creates dumb krogan clones for insane reasons. Okeer is like that evil scientist in the corner nobody likes talking about."

I nodded. It was definitely true. "Its not that I mind letting Okeer personally die...I don't care for him. We barely know him, and all thats been said and witnessed was that he was insane. Again, its just letting anyone die...but it may be necessary. In fact, it probably _is _necessary."

"It's not like if he lives we can say '_Oh, by the way, we're just going to drop you off at a random planet and take Grunt with us. Kay-kay, bye!' _Like it or not, it's one of those unpleasant things we're going to have to do." She frowned.

I nodded. "You're...you're right. There's no way around it." I acknowledged, before letting out a sigh. "This seems to get more and more complicated everyday."

"Yeah," she agreed, probing her head absently. "And then that big choice at the end... will she side with You-Know-Who, or will she destroy it? And who will live?"

I shuddered. "I would like everyone to live...and I hope she will." I said, disgusted at the thought of her keeping the Collector station. "That would be horrible...heck, I just had an...erm, mini-argument with Miranda about Cerberus."

"I don't know..." she said, shifting around uncomfortable. "I would have kept it, but now I'm not so sure. What if keeping it means we beat them?"

"It may mean beating them...and that would be good, but we'll be facing the exact same problem after they are all taken care of," I pointed out, lowering my voice to a whisper. "You-Know-Who has bigger ideas than to just use it to stop the Reapers...he'll use his own for dominance. Its just going to create another problem."

"Yeah, yeah," Abby muttered. "True... It's just like that thing we talked about before all of this happened. What if all the P choices screw us all up? Seriously. That would be horrible."

"I really don't know...I guess now, we're going to actually get to find out." I said, looking around. "At least we seem to have some friends on here aside from each other...Jacob, for one. Maybe Garrus and even Shepard...I think relations with them are improving every mission."

"And... maybe Zaeed. I don't know." Abby shrugged. "We kind of took down a heavy mech together... and I saved his butt. Definitely Jacob, though. He's an awesome guy. Miranda will come around eventually. I _think _she likes us. Kind of. But she doesn't realize it yet."

I nodded. "She was...nice to me, even when we had that small disagreement. Or, maybe nice isn't the word...peaceful is a better way to put it. She actually took the time to explain that she just wanted everyone to survive and wasn't trying to lecture me, and that she had definitely come around more than when we first arrived. I think its going to take time with her...Mordin's also been pretty nice, too, but he's _really_ focused on his work." I said.

I thought about the newest addition to the crew, and cracked a smile. "Think any of us are going to be friends with Jack?"

"Oooh I am," Abby said confidently. "I want to learn more swearwords."

"You know..." I started, amazed at her comment. "You and Sarah never cease to impress me. Neither of you...if its not Sarah biting people's fingers off, its you wanting to hang around with the local nude cusser."

Abby laughed. "You know me, I love diversity among my friends."

I nodded. "And there certainly is diversity here, thats for sure." I commented. "Uh, actually, speaking of which...any idea on what Sarah has been up to _now_?"

"No clue," she said, shrugging. "I actually would have come to the MedBay sooner, but Jack needs those files and Shepard seemed to be meeting some resistance. I needed to nudge things along a bit. Why? You hear anything?"

It was then that it hit me that because of the situation with Shepard and Jack, Abby may not even know of Sarah's new role on the ship. "Well, first of all...she's sort of become an...assistant to Rupert. Apparently, because of her problems with fighting and how she excells at things that some of the ship crew do around here, she's become a janitor of sorts...and before I spoke to Miranda, I heard Zaeed telling Rupert..."

I paused, recalling the exact words. "To put it nicely, he called her very weird."

Abby blinked. "Well, that pretty much sums her up," she agreed. "She probably told Zaeed that his accent was cute or something."

I nearly laughed. "I doubt it...Sarah's not the type, and she likes Garrus, anyway." I said.

"Hey, you never know," Abby said, but I could tell she was joking now. "His accent is pretty hot."

I snorted. "Of course it is, Abby, of course it is," I remarked sarcastically.

"Austrailian," she said wistfully. "He's WAY too old, but still..." She elbowed me. "Time for you to laugh. You shouldn't be this worried. You'll get premature grey hairs, and then I'll have to waste my money buying you hair color, and I have a Gears of War 3 fund, mister."

I rolled my eyes. "Are you sure you'll even get GoW 3? Technically, it doesn't even exist in this universe."

She raised an eyebrow. "Never doubt the Abby Intelligence Network," she said mysteriously.

"Probably true," I acknowledged, then proceeded to stand. "Well..I suppose I should go talk to Shepard or someone about this upcoming mission, and you need your rest anyway...wish me luck."

"Bye, strange one."

With that, I turned and made my exit.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I'd finally gotten my nerves settled down enough so that I could put aside the CD player and step out of the quarters. I was aware that HK had been there earlier, and he'd simply left, apparently having chosen not to disturb me. I also took that to be a good sign. Abby was probably fine; if she wasn't, he would have come forward and told me.

But now I had a completely different problem; I had a headache. It was probably because I had spent so much time listening to music on full blast.

Or maybe it was because I had inhaled too much of the cleaning chemicals I was using. I frowned slightly. Had it been a bad idea to mix them together? I'd heard that that could cause problems sometimes.

Well, if I was going to get anything done, I knew I couldn't go around all day with a headache. The medical base was closest, but... um, I didn't want to go through THAT area right now. I wanted to avoid that general area of the ship for at least a little longer, considering what happened there.

So instead I rode the elevator up to the bridge level and then quietly slipped into Mordin's lab. There was something I had been dying to ask him anyway, and this would be the perfect opportunity.

I quietly approached the lab table, then I cleared my throat. "Mordin?" I said, getting his attention.

Mordin looked up at me. "Ah, Sarah. Glad to see you are still here, and heard about your new duty coming through. Excellent. Very busy, working on countermeasure. Need something?"

"Yeah," I said with a nod, taking a step closer to the lab desk. "Um... got anything for a headache? I've got a bad one." I winced. Of course, the bruise on my temple was still a bit tender, but this had nothing to do with that.

Mordin scratched his chin. "Hmm, do have some medicine for it...simple, non-addictive painkillers. Still must take them carefully, though. What happened?" he asked.

"Well," I said slowly, "it's either because I was listening to music full-blast on my bed for at least an hour, or because I breathed in something I shouldn't have." I sure hoped it was the music.

"Loud music is not good for the head. Hmm, interesting..I was not aware that Cerberus would allow fumes on a ship that would hurt humans. But, I still have medicine." Mordin said, leaning down and taking out a small bottle full of headache medicine.

"Well if it was fumes, it was probably my fault," I said with an impassive shrug. "I mixed some cleaning ingredients together in a bucket. I don't know what they were, I just grabbed them after Rupurt showed them to me and I poured them both into the bucket."

"Very dangerous to do that, could prove disasterous. But luckily, cleaning ingredients are nothing to be too worried about. Now here, swallow this pill with a cup of water." Mordin said, giving me one small pill.

"Thanks," I muttered. I chose to ignore the second half of his directions, simply popping it in my mouth and swallowing, hard. I felt it stick a little on the way down my throat, but I swallowed a couple more times, forcing it down. I stroked my throat warily afterwards.

Mordin raised an eyebrow. "Would be wise to drink water, like I instructed, next time. But glad that you got it down." he said.

"Yeah," I muttered. I inhaled and then swallowed again, just to make absolutely sure it wasn't stuck anywhere down there. Then, satisfied, I looked at him again. "Thanks," I said. I then studied him thoughtfully-specifically, his head-trying to figure out how to ask my question.

Mordin seemed to go back to whatever he was working on, but after several seconds, he looked back at me. "Need something else?"

"Well, I was kind of curious about something, if you don't mind me asking," I finally said, still looking at the right side of his head intently.

"Do not mind at all." Mordin said.

"How did you..." I paused, trying to figure out the best way to phrase it. I didn't need to offend or weird out anyone _else_ on this ship, after all. "I mean, how did..." I raised my hand, almost pointing at his head, but stopped myself. "What happened to..." I trailed off, squinting in frustration.

Mordin blinked.

I was doing it again, wasn't I?

"What happened to your head?" I finally blurted out, bluntly.

"What happened to my head?" Mordin asked, looking very confused.

I scowled, irritated. "You know, one of your... uh... head-things is shorter than the other," I said, a tad bit snippily. The medicine hadn't kicked in yet, but I also had a habit of getting annoyed with people when they didn't get what I was saying when I felt it was totally obvious.

"Ah, personal matter. Do not wish to discuss it. No offense." Mordin simply answered.

"Oh, okay," I said with a little nod. I felt a little bad for snapping now. I shouldn't be pressing people to talk about something they didn't want to talk about, after all. "Sorry," I added quickly. "Didn't mean to pry."

"Oh no, not prying. Simple curiosity. Part of human nature." Mordin said, smiling lightly at me.

I returned his smile with a grin in spite of himself. Despite his... oddness, Mordin really did seem like an understanding person. Probably why we all loved him so much. "So... do you like orange juice?" I asked randomly.

"Hmm, on occassion. Why do you ask?" Mordin inquired back.

"I love orange juice," I murmured, thinking about that sweet, tangy taste it always left on my tongue when I drank it. "I used to drink it sometimes back home. I guess I wish we had some onboard." I snorted a little. "I bet it's better than ryncol, at least," I muttered as a joke.

"And far less harmful. Made more for humans than anyone else." Mordin said, nodding slightly. He paused for a moment, then spoke again. "Actually, Sarah, need to say something."

I blinked. "Um, what?" I asked, bracing myself. I had no idea what he was going to say.

Mordin moved from behind the table. "Aware that you come by often since I have joined...and also aware that rumor says that you like an alien onboard. Have had other species attracted to me before. Awkward. Not interested."

I simply stared at him for a moment with my jaw hanging down as far as it would go. I turned away from him for a moment, giving myself a chance to get over my shock. That was the LAST thing I'd expected him to say.

Then, with my back facing him... I pressed my hand over my face, but it couldn't quite keep in the nervous laughter. Something like the cross-between of a snicker and a chuckle escaped through my hand.

"Not sure what comedy comes from this...unless perhaps humans react differently to rejection than I originally studied." Mordin commented.

Maybe it was because the medicine was starting to kick in a bit, or because I needed some sort of release after these past few days. There have been times when I would simply crack up over the stupidest things if I was under enough stress and if something struck me funny. So, there it happened. I totally cracked up.

I started laughing to the point where I was almost wheezing in and out and I had to move over to the nearby crate to sit down. Once I was there I just continued to guffaw, clutching one hand against my chest.

Mordin continued to look at me, utterly baffled. "Hmm..perhaps there is more than I thought. Should bring mental competance into question as well."

I finally managed to stop laughing enough to look at him with a fairly straight face. However, one look at his face... and I started cracking up all over again. Only now my laughing sounded strained and breathless, and I was practically panting.

Mordin leaned down, looking like he was examining me. "Very strange. Are you alright?" he asked.

I turned away from him and took several slow, deep breaths. Then I stared down at the floor rather than at him, so I wouldn't risk setting myself off into another fit of laughter. I felt like I had pretty much laughed myself out, though. "I guess," I finally breathed. "Don't mind me, I've been known to... have short bursts of insanity sometimes," I grinned.

"Hmm. Odd trait...may have to study it more. I hope I have not upset you," he said, looking at me concernedly.

"Actually," I said, breathing more easily now, "I need to tell you something." I took a chance and looked at him. So far so good. No more fits of laughter coming. "It's not you," I said simply. "I mean, I like you, you're a great person and you're fun to be around, but... uh, it's someone else."

Mordin's eyes sagged slightly, but it was most likely in relief. "Ah, not interested? Very good...making me feel more at ease. Happy to be friends." he said as he stood. "However, there is only one other alien on this ship..."

My lungs were still trying to replenish my body's oxygen supply after that huge fit of laughter I'd endured. I sucked in another breath and released it as a heavy sigh. Great, not Mordin knew my secret. Although it was probably only a matter of time before he figured it out or heard about it anyway. And for some reason... I felt better about letting him in on it myself if he really had to know, or was about to figure it out anyway. Less chance of EDI or Joker being able to use that as blackmail, if it was already pretty much out, right?

Besides... Garrus knew. So it wasn't like this was really earth-shattering news.

"Yeah... I like Garrus," I murmured with a nod. Then I winced. Was Mordin going to give me the same sex talk he'd given Shepard in the game?

"Hmmm...in that case, must warn you. Medical matters." Mordin said, confirming my fear.

_Uh oh. _I turned my head away just enough so he wouldn't see my grimance.

"Sexual activity normal stress release for humans and turians. Still recommend caution. Warn of chafing." Mordin said, still controlled and calm as he talked about this openly.

"Yeah I know," I muttered. "And any ingestion leads to an allergic reaction, right?"

Mordin smiled. "Done your research. Excellent. Most species do not bother to examine the consequences of relationships like this. Still can give you booklet, though...and you should come see me afterwards."

I coughed a little, yet somehow I still managed to smile. "Thanks," I said. "But... I really don't think that's going to happen," I said with a dismissive wave of my hand. Since when did I feel so calm about anything, especially a sex talk? All that time around the msn gang must have REALLY rubbed off on me. Or maybe I was just too exhausted to care. "I... don't think I've made a very good impression on him..." I shook my head.

"Oh, not in relationship? Hm, perhaps for the best. I apologize for getting ahead of myself." Mordin said, turning to head back to his work table.

I opened my mouth and closed it again. I was considering asking him something, but... I really wasn't sure if it would be appropriate at this point. I pursed my lips as I thought about it.

"Need to say more?" Mordin wondered.

"Well..." I scratched the back of my neck sheepishly. "I was wondering..." I winced. Oh gosh, was I really thinking about asking this?

"Please, say." Mordin encouraged politely.

I made myself spit it out. "I was wondering if I could... see that... booklet, anyway." There, I said it.

"Hmm...interesting. Despite not actually having contact with other species, there is no harm in more education for future reference." Mordin said, being so open as to pulling the booklet out from another part of the lab, then extending it to me. "Here you go."

My eyes widened a little, then I reached over to slowly take it. "Thanks," I murmured, and I activated the datapad in my hands. I sat back a bit on the edge of the crate and began to glance it over.

After a couple of minutes my eyes went even wider than ever and I pressed my free hand over my mouth. My eyes darted across the tiny screen, taking in the words and... um, very graphic images. "So that's how they... do it," I muttered under my breath.

"Indeed," Mordin said as he got back to work.

"Wow," I said, shaking my head as I stared at the datapad a moment longer. Then I shut it off and stuffed it down my shirt-my pockets weren't big enough to hide it. "Don't say a word of this to Abby or HK," I muttered. "Please."

Mordin smiled again. "Do not worry, strictly between us in confidence. Oh, and EDI and Joker, who may have heard." he said.

I actually smacked my hand against my forehead. "If I don't die of embarrassment or stress before this is all over, it's gonna be a miracle," I growled.

"Ah, do not worry. Many embarrassing moments in life. However, we must overcome them and forge on." Mordin told me.

"Yeah, I guess," I muttered. It wasn't always that easy, though. "Hey, I have another question," I then said, looking toward him intently.

"Yes?" Mordin asked.

"Um..." I shrugged sheepishly, but made myself continue. This was Mordin I was talking to, after all. To him, I might as well have been discussing the weather, no matter what the subject was. "Well, I really don't think it's gonna work out with... that turian," I began. I knew that he knew who I meant. "But... is it possible that... another turian out there somewhere might be... interested in a human?"

I couldn't believe I was asking this. But... surely it was okay to satisfy my curiosity, at least.

Mordin nodded. "Very possible. Despite dangers, interspecies relationships very common. See them everywhere. Never rule it out." he replied.

"I wonder what it might be like to hook up with Sidonis..."

...Did I really, REALLY say that outloud?

Mordin shrugged. "Just take proper precautions."

"Yeah," I muttered absent-mindedly, not really hearing him. I was staring dreamily off into space, pondering the idea.

Then, realizing I must have looked like a spaced out dope, I shook myself a little and stood up. "Thanks Mordin," I said, giving him a sloppy salute, and I walked toward the door.

Now all I would have to do is figure out where to hide this datapad so that Abby and HK would never find out about it. I guess I could just keep it stuffed in my shirt for now.

"Goodbye, Sarah. Glad to clear the air. Now, must get back to work." Mordin said as I left.

* * *

**(HK)**

I had actually decided to go back to our quarters before talking too much to Shepard...there wasn't much to talk about, anyway. We both knew the mission, and I had been trained as well as I could. And I wanted to get some final rest in before this all went down.

Though I wasn't aware of when we'd get to Korlus, either.

Sarah was also missing, and I was direly hoping that she hadn't gotten into anymore trouble.

I sighed as I laid on my bed. This was all getting so...insane.

Just then, she entered. I looked up at her. "Hey there."

Sarah started a little as she walked in, apparently not expecting to see me. "Hiya," she said as she crossed the room to sit on her own bed. She then glanced down at her shirt and turned her back toward me, a bit stiffly. "Where's Abby?" she asked.

"She's in the MedBay...as you probably know, she got Jack, but she got a concussion and took some bad hits. She has to stay in there for awhile." I told her. "I get to go on the next mission."

"Oh really?" she said, turning to look at me. "How do you feel about that?"

"Nervous," I replied, very honestly. I felt I could still be very open with both Abby and Sarah. "Not only about the mission, but about Okeer...I'm sending him to his death. I spoke to Abby about it, and we agreed that it was necessary, but I still feel a bit bad about it."

Her eyes darted downward and she looked thought, and perhaps a little distracted. "Yeah... not sure what to say there. From what I remember of the game, they didn't exactly give you any choices there. But here... things are different." She shrugged a little and leaned back a bit on her bed. "Well, since I'm just a lowly janitor now," she smirked, "I guess it's up to you guys for the most part."

I smiled. "Nah, a janitor is just as important as anyone else...how is that going, by the way?" I asked.

"Ummm..." She sighed, shifting her position so that she lay flat on her back on her bed. From her position, she could still look at me though. "At first it was going great," she said slowly. Then she narrowed her eyes. "But... well..." She waved a dismissive hand. "Nevermind."

_This must be about what I heard earlier. Alright, I'll bite. May regret it but I will._

"I didn't bother to learn the details, but I know it has something to do with Zaeed," I told her. "What happened?"

Her eyes went skyward, as if she was going to roll them but stopped. "Yeah, him... and Jack..." She sighed. "And Garrus..." She winced.

"Oh dear," I blurted, knewing that this meant trouble. "What happened?"

She hesitated a moment. She was either gathering her thoughts or trying to decide whether or not she wanted to tell.

Finally, she launched into the story. She also kept glancing toward the door every so often as she told it, as though worried someone might walk in in the middle of it.

"...So then," she said, concluding her tale, "after I gave Zaeed the toilet paper I told him to 'have fun' and I ran for it. Because I had no idea what was going to happen when he went in there. So I went into the armory to hide, and I went behind a crate, and I ended up having to tell Garrus what happened. And..." She put a hand over her eyes. "I'm pretty sure I've thoroughly convinced him I'm nuts, or a weirdo. But at least Mordin doesn't think I'm weird... I don't think, anyway."

"Oh...my Lord..." I said, blinking. I wasn't sure whether to find that story funny or just gross. However, I couldn't hold back a chuckle. "I mean, just wow...I don't know what to say...except I can't believe Jack is so weird as to randomly use the men's restroom."

I laughed again. "Its just...of all the people to be involved in this...the two rough ones and your favorite...person." I commented, shaking my head.

However, then I noticed her last comment. "Wait just a minute, how do you know that about Mordin?"

"Uh..." She moved and in a swift, abrupt motion, she sat up on the bed. "Well..." She swung her legs over the edge of the bed and stood, as though getting too restless to stay in one place. "Let's just say..."

A clattering sound cut her off. She glanced down as she realized a datapad had slipped out from under her shirt. She gasped softly and snatched it up off the floor, tossed it on her bed and threw her pillow on top of it.

I looked at the datapad, wondering what in the world she was doing with a datapad, unless it was like...cleaning schedules or something. And what was going on with Mordin?

"Lets just say...?" I said, pushing for her to continue.

She sat down on her bed... putting herself between me and the datapad. At least it seemed like that. "Well," she said with a shrug, apparently deciding to continue, "I was in here for a while, listening to music. Then I started to get a bad headache, so I went to Mordin for some painkillers.

"Then," she went on, "uh... well... I asked him about his head. You know, why one of his head things is shorter than the other." She gestured at her head for emphasis. "Then I started making small talk and... he thought I liked him, because he'd heard a rumor that I liked an alien onboard." She rolled her eyes.

My eyes went wide...so Sarah got the talk that Shepard would get if she didn't romance anyone? I was tempted to burst out laughing, but didn't, as it probably irritated her and I was not sure how funny this truly was. "Ummm...what did you tell him?" I queried.

She was silent for a moment, apparently trying to decide what to say. Then she shrugged. "At first... I just cracked up. Then I told him that I wasn't interested in him. Next, he figured out that I liked Garrus, just like that, so... he started to give me advice."

My eyes went wider. "Oh no, you got the alien talk, too?" I asked.

Then, I realized what the datapad was. "Oh Lord."

She glared at me. "What?" she asked, as though guessing what I just deduced.

"The datapad..." I said slowly.

For a moment she continued to look at me with a scowl. Then her expression softened, replaced with a more... mischievous look. She turned away from me a for a moment, snatching up the datapad and pressing a few keys on it.

"So basically, Mordin gave you sex advice...and then you took a datapad that further expanded on it." I said outloud. "And why do you look like you like it?"

Quite suddenly, she hopped off of the edge of her bed and came straight toward me, shoving the datapad in my face. It had a... graphic image on it. "What do you think of this?" she asked impishly.

"EXCUSE ME? EW!" I shouted, throwing the datapad out of my face and onto the floor. "Um, I am sorry, but I do not need to see graphic images courtesy of Mordin! I don't need to see graphic images at all, thank you very much! What in the world prompted you to do that?"

She snatched the datapad up off the floor, giggling a little. "Sorry," she muttered. "I can't exactly go on the internet and blow off steam or do anything silly now, can I?"

"That doesn't mean that you can go shoving graphic imagery in the face of anyone, much less a minor!" I said, still astonished at her actions. "I mean, Sarah, what is going on with you?"

She shook her head a little. She was still smiling a little, but her expression had sobered a bit. "Come on, it's no worse than some of the stuff I've shown you or Abby on DA," she said as she returned to her bed. "Well, maybe a BIT worse," she consented as she sat down on the edge of her bunk. "But..." she shrugged. "I dunno. I've had a rough few days. Gotta blow off steam somehow." She then laid back on her bed, setting the datapad beside her, apparently wanting to leave it at that.

I took a very deep breath, trying to collect myself. We all needed to relax right now, not start some kind of event. "I...I understand that its been hard for everyone. And I know that having Mordin so bluntly bring all this stuff up to you is no picnic, but...wow. Just...try not to do this kind of stuff to everyone." I said.

She actually laughed. "Course I wouldn't," she said in sort of a "duh" tone. Then she sighed. "Sorry. It's just... I always do goofy things around you guys on msn. And with my DA pals. But..." She frowned a little. "I guess it's a bit... different when you're face-to-face with a person." She looked thoughtful, even a little... ticked at the notion she'd just realized.

I nodded. "It is different, indeed...you have a valid point. But I've never seen you even do that online...or do half of this stuff online, not that you even could. But again...these are very different circumstances, so I can get it." I said.

Her face changed expression a bit. She still looked like she was thinking, and was still a bit ticked... if anything, her face showed that she was just thinking more deeply, and feeling a bit more ticked. Or something. "Tell me about it," she finally muttered, and said nothing more.

I sighed. Perhaps it was best not to speak with her about this anymore...if I were her, I would not even be looking at that datapad or have it in the first place, but it was her choice. Maybe reading about this stuff helped take her mind off of things...I didn't know.

"Well, alright then." I simply said.

"Mmm-hmm." She gazed up toward the ceiling and didn't utter another sound.

With that, I decided maybe it would be best to leave and get on with talking to whoever about the next mission...I needed it, and Sarah probably needed some time to herself and...sort all of this out herself.

I stood, and made my exit.

"Hey," she said as I moved out the door. "Good luck out there." She then resumed staring at the celing.

I looked back at her, and smiled. "Thank you. It means alot." I said genuinely. I wasn't going just yet, heck it could be days before we even got there, but that still meant something to me.

She smiled a little. "Let's just hope I don't cause anything else crazy-like to happen while you're out there," she commented. "Just look at all that's happened so far." She passed her hand through the air, as though gesturing at an invisable list. "I swear I've become a jinx in this place, instead of just an internet jinx."

I snorted. "You make a point...I guess we'll just have to see. Lets hope nothing gets too out of hand," I said, smirking slightly.

"Yep," she muttered, in an almost Jack-like way. She made a noise somewhere between a little chuckle and a grunt. "One other thing happened in Mordin's office too," she muttered. "But..." She closed her eyes briefly, waving her hand through the air as though trying to erase her words. "Nevermind. You've got enough to worry about with this mission. Forget I said anything."

"I have plenty of time, really," I said, walking back into the room. "What happened?"

"Hmm." She got an odd look on her face, as though she wanted to spill it, yet was holding back at the same time. "Well, I told Mordin I knew that, um... it would never work out between me and Garrus." She made a small shrugging motion. "I'm sure he probably thinks I'm a fruitcake by now anyway... him and at least half the crew," she muttered.

I tilted my head slightly. "Not sure about that exactly...but not sure if it would work out anyway...I mean none of us know how Garrus feels, or how anyone feels for that matter...I can't remember if we even decided on who Shepard herself would romance," I said, lowering my tone in the latter part of the sentence so EDI wouldn't catch wind of it. "People do probably think you are odd, but I think some still think you are alright...I mean, look at everyone else on this crew. We have Mordin, the open and strange scientist. Zaeed, the rough merc...Miranda, the uptight woman...and now Jack, who just takes the cake. And Abby and I are probably still regarded as weird by the bulk of the crew, too."

"Hmm," she said thoughtfully, her expression perking up a bit. "I see what you mean. In other words... we fit in just fine." She chuckled a little.

I chuckled myself. "Yes...really, we know we seem so weird to the rest of the crew. But as the party gets bigger, who won't? This ship is going to be made of weirdos."


	13. Grunt

**(HK)**

_I wasn't sure what was going on._

_We were walking along somewhere...the three of us: Abby, Sarah, myself. It looked like the Citadel..._

_"We can't stay on the Normandy. Its too dangerous." I commented._

_Then suddenly, the setting changed. I could see the Normandy crew...but we weren't there. They were fighting through the Collector base._

_Tali got killed at the door._

_Kelly was liquified._

_Garrus just got taken by the seeker swarms._

_"Tell them...I held the line..." Mordin coughed, dying._

_Shepard defeated the human Reaper...it erupted in flames as it fell. Everything was set...but both Grunt and Miranda were dead._

_"Status update, Joker!" Shepard snapped._

_"No survivors, Commander, none...I think none of them made it."_

_All of the party's bodies, lying there..._

_Shepard couldn't hold on. Joker was trying as hard as he could, shooting at Collectors as fast as humanly possible...but Shepard finally went plummeting down._

_"You have failed." a deep voice said, the words echoing._

* * *

"Wake up, HK, wake up!" a voice hissed.

At first, I thought I was still in that strange...reality, or whatever it was, but within seconds I learned that was not the case. My eyes slowly opened to see Miranda hovering over me, looking annoyed.

Everything was blurry, but from what I could tell, both Sarah and Abby were still sound asleep.

"We're going to be to Korlus soon...we need to get up before everyone else, and start preparing. I hope you don't plan on being that difficult to awaken in the future...you were just lying there, silent and still. Too much longer and I would have thought you died." she said, rolling her eyes as she headed for the exit.

"Uh, yes...sometimes I can be a pretty deep sleeper." I said, jumping up as fast as I could, even if I still wasn't fully awake.

But what was _that_ all about?

That strange...dream, or nightmare. It was basically a vision of what would happen if Shepard didn't do a single thing right in the future, and the suicide mission really did turn into a massive bloodshed journey.

Except for the part about Sarah, Abby, and I being on the Citadel...and me making some comment about the Normandy being too dangerous? What the heck?

It may just have been a passing dream, with all that had gone around about Sarah contemplating just taking her exit due to all the stress, up until she got the cleaning job.

But at the same time, it was still interesting...in the dream, it didn't seem like we were at the Collector base with everyone else. It was just the normal people you saw in the game...though, it could just be because thats how I had known it for so long before actually entering the Mass Effect universe.

And, my dreams did that sometimes...I would be in them, but then I would vanish, and yet the dream would go on...almost like I was watching a movie unfold, only it was more real.

And then, most confusing of all, there was that last line. Who was _that_? The only time I heard that in the actual game was when Harbinger released the Collector General after Shepard blew up the base...but this was a different voice. Deep and low-toned, but still different.

Maybe it was just the stress, especially with what I would be facing today. Just some random nightmare.

And I had more pressing matters to attend to at the moment.

I followed Miranda out of the room, trying not to wake Sarah or Abby. I also saw, as we headed towards the elevator, that many lights out were across the deck...a lot must have been sleeping right now.

Miranda had her hands clasped behind her back in the most orderly way possible, and led the way into the elevator. We headed for Deck 2.

It didn't take long, and once on the second deck, we stepped out into the large room where the Galaxy Map was. Kelly was working, as always...there were a few others up and around, too. I could also hear Joker and EDI arguing in the cockpit.

We took a left, and I knew that we were heading to the armory to get suited up before the mission. It was one of those standard things that you didn't see take place in the game, but they obviously had to happen.

Jacob was inside, like always, but I also saw Garrus. Since Jacob had gone to Purgatory, and Garrus hadn't even been out since he joined, I assumed that he'd take the second party member space. Miranda already told me that she was coming along.

_Joy, Abby gets to go with the nice guy and I get stuck with miss uptight._

I nearly flinched after that thought...I didn't like making too many remarks like that about anyone, and I did like Miranda in my own way...but she could be such a pain sometimes. But we had worked together well enough on Omega.

"Its going to be good to get back into the action," Garrus commented as we all grabbed our various weapons, and put our armor on. "I've been cooped up in this ship for too long since I got half of my face blown off."

"Just don't get too cocky," Miranda reminded.

"Look who's talking," Garrus shot back with a snort.

"And don't get tackled by anymore krogan, HK. Abby won't be around to save you this time." Jacob remarked.

"Very funny." I sarcastically said.

"Krogan aren't so bad," Garrus told us with a shrug, as he prepared his rifle. "Wrex was a nice companion to have back in the day...I didn't get him back then, but now I think I understand his methods a little better."

_Oh, I'm sure you do._

It wasn't something you usually thought of, but Garrus was more like Wrex now...Wrex had always considered him naive, which, well Garrus was at the time...and Garrus had disagreed with some of Wrex's choices. But now Garrus beating Harkin to a pulp and having little problem shooting Sidonis, as well as sniping random mercs or volunteers that came his way on Omega, resembled Wrex's merciless shooting of Fist.

"Okeer won't be a normal krogan," Miranda stated, also getting her weapons ready now. "He's a scientist. Not many krogan have that title."

_And yet, it won't be Okeer that will be on the Normandy._

That still got to me, I was still conflicted about it...but I knew what had to be done. The talk with Abby had helped me realize more than ever that it had to be done. Its one of those things that you hate, but you have to grit your teeth and keep your mouth shut.

I had finished putting my armor on now...it was basic armor, nothing too fancy. The same stuff I wore on Omega...it still felt slightly weird, but not as weird as the first time I stepped into it. And it fit me pretty well. My gun was also as ready as it would ever be.

We were just finishing when Shepard entered, already armored. I believe she had hers up in her personal quarters.

"We're going to be over Korlus soon," Shepard announced. "Is everyone ready?"

"I believe so, Commander," Miranda replied.

Shepard gave Garrus a look like she knew he'd be ready by now...came with the territory of being old friends. She also gave me a look, likely because this was only my second mission and the first without any friends along.

"I'm...I'm as ready as I'll ever be." I said, trying to keep my voice as stable as possible.

Jacob patted me on the back. "Seriously, you'll be fine...you got the hang of that stuff in training faster than Abby did, and she did great on Purgatory."

I smiled. "Thanks."

"Alright," Miranda said, looking at all of us. "Let's head for the shuttle bay."

Shepard blinked. "Shuttle bay? Can't the Normandy just land?"

It was then that I remembered Shepard had only been to space stations where the Normandy could dock.

EDI popped up. "This ship is twice the mass of the original...it cannot land on many high gravity worlds. A shuttle is much easier and more efficient."

Shepard nodded. "Ah, not a problem. We don't have any time to waste."

We said our goodbyes to Jacob, and headed down to the area where the shuttle was. Shepard boarded first, then Miranda, and then Garrus.

As I was preparing to jump in, EDI's blue head popped up on her repaired terminal.

"I hope you make the right decision." she said.

I froze for a brief moment, realizing that she had overheard my talk with Abby. She vanished within a second, and I quickly decided to get on the shuttle before anyone noticed my sudden alarm.

_Well, Grunt, here we come._

* * *

It didn't take long to get to Korlus.

Basically, all the shuttle had to do was head down to the area where Okeer was...but considering that the entire place was ravaged, it had to set down a good distance away from his lab.

We were waiting for it to land, and all I could see when I stared at Garrus was him getting taken by the swarms. All I could see when I looked at Miranda was Shepard lifting rubble off of her only to discover that she had died.

_No, it was just a nightmare. Focus on the present, the reality. The here and now._

The shuttle finally landed, and we all hopped out, before taking cover behind some rocks and boxes.

"Doesn't look like the most peaceful place," Garrus commented.

"I'm not sure whats going on, but I doubt its going to be easy to get to Okeer. Assume hostiles." Shepard instructed.

I nodded.

We moved out, rushing forward, before rounding a corner. And there were the Blue Sun mercs.

All of us quickly took cover, and I noticed that I did it much faster than on Omega...fighting all of the mercs there, plus the hords of vorcha, must have helped.

Raising my gun, I took aim and fired...what I had learned, both on Omega and in training, came in very handy. I hit several of them on spot, wanting to cringe in the process, and they collapsed to the ground.

"I'm killing these people," I whispered, standing up once all of them were taken out.

"It's necessary," Garrus chimed in, before moving past me.

We continued on, going into that very small building and passing the bodies. I looked at them, bullet ridden...it was necessary. It was part of war, I had to get used to it if I wanted to fight along Shepard, but it didn't make it easy as pie.

We exited the building as quick as we entered, and up ahead was that injured Blue Suns merc. Shepard approached him.

He grumbled and complained as he stood up. "Shit...I'm gonna...son of a bitch." he said.

"Doesn't look that bad, actually." Garrus said with a shrug.

"Who are you?" Shepard asked, looking to the man.

"A better question would be, who the hell are you? Don't look like Alliance, or another merc...I don't need to tell you anything, no matter who you are." he said, clutching his wounds in the process.

"I have a nice supply of medi-gel that I could give you..." Shepard told him in a persuading tone. "But I need information."

"Ah, crap. Fine. I was part of a merc scouting group...I got injured, and everyone else is dead." he replied.

"Whats going on here? Where's Okeer?" Shepard asked intently, cutting to the chase.

"Jedore is the leader here...she commands this group of the Blue Suns on Korlus. She partnered up with Okeer, trying to get him to make her some kind of army...it didn't really work out, and now he's rebelling against her. There are mad krogan running around everywhere. Its insanity." he answered.

"Mad krogan? What does that mean?" Miranda questioned.

"Shit, I don't know, I never knew the details of any of this...I just know all the hell that this has spiraled into." the merc told her.

Suddenly, like always, another Blue Suns merc came through on his comm. "Do you read? I repeat, do you read...did you find anything?" he asked.

He looked at Shepard, and she shook her head. "Tell him that nothing's wrong." she whispered.

_Finally, a Paragon choice! Finally!_

I felt some relief wash over me...sure, my nerves were still in a bundle over the possibility of dying, but Shepard had finally used a Paragon option for the first time since convincing Harrot to let Kenn go.

"Uh, nah..." the merc said into his comm. "Nothing up here. Everything's fine."

"Alright. Keep me updated." the other merc said, cutting off communications afterwards.

Shepard handed him the medi-gel. "Here...take this, and I suggest that you get out while you still can. I have to find Okeer, and I'm going to have to blow through alot of your friends to do it." she said.

"Yeah, whatever..." he said, taking the gel and limping away.

We started walking again, and Miranda looked at me. "So, what do you know about this situation?" she asked, half-mocking, half-serious.

"Uhh...you know, this is really something that you guys need to see for yourselves." I replied.

Shepard gave me a glance, but pressed on. She was wise enough to know that now was not the time to quiz me on what my special powers had told me about recruiting Okeer, and that we all had to focus on getting through these mercs.

We walked out into a more open area, and shots came our way. I felt a few hit my armor, and I darted for cover, barely missing several more bullets.

"Dangit," I muttered.

"You know, uhh..." Garrus said as he jumped down beside me. "You can use actual cuss words...not those fake ones."

"Unlike 99% of the Normandy crew, I don't swear." I told him. That was a well known fact about me. The only time I actually did swear was under extreme circumstances.

I took aim at the mercs, and fired at one, hitting him with all that I had. He began to get weaker and weaker, but still fired at me. I had to take cover again, using this chance to reload...once the shots ended, I peeked back out and took my final shots.

Shepard and Miranda were hitting a couple with biotics, while Garrus was firing like everything.

I may be able to shoot and fight well, but I was nowhere near these people. Not yet, and I may not ever be.

Though, I did break Jacob Taylor's nose...

Once these mercs were taken out, we headed down into a lower area, and began on another path littered with rubble. A merc or two tried to fire at us from higher ground, but Garrus got them down within seconds, being the ultimate man to shoot from a good distance.

We took a right, and headed into a very large area...once again, mercs attacked from a higher level.

I ran for cover as fast as I could...I tried to stay in the back, while Garrus and Miranda headed for the front. Shepard headed for cover in-between us.

Missiles were being launched, and I could hear some shouting...we all fired back, and I chose one of the ones that didn't have heavy equipment.

I fired repeatedly, as fast as I could, and I knew that it had to be taking him down, but he wasn't falling yet...he was shooting himself, forcing me to take cover every several seconds, but I quickly resumed.

As soon as I fired the shot that took him down for good, I saw a merc next to him fire a missile.

And it was heading straight towards me.

Jaw dropping, I took cover as fast as I could...but the missile was just as fast. I literally felt it go over me, and for a brief second, I wondered if I'd see stars in a moment.

But that was not the case...it sailed over me, barely above my head, and crashed into the wall.

But I had a feeling it took off a bit of my hair in the process.

I looked back up after I was sure that no more missiles were coming, and saw Shepard shooting the last merc down. Another area was clear.

We took to the left, this time, and I heard Jedore shouting over the loudspeaker. I pretty much tuned her out, as I knew that she was rambling on about the krogan and I needed to stay focused on surviving.

Proceeding to take a quick right, after heading to the left, we walked into another area, and I saw one of those strange krogans shooting the Blue Sun mercs.

Shepard raised her gun to him, but I decided to speak. "No, he's not a problem. Focus on the mercs."

She nodded, and with the help of the krogan, all of the mercs were taken down rather quickly.

We all walked up to the krogan, and he looked at us oddly.

"You...you are different. You do not smell like this world. Seven night cycles and all I have felt the need to do is kill everything except you...something makes me speak."

"Night cycles? Seven days?" Garrus said.

"They must breed them full size, ready to kill," Shepard deduced. "Must not be much improvement over regular mercs if they need training."

"Bred...to kill. No. I kill because my blood and bone tell me to. But it was not why I was flushed from the glass mother. Survival is what I hear in my ahead...against the enemy that threatens all of my kind. But I failed. Even before waking. That is what the voice in the water said. That is why I wait here." the krogan explained.

"To put it simply," I said, deciding to finish the explanation before we got into a conversation that would take up more time. "For some reason, in Okeer's eyes...these tank-bred krogan were not good enough. Not perfect enough for him...Okeer tried to 'teach' him things, but it stopped...he knows of Jedore, but not too much. Overall, he is just...confused and lost."

"But how is he fully-grown?" Miranda questioned.

"They aren't made naturally...the experiments are quite sick, and they are bred fully grown."

Shepard was silent for a moment, taking all of this in. The krogan was also silent...I guessed that he just didn't have the capacity to even know what to say.

Finally, she looked to the krogan. "I think I understand...how do I get to Okeer?"

"The glas lab is not far...behind all of those flesy things. Here, I will show you." he said, moving towards the wall, and removing that very large piece of rubble. "Strength...a key trait of the krogan."

"Thank you." Shepard told him.

"I will continue to wait here." he said, walking away from us.

Garrus watched, looking uneasy, before speaking to Shepard. "Commander, are you sure you even want to let Okeer onto our crew? I mean, he doesn't seem like the type of guy to pal around with."

"We need him to stop the Collectors," Shepard said. "He may have valuable information on them."

"Okeer is a very strange, and sick, man," I said, figuring that I could tell them that much, since they were so close to meeting him and he wouldn't even get on the Normandy. "All of the krogan look down on him."

We began to walk forward slightly, but Shepard seemed interested, so we continued the conversation. "Is it like what Saren tried to do on Virmire?"

I shook my head. "Not quite...or at least, thats not what Okeer wants. Jedore probably wants something similar to what Saren did, just for less vile reasons," I replied. "But Okeer has far different ideals...you may see when you meet him."

We began to descend down a large ramp, and we heard someone shouting about how the krogan were loose.

Out of nowhere, two mercs emerged, and began firing at us. We all backed up as fast as we could, firing at them in the process, and took cover...it wasn't long before they were down.

Shepard led us down the ramp again, and we rounded yet another corner to see one of the crazy krogan approaching.

"These won't be as nice as the last one," I muttered.

I took cover behind a small, metal board, and Miranda did so as well. Garrus and Shepard put their backs to the wall, and we all hit him with as much fire power as we could muster.

First, we had to break through his armor...we continued to shoot countless bullets, and Miranda began using biotics after several more seconds of non-stop shooting. With the combined power, he went down.

"Be prepared for more," I advised, as we moved out into that large, platform area.

I also had to remember to watch my step, because the safety barriers no longer existed.

The krogans were already on their way. We all rushed out onto the platforms to see several approaching.

"Spread out!" Shepard ordered.

I stayed on one platform, while Shepard and Miranda headed to the one across from me. Garrus also stayed on this one.

We, once again, combined biotics and firepower...one krogan fell quickly, while others continued their slow approach of us. Garrus and I heavily fired on one, killing him before he could reach the platform...

But that didn't work so well with the next one.

He saw me firing at him, and charged forward.

Suddenly, I felt like I was back on Omega.

I jumped up, backing away, but he was faster. He rammed into me, and I could hear Garrus yelling, but could also see that he was pre-occupied with other wild krogan. I fell back in surging pain, and the krogan proceeded to lift his gun to hit me with it.

Remembering everything I had learned in what little training I had, I grabbed ahold of the gun before it could come crashing down onto my head.

It would look like a foolish move...any krogan's strength outmatched a human's, so I could not stop him from breaking free of the grip.

However, I didn't aim to overpower him.

Taking the brief second in which the gun was secured in place, I literally rammed _my_ head into the krogan's face. It came up under him, and smashed into his chin and mouth.

It caused him to lose his balance, and before he could regain it, I lifted my own gun and fired. I literally fired like there was no tomorrow, feeling the blood pumping between the pain and the fear, doing whatever it takes to live.

The bullets penetrated him, and all he could do was back away in the midst of the shock and pain.

However, backing away in that direction was not ideal...it led to him accidentally stumbling off the platform, and into the abyss. I heard a scream as he did so.

During all of this, Shepard and the other two had taken down all of the remaining krogan. They all approached me while I knew that I would probably have another nice bruise from what just took place.

"Wow," Garrus said, looking amazed. "That was damn good for a rookie."

"Thank you." I said, still experiencing some of the pain.

"We can pat eachother on the backs after we get Okeer." Miranda said.

"Good job, HK," Shepard said with an acknowledging nod. "But we need to get to the warlord before this escalates any further."

We all followed her through the bridged areas, and then came upon what would be one of many staircases. We proceeded on, going through many more doors, and shooting through every group of Blue Sun mercs that we found.

We heard more and more radio chatter as we went on, and each group got a little tougher, but I found myself easing into battle more...I was still nervous, definitely, but I was growing adjusted to it. I didn't know whether that was good or bad.

We continued on and on through the complex...building, or whatever this heap was called. We shot through more and more guards, until finally, after long minutes of blood shed and death, we came upon Okeer's layer.

But first, we entered the area where that asari from Virmire, Rana, was.

As the door swung open, she turned to us, looking terrified. "Please, don't shoo-oh, Commander Shepard, thank the goddess." she said. "Do you remember me? Its Rana Thanoptis...you saved me on Virmire."

"I think I actually let you go after you were working with Saren," Shepard corrected. "But yes, I do. What are you doing here?"

"I have been working with Dr. Okeer for awhile now, but now I am starting to regret it...once I saw you approaching, though, I shut off the security cameras." Rana told her.

"You know, I didn't let you go free just so you could do another sick project on krogan." Shepard snapped, narrowing her eyes.

This always did make Paragon Shepard flustered, even in the game.

"Oh, believe me...I am not putting the second chance you gave me to waste...this isn't like what Saren was doing. Well, not exactly..." Rana said, obviously uneasy about seeing Shepard again.

"Commander, you should just shoot her. She obviously has no intention of breaking away from sick breeding experiments." Miranda suggested.

"Please, no! Its not like that..." Rana said, looking fearful. "Please, Commander, don't kill me."

Shepard sighed. "You had better not waste that second chance." she said.

Rana only seemed partially relieved. "Believe me, Shepard, I know how you work...I'm getting as far away from this facility as possible."

With that, the asari turned to run once again.

"You know, Commander, I actually think I would've shot her...you already gave her one chance. She doesn't need anymore." Garrus said, shrugging.

"I didn't see any valid reason to kill her...we're not here for her, anyway. Lets go see Okeer." Shepard said, turning to enter the next room.

We walked in, and there was Okeer, at his console.

And there was Grunt, in his tank.

"There you are. I've watched your progress." Okeer said, looking at us. "Its about time. The batteries on these tanks will not wait while you play with those idiotic mercs."

"I take it you are Okeer," Shepard said calmly. "You don't seem particularly caged, or grateful that I'm here."

"You may claim to be here to help," Okeer said, turning around entirely. "But the formerly deceased Shepard is not a sign of gentle change. Surprised? All krogan should know you after your actions on Virmire."

"I had no choice. If there had been any other solution, I would have pursued it." Shepard argued.

Okeer raised his hands up. "No, but I approve. Saren's failed hord were not true krogan. Numbers alone are nothing. The mistake of an outsider. One that these mercenaries have also made. I gave their leader my rejects for her army, but she grows impatient. Its time for you to take me out of here."

"This isn't about personal issues, we're here about the Collectors." Miranda told him.

"I assumed...yes. Collector attacks have increased. A human concern. My requests were focused elsewhere." Okeer said, gesturing to Grunt and his large tank. "I acquired the knowledge to create one pure soldier. With that, I will inflict upon the genophage the greatest insult an enemy can suffer: To be ignored."

Shepard didn't seem too phased. "Your methods are extreme, but you know how to deconstruct a threat. Will you help us?" she asked.

"I suppose I can strike a deal to secure passage, but my prototype is not negotiable. He is the key to my legacy."

Suddenly, Jedore's voice sounded through the area. "I've traced the krogan release. Okeer, of course. I'm calling 'blank slate' on this process. Gas these commandos and start over from scratch with Okeer's data. Flush the tanks!"

Okeer looked around in disgust as air began to come out of various places in the room. "She's that weak-willed? She'll kill my legacy with a damn valve!" Okeer exclaimed, before looking back to us. "Shepard, you want information on the Collectors? Stop her. She'll try to access contaminents in the storage bay."

"You can just start over, like she plans to," Shepard pointed out. "Whats the big deal?"

"This tank is pure," Okeer explained. "It involved as much trial as data. Starting over will not duplicate it. It must survive. Jedore will be with the rejected tanks...kill her. I will stay, and do what must be done."

Shepard looked to the rest of us. "Okay, lets go deal with Jedore and get the hell off of this planet." she said.

Both Miranda and Garrus nodded, and they all started to the staircase. I followed along, but as they rushed down the stairs, I stopped in the doorway and looked back at Okeer.

_Do I really want to let him die?_

Once again, doubt crept into my mind...I considered warning him, telling him that he would die today, and save a life..I wondered if I should do it, just so he would live...

"No, it can't be like that...I have to let things take their own path on this one. I know what the right choice is." I whispered to myself.

I just had to leave it alone.

I turned to head down the staircase, but I looked back at Okeer again. I did have something that I needed to say.

"Okeer..." I said slowly.

He looked at me. "Yes? I don't have time to chat, and you should be taking care of Jedore."

"I know, I know...but I wanted to tell you..." I started, even though I knew that he wouldn't get it in the way that I meant. And he shouldn't, but I felt I owed him this much. "He's going to be a great soldier."

"Of course he is," Okeer scoffed. "He's pure."

I decided to waste no more time, and headed down into the storage area.

The battle had already begun. Okeer's rejects were closing in on the three from each side, though they were holding up well, like always...firepower was going every which way, and the two mechs were also on the move. I could see some krogan bodies, showing that they had already killed a couple while I stood around upstairs.

I felt guilty for not rushing down with them, but I had to get a final peace of mind on this issue. I just had to.

Jedore was shouting out orders, and as I looked on at the battlefield, I realized that no one was even firing at her...they were too consumed with the krogan and the mechs, who had launched an all out assault.

_This won't end if she's still around. _

I had an idea...but I wasn't sure if it would work...in fact, it would probably get me killed, and it may be a foolish idea...but someone had to get rid of Jedore, and everyone else was wrapped up at the moment.

She was powerful, but if I could do everything just right...

"No, too dang-" I started, but looked around.

I didn't have the _time_ to contemplate this.

I rushed out while I was still relatively unseen by the heavy mechs and the krogan...they were all focused on the trio, and Jedore was behind some boxes. Hopefully, no one would detect me.

I crouched down and ran across the storage bay as fast as I could. Jedore was on one platform, while Shepard, Garrus, and Miranda were on the other with the krogan and mechs. I was in-between them both.

Quickly running onto Jedore's platform, I saw her there, watching the intense fighting...I stayed behind a box, where she wouldn't see me, and wondered how I would do this.

_Just fire my gun as much as I can._

This time, I would take a chance. It was do or die, and I did not have the time to play it safe or sit around thinking. I had to do something, and I was no hero, but someone had to kill her, as much as I still dreaded killing anyone.

I peeked out, and took my aim, trying to find any place that would hit her good...she had shields, and armor, so it would be difficult. But I had to try.

I fired as much as I could, and she whirled around the second she heard the gun shots. "What the he-"

They all hit her, and I practically felt her rage from here. I fired several more shots, before taking cover again, as she removed her weapon and prepared to fight. A large amount of bullets hit the wall, and I could hear her slowly approaching.

Once they stopped, I looked out again, and she was reloading. I fired like a madman, desperate to hit her, and I could see it penetrating her shields.

Growling, she raised her hand, and began to use her own biotics. I jumped out of the way just in time, before hearing more bullets hit the box I was behind...I had to edge over slightly to miss one. Her aim was getting more precise.

They stopped again, and I made myself visible, firing at her yet again. I saw her shields break, but she got her gun reloaded in time to hit me, penetrating my armor slightly...it didn't get to my skin, not quite, but I felt it go inside parts of the armor.

Before I could take cover again, suddenly, I fell to the ground...it was a weird sensation, like I could no longer move. I was just lying there, motionless...for a moment, I wondred if I was somehow dying.

But then I realized what had happened: She used throw on me.

It wore off quickly, but by that time, she was already over there and had given me a swift kick in the stomach. I grunted in pain, and knew she was about to fire her gun again and kill me.

Using the technique I had used in my first spar match with Jacob, I swung my legs around and hit hers...it swept her off her feet suddenly, while I stood, and fired another shot at her.

I didn't have the advantage for long, though; she shot another biotic power at me, which I quickly realized was warp...I could feel it lowering my armor and hurting me. I tried to resist the pain as much as I could.

She rose back up, and I fired at her insanely. It hit her armor, and she wasted no time in returning the fire. Reflex kicked in and I ducked immediately, luckily not getting hit. All that was going through my mind was how fortunate I was right now.

I gave her a kick in the stomach, but it didn't do as much damage as it normally would have due to the armor. Right after that, I felt her arm slam into the back of my neck, and I crumbled to the ground.

Then, she used lift on me: I was in the air now, and she slammed me into the wall. I cried out, slumping to the ground afterwards.

"Time to finish you off." Jedore said.

Everything was spinning, but I could see gunshots...not coming from Jedore, but coming towards her. In the other direction, it looked like.

She turned around, and fired back, from what I could see.

However, I still heard fighting across the bay...only one of the three was here.

I saw Jedore take quite a few gun hits, and I also saw some biotics hit her.

_Miranda or Shepard._

Then, Jedore shot back, alternating between biotics and her rifle...the fight continued on for several more seconds, until I heard someone else hit the ground, and Jedore still standing.

"I've had enough of this." she hissed.

Finally, the room reverted to normal...slowly, I stood, finding that I was much weaker than I originally had been, but that was to be expected. Jedore's back faced me, and I saw her approaching Miranda, who looked like she was getting up after being knocked to the ground.

Jedore had probably used throw on her, too...it probably didn't have as bad of an effect on Miranda, but still got her down for a split second.

I scrambled for my gun, which had fallen when I was jerked around the room...grabbing it as fast as I could, I pointed it towards Jedore.

Two gunshots hit her. One in the back, one in the front.

Miranda and I had, coincidentally, fired at the same time.

Jedore coughed out...she couldn't stand it anymore. She fell to the ground, finally dead.

Miranda approached me, while I leaned on a box for support. I still felt slightly unsteady. "T-thanks," I muttered.

"Normally, I would have gotten upset that you even bothered to assault her like that in the first place...and its still not the best idea, but you did weaken her for me." Miranda said.

"Well, you assaulted her single-handedly, too...and its not like you didn't come out without a scratch." I told her, panting in the process. Miranda looked a little worn and beaten, as well.

We looked to Shepard and Garrus, who had just finished off the last mech.

EDI's voice chimed in. "Shepard, the remaining lab systems are unprotected, and I have gained limited access. According to my scans, the room is filled with toxins, and Okeer's life signs are fading rapidly."

"Crap." Shepard simply muttered, running towards the door. The computer began to go off about this, too, as we hurried to Okeer's lab.

I had to push myself a little to keep up, though...I wasn't in the best shape to run after the fight, but I didn't need to hurry...I knew the result.

Once we got inside, Okeer's audio message was heard, and his dead body lied down on the floor. "You gave me time, Shepard. If I knew what the Collectors wanted with humans, I would've told you."

We approached the tank, and Garrus decided to comment. "Why would someone so fanatical sacrifice himself for one krogan?"

Miranda scoffed. "The man was delusional and insane."

Shepard turned to me. She looked tired, like we all were after this insane battle, but still calm. "I take it that you knew this would happen?" she said.

I sighed...I knew someone would bring that up, but I had still been dreading it, slightly. "Y-Yes," I stuttered. "I...I was tempted to warn you or Okeer, because I knew that Cerberus wanted him on the team badly, but you saw it yourself: Okeer was crazy, and he was doing wrong things...not like any of us are saints, but if he came along, it could be a disaster...in a way, it was a sacrifice. His soldier here...well, I'd recommend using him. He could be a great asset, but its your choice."

Shepard just shook her head, and I didn't know whether it was at me or the day's events in general. She activated her comm. "Normandy, Okeer is a no-go, but we have a package that needs retreiving. Its a big one."


	14. Don't wake him up!

**(Sarah)**

I was somewhat satisfied that I'd finally gotten the men's bathroom cleaned. Although it probably wouldn't be long until I had to clean it again. Right now though, I was fairly satisfied with the fact that it was done.

Rupert seemed to have everything under control in the kitchen for the moment, so I decided to go pay Abby a visit. I walked down the hallway toward the medical bay and walked in through the doors.

I didn't exactly know why she was in the MedBay, but assumed it wasn't too serious or else HK would have told me. Probably some sort of overnight examination of her ribs or something, I'd thought, not really concerned. I could see her sitting on the edge of a bed, her back towards the door, dressed in the Cerberus fatigues we'd originally appeared in. Chakwas could be seen through the windows, enjoying an early breakfast with Rupert.

As if some sort of sixth sense alerted her, Abby glanced up, putting aside something that was in her hands... and I saw the injury for the first time.

I blinked several times and took a step back, staring at her. That was the very last thing I'd been expecting. The gash on her head was not bleeding openly, and it looked as though it had been tended to very well. But...

"Ouch," I said with widened eyes.

She snorted. "Fun times," she said, looking uncomfortable. Her hand brushed the injury with the tips of her fingers. "I ducked a millisecond too late when the first heavy mech exploded. It was stupid. Ain't doing _that_ again." She chuckled.

I looked at her a moment longer, then I shook my head slightly and moved toward one of the windows, peering out through it but not really paying attention to anything out there. We really _could _get hurt here. We could get _killed_ here. That fact was sinking in more and more.

Finally I turned back to look at Abby. "Are you really sure any of us should be doing this?" I asked, shaking my head again. "You could have gotten killed out there. And HK is out there right now. What if he dies?" I began to move around the room a bit-not quite pacing, just moving about in a couple of different directions, perhaps zig-zagging slightly.

She was silent a second too long, then said, "He can't. We're on Shepard's team, and we know exactly what will happen. As long as he keeps his head and listens to her, he'll be fine." There was a sour note at the end of the sentence I picked up.

I opened my mouth and closed it. There really wasn't much I could say to that. Not unless I wanted to start a debate about the pros and cons of the mission, or start being Miss Negative. So I simply changed the subject. "How're you doing?" I then asked, trying to force a bit of cheerfulness for her sake. "When are they gonna let you out of here?"

"Doing awesomely," she said, nodding out the window. "They just wanted to keep me under obs for the night. The most annoying part was that EDI woke me up every two hours by doctor's orders, just to make sure the concussion wasn't fatal or anything. Since I'm still breathing, I'm probably allowed to leave... well, now." She gestured to the object she'd put aside, and I noticed it was a drawing pad and a pencil. Where she got it on a futuristic ship like this confounded me. "Just been drawing to pass the time. How're _you_ doing?"

I smiled a little. "I'm doing okay," I said. I did not want to tell her about that episode in the men's room. Not now. "Oh, and in case you haven't heard, I've become the janitor around here, you know." Please let's just leave the subject at that. Please.

"Oh..." She tapped her fingers restlessly on her knee. "So... are you happy with it? With... this? Because if you wanna leave, I ain't gonna stop you. And I was overreacting yet again, so I'm sorry. Do whatever you want. Don't worry about me. I'll support whatever you wanna do, even if I don't agree."

I felt a little surprised by her admission and her apology. I mean... even Mordin had been upset with me for considering the option of leaving, and he defended Abby's position. I smiled a little, genuinely grateful. "It's okay. And well... after I had a little talk with Mordin, and got this new job, I feel like it's important to stay. And now I feel like I'm actually doing something useful around here. So..." I shrugged. "Unless something really traumatizing happens to one of us... I probably won't be talking like that again. I might be thinking it sometimes..." Oh hell, I sure was a little EARLIER, after the Jack episode, but that was just nerves and stress, mostly. "...But I'm not going anywhere."

She nodded. "Then I totally support that." She gave a lopsided grin and hopped off of the medical bed. She hugged me. "Still friends?"

I returned the hug out of reflex. "Yep," I said simply. Somehow there didn't really seem to be much else I could say... not without this getting cheesy, at least.

I hated it when things got cheesy with me involved. I slowly pulled back, flashing a smile to make it clear that I wasn't trying to be rude or abrupt. "I really need to get back to helping Rupert," I said casually, and shrugged my shoulders a little. "And I'm sure the doctor wants you to rest a little anyway," I added quickly.

She looked slightly disappointed, but shrugged. "All right..." She went back to her bed and picked up her drawing pad. "Well... see you later, I s'pose."

"I'm sorry," I murmured sincerely as I moved toward the door. "I'll come by later," I promised, and then slipped out.

Part of me felt bad for doing that. But I didn't feel comfortable in mushy situations. Sometimes they made me feel a tad awkward. Then again, I was also trying to absorb the fact that my friend had a huge gash on her head too. I knew that it was going to leave a permanent mark, and it would probably be there for the rest of her life.

I probably would have felt comfortable with staying longer if it hadn't been for that gosh-darned scar...

I suddenly realized that... I wasn't entirely sure where I was going. I was walking away from the medical bay and down the hall now. Well... maybe I should go visit... somebody or other. I didn't really want to go back to our shared quarters right at this moment.

Finally I got into the lift and... headed to the upper level where the bridge was located. As the doors opened when I arrived at my chosen destination, I hesitated. Just why was I here? Who exactly was I going to talk to? It crossed my mind to go see Mordin again, but... I'd already bugged him too much already. I couldn't even think of anything to talk to him about or ask him. It had reached the point where those friendly little drop-ins would just start to annoy him now, probably. Either that or I'd have to invent excuses to drop in.

So I did something I never thought I'd do in a million years. I walked out of the elevator and... approached Kelly.

"Hi," I said with a friendly smile.

Kelly glanced up from her work with a surprised, but genuine, smile. "Sarah, it's so wonderful to see you," she said. "How are you? I've been meaning to sit down and talk to you for a long time, but you've all been so busy lately I thought I really shouldn't interrupt."

"Yeah, we have been pretty busy lately," I said with a nod. "So uh... what do you think of us?" I was curious. After all... we had just popped up out of nowhere.

Kelly frowned. "Well, I don't know yet. But you seem genuine, and Commander Shepard doesn't seem like the kind of woman to make serious mistakes. As long as the Commander trusts you, you have my trust. There was a psychic woman who lived next door to me while I was in college, actually, and I don't share the same beliefs as some others on this ship. I respect anybody who can do what you three do. It's very special and... unique. You're all very unique additions to the crew. We're glad to have you, and I think EDI is, too, though she wouldn't tell you." She laughed. "So keep that our little secret."

"No worries," I beamed. "By the way... where did you learn to dance?" If that was, by some slim chance, a slip up... I really didn't care. It was only a little one anyway.

If she was surprised, she didn't show it. "San Franciso," she said excitedly, turning back to her work. As she typed, she said, "I was in a few ballet productions, but decided it wasn't for me and went into bellydancing. It was a nice change. Those skirts and those shirts were very appealing. Where did you learn to write?"

I blinked, surprised. "Where'd you hear that I like to write?" I asked, then figured that she must have talked to Abby or HK, at least a bit. Because I knew for sure that that was something I had not told anyone on this ship.

"Oh, your friend Abby and I were talking a few days before she went to Purgatory... a week ago, maybe? She said you were all penpals and wrote stories. What are your favorite genres?"

I chuckled a little. Yeah, "penpals" was probably the closest way to explain it, since we'd never met in real life prior to moment where we all just popped up on the Normandy. Maybe in a way it was true; we did chat a lot on msn, so... maybe in a way that was still the same as writing to each other.

"I really like science fiction and fantasy," I answered slowly. "Something about them just... touches my imagination, I guess. I like the way they explore ideas that can only happen in theory."

I glanced around myself, at the bridge and at the people. What was I saying? Right here, something from my imagination, and Abby's and HK's imaginations, had become solid reality. My foul experiences after drinking ryncol, along with Abby's scar (I winced slightly when I remembered that again) were proof that this was no longer a game, and no longer something to daydream about. It was _real._

"I'm more of a romantic comedy person myself," Kelly said. "I could never seem to enjoy the action movies for some reason... though many of my dates enjoyed them." She chuckled. "Have you ever seen Romeo and Juliet? It's one of my favorites."

"I've never really been into Shakespere stuff," I commented in a bored tone. I cleared my throat softly. "I mean, I have nothing against it, and I know we all have different likes and dislikes. But..." I shrugged. "I just find it boring. Although I've never really seen any of the movies based on the scripts," I admitted.

"Don't be too quick to judge," she chided gently. "So how are you adjusting to the Normandy?"

"Well... it was pretty rough at first I'll admit. I mean, well... let's just say it took me a while to find a place where I could be useful." I wondered if she'd heard about me biting Jacob's finger. I guess I was about to find out.

"I understand," she said, sounding like she truthfully meant it. "Unless you have specialized training it's hard to find a place on a warship like this. The Illusive Man was careful to handpick only the experts. Technically we're running on just overthe minimum amount needed for a skeleton crew, just because everybody is so wonderful at their jobs. When I'm not managing the income of messages, I feel just as lost as you probably did. It's wonderful you're helping out Rupert, though, he really needs it. He works so hard, that poor man."

"Yeah, he does seem a little run-down sometimes," I acknowledged with a smile. I still remembered the conversation I'd had with him when I offered to be his assistant, and when I mentioned that I had experience in cleaning and even in cooking. You would have thought I'd offered the man a thousand credits by that look in his eyes.

I tilted my head a little, curious. "Can I ask you something?" In some ways I just wanted to satisfy my own curiousity... and maybe try to steer the conversation away from potentially embarrassing subjects. Everything that led up to my taking that job-and everything that happened on the first day of my job-were not pleasent memories, after all.

"Yeah, definitely!" she said enthusiastically.

"What do you think of... turians?" Okay, maybe that was a lame thing to ask.

She raised a quizzical eyebrow, but, thankfully, decided to take the question seriously. "Well, I love all types of aliens," she said. "Turians are very good-looking, I think, and so macho. They have great personal values, too. I don't mean turians like that Warden on Purgatory, but real ones. Nice ones." A grin flickered on her lips. "And their tattoos are very mysterious."

In spite of myself I grinned as a thought came into my head. "When it comes to tattoos, I think Jack has any turian beat," I commented.

"They're beautiful," Kelly said. "Each one tells a story. Even though she worries me, I can't deny it. As soon as she realizes that she can trust us, I hope that she opens up more."

Of course I knew that the only person she would probably open up to is Shepard, after they blew up that facility where she grew up. The memory of seeing Miranda and Jack have that "catfight" in the game crossed my mind, and I wondered if Shepard would have to break it up eventually here, too. Yeah, probably.

I couldn't think of much more to say about Jack, not without giving anything huge away. So I decided to return to our previous subject... sort of. "What do you think of Garrus?" I prompted casually.

...Was I pushing it in some ways, or what?

"Are you asking my personal opinion or my professional one?" she asked.

"Um, either one," I shrugged.

Kelly's expression turned carefully neutral. "I noticed that you have a... fascination with Garrus."

I looked down at the floor, feeling my cheeks heating up. "Is it that obvious?"

She shrugged delicately. "It probably is to some... trained individuals," she said.

"Heh. I know you have a degree in psychology and you're a people person, so... I guess that makes some things obvious to you," I said.

"Getting a degree has nothing to do with it. I just observe and infer. How are you planning to deal with this situation?"

"Well," I said slowly, "I'm not really sure. I think I've already done too much in some ways. I told him I liked him, and he pretty much said he's okay with being friends and that's it. But also," I chuckled sheepishly, "I think I've done a good job at weirding him out and making him think I'm crazy at least a couple of times after that." I stopped talking. There was NO reason she needed to know that I had been looking at... well, that datapad Mordin gave me.

"Why do you like him so much?" she asked earnestly. "Because of what you've seen in your dreams?"

"Yeah I guess you could say that," I said, nodding a little. "I just know that he's really got a sweet side. And he's a bit... different from most turians, and he treats anyone civilly, no matter what species they are." I shrugged again. "I guess I just like people who stick out a bit like that, if that makes sense."

She opened her mouth to say something, then glanced back to her terminal as an alert flashed red. "We're moving in to pick up Commander Shepard," she said suddenly, glancing up towards the cockpit where Joker was situated. "You might want to go down to Deck Four to greet them. Make sure your friend DJ is okay."

"Yeah, I'll do that," I said with a nod. "Thanks," I added, and turned around to get into the elevator.

I waited around on deck four for roughly half an hour before I finally saw the shuttle moving in. I watched it quietly as I remained where I was, staring through one of the windows. Once the shuttle was safely inside the ship-and once the area within the docking bay was pressureized again-I watched quietly as the people stepped out of the shuttle.

The pilot stepped out, along with Shepard, then HK, then Miranda, and last of all, Garrus. Well, at least they all seemed to be fine, and they also seemed to be regarding something inside the shuttle. Probably the large tank-thing that held Grunt.

I decided to go in and greet them. From what I could see from the window, HK was fine. Thank God, I wasn't sure how well I could handle it right now if he was injured.

I opened the door into the docking bay and, as I walked through, one of the doors moved to shut just a little too quickly. Somehow-I have no idea how-I ended up catching my foot on the edge of it... and I fell flat on my face, right there inside the docking bay.

"Sarah, are you alright?" an alarmed voice said, and I saw HK approaching. He still looked fine, thankfully, but I could see quite a few bruises, and he was moving a little slow. But still, nothing too major.

"Yeah," I muttered as I pushed myself up into a sitting position, with my legs under me. I reached up and touched my nose lightly-it seemed fine. "Nevermind me," I muttered as I got back to my feet. I tried to brush off this incident as if nothing happened. "You okay?" I glanced him over again, then looked at the others.

HK seemed to be looking me over, making sure that I was fine. "Yes, I am...things got a little rough back on Korlus, but all battles do. I'm not injured or anything," he replied. "Overall, it went pretty similar to how it goes in the game."

I nodded a little. "Glad you're okay. I saw Abby a while ago and..." I grimaced. "I wasn't expecting to see that big gash on her head." I found myself glancing toward Garrus. "But at least she's in good company," I muttered in a feeble attempt at humor, glancing at the scars on the side of his face.

"Yes, Dr. Chakwas is the best...its really a good thing that Cerberus decided to bring her back to serve with Shepard," HK said, looking at Garrus as well once he saw me looking at him. "He's just fine, by the way."

"Yeah," I said a little absent-mindedly. Then I quickly snapped out of it. "Say... excuse me for a sec." I smiled at HK, then moved toward Shepard. She seemed to be talking to Miranda and Garrus about something or other.

"Can I see the krogan?" I asked quietly as I approached them. They glanced at me as I said this. "I've just never seen one up close before," I murmured. I wanted to see what one of those big creatures looked like... especially considering Abby killed one.

"Be careful. He could be dangerous and we don't want to let him out just yet," Miranda warned.

"Sure, you can see him...we're waiting for a team to get down here to take him to the cargo hold right now, so we have a little time." Shepard replied.

"Don't worry I'll be careful," I said in what I hoped was a re-assuring tone. Miranda still had a cautious-and mildly suspicious-look about her. And I couldn't be sure but... I felt like Garrus was looking at me... warily. Maybe it was just my imagination, though.

I quietly moved toward the back of the shuttle, where the rear door was. I could feel at least a couple of sets of eyes on me as I opened it, and when I glanced behind me I noticed HK come up to stand closer to the others.

I took a deep breath and stepped into the shuttle. And lo and behold, there stood a huge glass cylander, containing the very large and very... bruteish form of the young krogan. Somehow... I could never really say that he was "ugly". Old krograns were ugly, in my opinion. But this one... he just seemed to have a youthful look about him.

I slowly moved closer to the "glass mother", as I knew the other krogan down on the surface had called this thing. I rested my hand on the console attached to the bottom of the tank as I leaned forward, trying to get a better look at his face from my angle.

Then there was a slight beeping noise. I glanced down and realized that my palm was resting on one of the the controls... _oops._

I took a hasty step backwards as the fluid within the tank began to drain away, and then the glass itself lowered. I gasped in alarm as the krogan moved forward, falling off of the platform and landing on the floor right in front of me, on his hands and knees. He opened his mouth, coughing and spluttering as fluid came out of his lungs and airway.

He remained still for a moment, his eyes darting around the small confines of the shuttle. His face was intelligent, and skilled; he was just assessing where he was, and his situation.

Next thing I knew there was a loud roar and I was being slammed against the wall of the shuttle, staring up into his face.

I screamed. Not a very loud scream, but a scream nonetheless.

I could also hear guns being drawn, and both Shepard and Miranda shouting something.

However, then, I heard something else.

"Don't fire, don't fire!" HK yelled.

Grunt seemed to ignore them, staring into my eyes as he kept me pinned to the wall. "Human. Female. Before you die, I need a name."

I stared at him with widened eyes. He was seriously going to kill me! All he wanted was a name first. For himself, I knew; he wasn't asking to know my name.

"Uh..." What was I supposed to say here? "You know," I babbled, "this is pretty stupid and pathetic. I'm not even putting up a fight here. You don't want to kill a human in a useless fight, do you?"

"I told you I needed a name," Grunt growled. "Not yours. Mine. I am trained, I know things, but the tank...Okeer couldn't implant a connection. His words are hollow. Warlord, legacy, grunt..."Grunt" was among the last. It has no meaning. It'll do. I am Grunt, if you are worthy of anything, prove your strength and try to destroy me."

So... that's how it was?

At least he was giving me a chance, which... I knew just about every opponent HK and Abby had faced wouldn't do. But I didn't have anything on me either. Nothing but my clothes and my shoes. I certainly didn't have any weapons on me. Why would I normally need to carry any around the ship? Some of the specialists were a little weird-such as Jack and Zaeed-but I knew none of them would kill me.

I glared up at Grunt. He still had me firmly pressed to the wall. Well... perhaps it was time to... wing things a little?

I somehow managed to do two things simultaneously. I reached up jabbed my fingers into his eye while I repeated the same move that had been a mistake during training; I sunk my teeth into the back of the hand he had on me. I wasn't sure if I did any damage against that thick skin of his, but I defintely felt my teeth sinking in a bit, at least.

In response to this I heard the krogan growl in irritation. I had a feeling I had simply annoyed him more than anything. He cuffed me pretty good and sent me crashing to the floor. He moved again, obviously intent on grabbing me or pinning me down. I thought I heard rifles being cocked along with HK and Shepard shouting.

Somehow I managed to move out of the way, at least putting a couple of feet between myself and the strong hand that reached for me. I was probably just very lucky; he had been asleep in that tank and so he probably wasn't up to full manuverability yet.

Ignoring the throbbing pain where he'd cuffed me before, I ducked as he reached for me again with his other arm. Then I did the only thing I could think of; I brought myself up forcefully, ramming my head up under his chin, hard.

That seemed to cause him to pause, at least. I took advantage of it enough to turn and get the hell out of the shuttle, stumbling out the door.

Somehow or other... I ended up standing behind Garrus.

"Sarah," Garrus said, sounding unpleased. "You really need to be more careful."

Grunt began to charge again, but Shepard got in the way. "Thats enough!" she shouted. "I am Commander Shepard of the Normandy...Grunt, we need to talk. About alot of things."

"Shepard, you can't let this madman live!" Miranda protested.

"Shepard...hmm, I can kill you as well." Grunt growled.

Shepard did not hesitate, and fired upon Grunt...the bullets hit him in several areas, though he had such heavy armor that he didn't seem to get too badly hurt.

Grunt chuckled. "Ah, you offer one hand and arm the other...worthy enough. I will serve under you, Shepard...seems I have nowhere else to go, and I do not care for Okeer's goals or views...I just wish to fight. That's the burning desire inside of me."

Shepard just shook her head. "Come on, lets go somewhere more private to discuss all of this, if you can remain civil...the cargo hold would probably be the only empty space right now."

Grunt nodded, and followed, glancing at me as he left.

I stayed right where I was until I was certain that Shepard and the krogan were gone. Then I glanced around the docking bay. HK looked a tad nerved up and bewildered, though he seemed to be relaxing. Miranda was glaring at me, and I could feel a lecture coming up.

I glanced up at Garrus... only to realize for the first time that I had a hand on his arm. I dropped my hand and cleared my throat, stepping away from him with an apologetic glance.

"Its fine, but damn, you have a knack for these situations." Garrus remarked, shaking his head.

"I told you to be careful!" Miranda snapped. "We could've had a full blown battle with some insane krogan, and hell, we still could...Shepard just needs to space it-"

"Miranda, its fine...the fact is, we didn't have a full blown battle." HK said, looking towards me in the process. "Sarah does need to be more careful, but...everything turned out okay."

Miranda just sighed.

"Besides, I knew what would happen," I spoke up, a bit defensively. "HK and Abby knew it, too. We knew that Grunt wouldn't kill anyone. Shepard just needed to show him who's boss, that's all." I wasn't going to be talked down to by that Cerberus snob.

"She's right," HK said, his voice keeping calm. "Although it wasn't anticipated that he would be woken up so...early, and by Sarah, we knew that would happen one way or another. That situation would have happened no matter who got him out of the tank, even if it was Shepard herself."

"Neither of you looked like you expected that," Miranda snapped.

HK paused for a moment. "True, but that was because the brief combat session wasn't expected, and the reason for that is because Sarah opened it. None of us have that calming effect that Shepard does."

"Fair enough," Miranda said.

"So... are we done here?" I asked simply, folding my arms. I felt I had recovered my scare over being attacked by a krogan-and my head was starting to feel it a bit from head-butting him. I simply wanted this discussion to be over.

"Shepard is dealing with the krogan, so I think everything is resolved for now...I need to go file a report for the Illusive Man. He'll want to hear this." Miranda replied, moving to leave.

Miranda walked out, and I was left alone in the docking bay with HK and Garrus. The turian glanced in our direction, then looked as though he was getting ready to leave as well. This was confirmed when he turned toward the door.

"Uh, Garrus?" I spoke up softly, taking a step toward him-then stopping. I didn't want to get too close. "Can I talk to you for a sec?"

...What was I doing? I had no idea. Maybe that talk I had with Kelly earlier-such as it was-prompted me to talk to him for some reason.

HK turned to leave as well, and Garrus was just about to follow him out, but he stopped to look at me. "Uh, sure. Do you need something?" he asked.

Suddenly I felt frozen in place, and I just felt... numb inside. What was I doing, exactly? I didn't really have anything to say to him or talk to him about. I was just creating another awkward situation, and wasting both of our time.

I made a noise somewhere between a cough and an "ahem" and then I simply asked him the first question that popped into my mind. What I had been more or less wondering anyway. "Garrus... do you think I'm weird?" I wasn't quite looking at him when I asked that.

Garrus was silent and still for a moment. "Well, weird is a term that could be branded out to many in this ship...but, uh, if I may be honest, you definitely can take a new meaning of the word when you want to."

I glanced downward, feeling a mixture of awkwardness and mild amusement. "Yeah other people have said that too... sorta," I finally said. "Anyway um..." I forced myself to look at him again, though I didn't quite meet his eyes. "I hope I didn't make you too uncomfortable or whatever, you know, with that... incident involving Jack and Zaeed."

Garrus briefly closed his eyes, before opening them again. "Its not like its totally your fault...you aren't them...but the situation was...unpleasant."

I made a small coughing sound. "Yeah," I said simply. I made sort of a small chuckling noise through my nose. "At least I haven't killed anybody... yet," I said, and smiled to try and emphasize the fact that this was a joke.

"The only person out of your trio that hasn't," Garrus said. "But for the record, despite the weird situation with Jack and Zaeed, I am glad that you have a job that makes you comfortable. I could tell that combat really wasn't your thing."

"Heh, yeah. Though at least I got away from Grunt when I really needed to," I said, my tone sounding a bit boastful even to my own ears. I wasn't going to mention the biting, though.

"You three really need to learn how to handle krogans," Garrus commented with a chuckle. "Grunt attacked you, Abby had a wrestling match with one...HK gets attacked by that same one on Omega, then he got into a fight with another on Korlus."

"Yeah well, we weren't born soldiers, and you've got a lot more experience than us," I replied a tad stiffly. "And either way, we're still alive," I smirked slightly.

Garrus nodded. "Yeah. So, is that all you needed?"

My smug expression faded as I began to feel the awkwardness coming on again. I knew that Garrus wasn't really the chatty type, and part of me was mildly convinced that he wasn't entirely comfortable around me. Unless that was just my imagination. But it seemed like any time we started to talk about something, the conversation would dry up and then he would ask if there was anything else. In other words, it seemed like a "Are we done here?" type mannerism.

Then again... it seemed like men in general weren't very chatty. Whether they were human or turian, I guess.

"Well," I said, shrugging a little, "I was wondering... ummm... if maybe you'd like to hang out sometime?" I shrugged again, reflexively, trying to ward off my nerves.

"Hang out?" Garrus asked with a raised eyebrow. "Where?"

"Uh... I don't know. Maybe we could hand out at lunchtime or something, or maybe if we go to the Citadel we could do something there?" I shrugged yet again. I could feel the spot where Grunt had smacked me starting to ache a little more.

"Believe me, whenever we go to the Citadel, I'm going to be pretty busy..." Garrus trailed off.

"Ah yeah... I get what you mean," I muttered with a knowing nod. "Well you know... I could help with that," I added in a persuasive tone.

"Help?" Garrus repeated, looking concerned. "Sarah, no offense, but I am not sure how you can help with this."

I lifted my chin in the air and took one step closer. "I know where he is, and how this is gonna play out," I said. I could feel some smugness creeping back into my expression. "In fact, I might be able to help you so that you don't have to waste time fighting over a dozen mercaneries just to get to him... or fight past the heavy mech. But," I said, starting to move past him, "if you want to go in blind, not knowing what'll happen... fine by me."

Garrus stared at me for a moment, probably chewing all of it over. "The quicker Sidonis dies...the better." he finally whispered.

I turned back to look at him. Somehow my awkwardness had been mostly replaced with a sense of determination. "Then if you agree to let me tag along... I'll give you all the details," I said, starting to think hard about what I could remember of that mission from the game. It was one of the few things I had purposely saved so I could play through that section over and over, so if anything... I probably knew that part best.

"Fine, you can come." Garrus said with a nod.

I smiled triumphantly. "In that case... wanna talk about it now, or later?" I asked.

"I want to talk about it now...I really do, but I actually think you should decide if its best for me to hear this now or later...I know myself, and I know that its just going to make me want to get to the Citadel faster when we can't right now." Garrus explained to me.

I thought about what he said for a moment. "I think... you should ask Shepard if we can stop by the Citadel when it's convenient," I finally said. "That will get the ball rolling, so to speak. Now as soon as we get there... come find me, okay?"

Garrus nodded. "I will, definitely. And, Sarah...despite all the weird things that have happened...thank you for this."

I grinned at him. "No problem," I told him. I just hoped that we could go over the events that I remembered from the game later and... hopefully be able to get to Harkin, and Sidonis-if we got that far in the first place-without me getting hurt or killed. With my luck, I was probably going to make the situation worse somehow. But I couldn't let pessimism slip in; I had to keep a clear mind and stay focused.

"Oh and... please don't tell Abby or HK about this," I added.

"Don't worry, I won't." Garrus assured me.

"Thanks," I said simply. "Now... I need to get back to work," I said, and turned on my heel to walk away.

For some weird reason, it felt good to be the one who was terminating the conversation for once.

As I walked away from the docking bay, I chose to go directly to the elevator.


	15. Living double lives

**(Abby)**

I scratched absentmindedly at the stiches holding my skin in place, focusing hard on drawing correct, proportionate lines on the pad of paper. Zaeed had already come up to visit (scary, I know) and it was a gift from him. He never really hit me as the slightly-caring type, considering all I knew about him, but apparently I'd made some sort of impression with him. Some idiot-and I had my bets on Kelly Chambers or Jacob-had told him that I liked drawing.

Drawing was really more relaxing than any sort of meditation Buddhist monks could come up with. Something about holding a pencil in your hand, looking at details eyes normally miss, and trying to translate them on to a blank sheet of paper was soothing. But shading? Grawr. I missed my old setup back home, with my laptop, music, 9H through 9B pencils, my erasers, tortillons, and especially Kleenex.

Kleenex was very important, after all.

_The tools not the artist make. _Eragon said something to that effect in Brisingr, when that old elven lady was creating a sword through his body, effectively possessing him. I went with the drawing, allowing the lines to form themselves and follow generally the lines I could see with my mind's eye.

Doctor Chakwas was much more detailed in life than she was on the video game. I'd noticed in the game that both of her eyebrows were slightly off, slightly different, but in life she actually had a birthmark on her neck, more lines around her eyes, and her hair wasn't completely steel-gray. She still had some black strands, namely in the back near her neck, and her hair wasn't always mathematically-precide, either. Right now it looked a bit tousled, like she'd gone to sleep with wet locks and only half-attempted to brush it out the next morning.

Seeing all these flaws and imperfections with an otherwise Bioware-perfect face made me feel a bit better... and it made me think less about HK and Sarah and the entire mission.

Or maybe it did, I don't know.

I have a strange mental mindset, where I can shove things out of sight until I make a slip and accidentally think of them again. I was trying hard, really hard, not to think of this entire thing, and focused on the good, like how awesome this was, what kind of moves I'd learned from Jacob and Garrus, and the face that I was actually living the life now. It was awesome... right?

I missed my dogs, my friends, and Aikido badly. And I still had to study for my dang 4th Kyu test! I wasn't even in the same reality as they were anymore and I was _still_ stressed about it!

Grawr!

I smudged a bit of the drawing of Doctor Chakwas with my finger, blending the mid-tones into the lighter highlights, and wished I had Koko's white gel-pen to make this easier. It had been a god-send when I drew O'Sensei such a long time ago.

"Your friends are back," Doctor Chakwas reported, breaking me out of my semi-meditative state. "No injuries."

I let out a sigh of relief. I felt like my heart had skipped a beat. "Awesomeness. Can I go now?"

"Yes. That is a beautiful drawing, by the way."

Grawr. "Thanks," I muttered uncomfortably. I tucked it underneath my arm and made a break for it.

It occured to me later that maybe I should have asked, you know, where they _were. _That, I thought, may have been a smart idea. I glanced hopefully at the elevators, hoping that they'd be coming up any seconds, and when I saw that they weren't I went over to Rupert and ordered myself a grilled cheese sandwich.

I didn't know what the heck everybody was talking about-Rupert was a great chef, or at least on par with the cooks back in my schools. And, really, there isn't a way you can really mess up a grilled cheese.

I wondered if Rupert had a thing for Doctor Chakwas... or if she had a thing for him. In my fic, Entanglement, I'd always meant to, you know, _imply_ that just a tiny bit. Sometimes you just have to wonder...

I was getting bored, though, and I figured hanging around Rupert's den wasn't going to be the best idea, either. I was half-tempted to go down and see Jack and Zaeed, but, well... I wasn't ready to get into the whole "I am a psychic!" conversation again. I was going to have to come up with a condensed version of it or something, because saying it over and over, that was going to be a bit of a mouthful.

Part of me was just tempted to get a datapad and write out, in large letters, "The Normandy For Dummies." Or some kind of guidelines or... something. Or just, you know, say it over the loudspeaker. _For all new arrivals, I'm a psychic and I know everything about you and the places we're going. I know EVERYTHING about this mission. Please believe me!_

Yeah, that sounded BAD, even to me... and I'd seen a lot of bad in my short, awesome fourteen-year existance.

God, where _were_ those guys? I tapped my fingers on the table impatiently, nodding once to Miranda as she passed by and disappeared into her office... presumably to take a shower or something. I'd noticed a hidden door when I was in there apologizing once before, something I hadn't seen in the game, and assumed it was either a bathroom or a super-secret spy network hub.

But if Miranda was okay... and up here...

AHA! "Durr ack!" I cried, jumping off of the seat to hug HK as he rounded the corner. I let him go quickly, still chomping on my grilled cheese. I held up a finger so I could swallow, then said, more clearly, "How is The HK?"

"Ow," HK remarked, smiling kindly but touching a wound that I had just noticed. "I'm...good. I got a little beat up out there, but I'm alive, thankfully."

I took a better look at him and felt my eyes narrow in distaste. "You're going to be turning a few interesting colors for the next few days..." I said. "Extremely. I guess that's what we get for going to the krogan madhouse, right?"

He shuddered. "Yes...though I managed to fight one off on my own this time. A very good portion of my injuries was when I, well, pretty much all-out assaulted Jedore," he replied. "But everything went how it was supposed to, for the most part."

I clapped him on the back, impressed. "Good! Even the thing we talked about earlier?"

He nodded. "Yes...he's gone. I stayed behind to tell him that Grunt was going to be a great soldier, and he dismissed it like he knew that already, but that was the only change. Shepard seemed okay with the fact that I knew beforehand..." he answered."Only thing that changed was that Sarah activated Grunt."

"Shepard activated-or... Sarah_!" _Despite myself, I laughed. "Okay, what happened?"

"Well," HK began, like we started all good stories off with.. "She accidentally opened the tank...it was like the sc-it was like how it would've happened if Shepard had opened it, just...a little bt more of a fight, because Sarah couldn't convince him like Shep could."

I giggled. "No way! Then what happened?"

"Well...Sarah fought back, and she actually did okay at it. There was a bit of a scuffle, ending with what, incidentally, happens sometimes if Shepard opens him: Shep had to shoot him. That calmed him down, and they went to go talk." HK explained.

There was something wrong in that sentence somewhere. _Shot at him to calm him down. Yeah, that'll calm him down. _"Whoa. Alrighty, then! Any fun war stories from Korlus? Did you see Rana Thanoptis there?"

HK laughed, actually. "Yes...Shepard let her go, again, like she typically would. The others commented on how she needs to be less merciful. As for war stories...well, it was quite a fight in general, but I actually got to shove a crazy krogan off into a deep abyss of darkness. Payback for what that one did to me on Omega, I guess." he told me, chuckling again as he recalled it. "And the one-on-one with Jedore was...interesting."

"Ooo, define _interesting."_

"Well...everyone else was distracted by the hords of krogan and mechs, so I decided to run towards her myself and fire on her. It was a very rough fight...basically, after a small game of cat and mouse, she tossed me all over the place with biotics. My armor was practically ripped to shreds, I was being thrown to the walls and then to the floor. If it wasn't for Miranda coming in at the last minute, I'd probably be dead. Both of us took the final shot that killed her." HK explained to me, cringing as he recalled it. "I'd like to think I helped weaken her, though."

"Of course you did," I said, nodding. "Wow! Are you gonna get the armor fixed soon?"

"Lets hope so. I should probably go see Jacob or Shepard about it pretty quick," HK answered. "Though I think Shepard's going to be pretty busy once she goes upstairs..."

I cringed. "Ah. Horizon's next. Yeah, I remember... I don't want to go, and you shouldn't, either. I think we should just tell her everything that happens that we can and go from there. It's not like she'll be making some huge choices there, anyway..."

"Tell her that her lover is there, and that their reunion is going to be all of five seconds before he breaks her heart? That'll keep her focused on the battle, alright," HK remarked with a snort.

"Yeah... we'll skip the part about Kaiden... besides, I think Timmy's telling her that he's there, too..." I shrugged. "It'll at least motivate her."

He nodded. "Maybe we can just tell her we can't tell her anything about Kaiden, but inform her about the rest? She'll finally be meeting the Collectors in person, will have to fight a huge one at the end...all that?"

"Hmm-sounds good! I'd almost feel bad for the Collectors, except in one of my 'dreams' they killed half of the crew, so..."

HK's jaw dropped, then pointed to EDI's terminal. "Shhh!" he whispered.

Ah crap. EDI had appeared in her holographic ball form right next to us. Almost... accusing us. "Well it could happen!" I said, chagrined.

"If the Collectors are to kill half of the crew, then I recommend warning Commander Shepard or the Illusive Man immediately," EDI said, staring at both of us.

"EDI...I know that none of you understand it, but alot of this is up to Shepard, and the choices she makes...we can help her, but we think it'd be disasterous if we tried to control every one of her decisions. She has to be her own woman," HK hesitantly explained, giving a weird look to me in the process, like he couldn't figure out how to explain this properly.

I knew the feeling. "Shepard could die, too," I pointed out. "We could all die. That's why we're here-to make sure that we stay on one thread and don't go walking off towards different ones. You have nothing to worry about. _You _live either way."

"I do not understand. Your logic is not there," EDI argued.

"I don't think any of this is supposed to be...logical. Reapers aren't logical. Collectors are barely logical. So the stuff here shouldn't be, either...as long as Shepard does the right things, and she's done okay so far, it should be fine. Just trust her, if you can't trust us." HK told her.

"I only hope you are correct," EDI said, blipping out.

He looked to me, and sighed.

I just had to shrug. "I never said I was known for my tact... and normally when I'm talking, giant Death Stars aren't watching us."

HK snorted. "She does look like one, doesn't she?" he said, glancing at her terminal again. "But I understand."

He looked around for a moment, silence falling upon us. Then, he spoke again. "So...wanna go see if Shep's recieved the news about Kaiden and Horizon yet?"

I shoved the rest of the grilled cheese in my mouth and motioned towards Rupert's stand. "Go get something to eat first, will you? You look like you've just come back from the dead."

"Fine, fine..." HK said with a sigh, knowing to not argue with me. He walked passed me and approached Rupert.

"Muahaha," I chuckled to myself, and took a seat right next to him. I didn't hesitate in ordering myself another grilled cheese, either.

"I'll have a couple pieces of toast," HK told him with a smile. He turned back to me while Rupert prepared it, sitting down at the table. "Easiest thing on the stomach, and I don't think I'm up for a feast right now. So, in all of this I haven't asked how you have been. How are you?"

"Awesome, of course," I said easily. "Drew a picture of Chakwas, but other than that? Bored, worried, frustrated... and yet still awesome." I winked. "Zaeed's crazy. He gave me a drawing pad and a pencil. I never thought he'd be the type for presents. I'm still looking for explosives in the paper... or something."

"All of these people are crazy," HK commented, shaking his head. "Jack and Zaeed both look like loons, which they probably are. Grunt's definitely going to be weird...Jacob, Miranda, Garrus, and Mordin are okay, but Mordin can get weird at times. Right now, I think our only actual friends are Jacob and Mordin...though maybe Shepard and Zaeed have warmed up to us."

"I don't know much about Shepard yet..." I muttered, perturbed. "Sometimes I feel like she doesn't believe us. Like we still have to prove ourselves in her eyes, you know? I just... I'm not getting a good reading off of her. She's just fine and dandy with everybody else, but there's something forced about her when she talks to us. Sure, she gives us good advice, et cetera, and she hasn't let us get ourselves killed yet... but she doesn't believe yet. And Tim definitely doesn't."

"Shepard's nice to us, where as Miranda has had a tendancy to just be snappy, but I get what you mean. When Jacob talks to us, I get a very friendly vibe from him...I think he trusts us. I get the same from Mordin...and heck, Garrus is probably starting to like us due to the fact that Sarah's been talking to him everyday and he has yet to ban her from his life. I also got a good sense from him when he was training us and on Korlus...not quite as friendly as Jacob, but still. But with Shepard...I don't know."

HK turned away for a moment, like he was thinking. "We have to remember that everything's a lot more real now, I guess...and Shepard just came back from the dead. She's still trying to get her bearings, and lead a huge new team into a fight against the Reapers after being gone for two years. I can understand why she could be uncertain."

"Hell yeah!" I said, nodding emphatically. "If I were her I wouldn't want some strangers aboard, out of nowhere, with no real story... We don't belong here, but it's so awesome! And we kind of DO belong here, now. Shepard isn't making the right choices without us. So in a way we have to be here and make sure she says Light Side. But I STILL don't know what to do about the final mission... radiation or bomb? You know?"

HK sighed, shaking his head. "Its a bad thing that we got transported here before the thi-before we had more visions," he said in a very, very quiet tone. "Because its basically, for me, sticking to morals and exposing ourselves to danger, or defying everything I stand for so we can live. I mean, I guess there will be a way to defeat them without a Reaper of our own...but it'd give us a big advantage. However, there's also the fact that the people using it will be...Cerberus."

"I know," I muttered, twisting my fingers uncomfortably in my lap. "I mean, all of the crew would hate it if we... kept it. And... maybe we should blow it up. Maybe that is the best option. I just wish that I knew what would happen! And here's another bright question: are we going to stay here after this is over? Or will we head back home?"

HK bit his lip for a moment. "I...I don't know. We may be stuck here forever, unless we are transported out and...gah, I have no idea. I'm still wondering if we'll even live at all. Even if we are trying to influence Shepard, there's still a good chance that all of this could be nothing but a bloodbath."

"Oh not on my watch!" I scoffed. "Hell no. No. No-no-no-nopity-no. I didn't get a bleedin' head just for everybody to die. And they won't. We can DO this. We're awesome, remember? We can do it. We just have to make... the right... oh dear."

I looked at HK, my eyes wide. "Dude, can we, er... 'hold the line' at the end? Will she choose us to be Leaders, or Escorts, or Infiltrators or something? Oh, damn, HK I don't know much about the seperate battles besides what we both know."

HK's jaw dropped as well, as if it hadn't even occurred to him. "I...I don't know. I mean, she should know who the talented ones are in this crew, but I am not sure if any of us could do some of that. Hold the line, maybe, because hopefully we'll have everyone else...but tech is Tali's thing. Leading is something for Miranda or Garrus, biotics are for Samara or Jack...the three of-"

"Oh _no_," HK said, a look of horror crossing his face. "What about Sarah? She's part of the crew, but not the party...she stays on the ship all the time! Will she get captured...like...the rest?"

I felt my stomach drop and had to grip the edge of the table for comfort. HK and I both had identical looks of terror upon our faces. "Oh no. No, no, no... No, we can't let that!" And then I realized exactly what I said. "But we have to," I whispered, comprehending the truth now. "Just like we let Okeer die on Korlus... Ohhh man."

I glanced away, chewing on my knuckle. Abruptly, I said, "We need to talk to Sarah about that. Soon. If she hasn't remembered... or... we just need to talk this over. As a group. Not right now. I want to get past Horizon first, okay? After that, we'll all sit down and go over every single descision. Make sure we're on the right track."

HK took a deep breath. "Yes, yes...you're right. I...I want to stop it, I really do, even more than I wanted to save Okeer, but I know we can't do it...if we were to bring Sarah on the shuttle, it wouldn't make sense to Shepard, and she'd want to know why. If we told her the truth, she and the entire crew would totally stay to protect the ship. No way would they head off knowing that the crew's about to get snatched...we may be able to talk them into some things, but not that. But you are right...after Horizon, we need to tell Sarah, and discuss all of this."

He put a hand under his chin. "Its just so complicated. Before now, everything was okay, but after Horizon is when everything really kicks into gear. Shepard's choices are going to matter more and more, and if she makes the wrong ones, it could be disasterous...she could screw up while on a loyalty mission, she could take a side in the fight...heck, she could ditch Samara for Morinth!" he whispered, keeping his voice as low as possible. "Its all going to get real crazy from here on out, even crazier if she does the wrong things."

I only had one word for that: "Grawr."

"By the way, ummm..." HK began, looking like he was slightly weirded out by what he was about to say. "Did we ever decide who she...er, well...romances?"

"Uh..." Hmm. Good question. "Well... I honestly can't remember. That seems like months ago, doesn't it? I mean... I almost feel like I've already taken my 4th Kyu test in Aikido!"

"Not sure why I'm asking, technically its her business, and its probably the thing that matters the least in the grand scheme of things, if she even romances anyone. Its just, uh...heck, I don't know." HK commented.

"I'd kind of prefer she stay with Kaiden," I said, grinning slyly to myself. "He's kind of... good." _Uh, no girl. More like HOT. _"The dying one isn't the best choice... the other guy, no matter how awesome, would not work... and the other guy is claimed by another nutcase on this crew."

HK glared at me. "That is one of our closest friends we are talking about..." he pointed out. "But I get what you are saying, though Kaiden's boring. But I think we'll just leave that up to her."

"Kaiden is not boring," I muttered crossly. In fact, in MY playthrough, Abigail Shepard was still VERY much in love with him. Why? Because I wanted him for ME3. I hugged HK, more out of habit than anything else. "Glad you got back okay. Really. I was worried."

HK smiled, hugging me back. "Aww, thanks...yes, it was...scary and fun all at the same time. And Kaiden's nice, but I've just never cared for him much...but to each their own. But seriously, thank you for being so concerned."

"Hey, 'concerned' is my middle name sometimes. I'm always concerned about... uh..."

I gave him a look, and something fell into place. "HK... I did take my 4th Kyu test. I passed. My dad is testing this month."

"What?" HK asked, looking very confused.

I closed my eyes, sorting through all of my recent memories. I held up one finger. "HK... what did you do on Earth yesterday?"

"I...I was at my house, most of the day...I...wow, we've been here for awhile but I can remember everything that's gone on in my life too...like we're still living there, but we're really living there. We're here, but...what would happen if we were there, is fresh in our brains everyday. Wow, I never realized this before..." HK said slowly, comprehension dawning in his eyes.

"WOW." I looked at him, a large grin flickering over my face. "That's beast. And... do you remember me telling you just now about the Aikido backyard party I went to... and how I'm tired? Oh my God! How could I not notice this before?"

"I-I...don't know. We've been here for awhile, but we only now realize that we also have our memories of what would be happening if we stayed on Earth...so if we were on Earth, this is what our lives would be like," HK said, breathless. "Thats the only explanation...let me think about if I know anything more about ME...wait, I-I got Kasumi and Zaeed, I know what their lives are like...I know what its like to get Morinth, to romance Garrus and hand the base over to Cerberus...oh my."

I actually squealed a little bit. "Overlord. I got-Overlord-and... Oh dear. Ohhhh dear. Crap. That was like a horror story waiting to happen. Crap. Are we going to have to do that? If we do, I volunteer. I'm gonna have to... crap."

"I don't think I've gotten that...not yet, anyway. Wow, this is crazy...we're here, our lives are here, but everyday that goes by, we get more memories of what would be happening if none of this took place. Goodness." HK said, shaking his head in what was likely amazement. "Hopefully, this will somehow...help us, but I'm not sure how."

HK looked down slightly, like he was getting worried. Not that that was uncommon for him. "Abby...I don't think I've told you or Sarah, but...this isn't the only weird thing thats happened. To me, at least."

"Yeah?" I asked, interested. "What happened?"

"I just sorta forgot because of all the chaos on Korlus, with Okeer and Grunt, but then this brought it back. This morning, right before Miranda woke me up for the mission, I had this...strange deam. Maybe its nerves, but it was weird...not like a normal dream. I saw the scenes of certain people dying, including Shepard...like in the g-in our original visions. Tali died at the door, Mordin led the teams, Garrus got carted off, everyone else died when just fighting...but I also saw us, the three of us, leaving and me saying that it wasn't safe on the Normandy anymore, which just didn't make sense. Maybe its just because Sarah thought about leaving before she became part of the ship crew, but also..."

He stopped for a moment, biting his lip. "Someone said "You have failed", or something like that...not sure who it was referring to, or who it was. The only one I recall saying that is Harbinger, and I really don't think it was him in the dream."

"I understand," I told him, pursing my lips. "Must have been nerves... my first night here I had a dream Commander Shepard was feeding us to her fish. Was the voice really distinct? Like... did it stand out more than normal dream-versions?"

HK nodded. "Yes, its hard to explain but normal dreams are...not as clear, a little more distant, maybe? Like, you know they are not real...just figments of your imagination. But when you have something that is that close, that vivid, that real..it strikes you more. This was one of those ones where it just felt like more than your average dream."

I blinked. "Wow. Well... then obviously, we know what not to do now. We can't leave. That'd be horrible."

"Luckily, I don't think thats in the cards for any of any of us. Not at this point, not even for Sarah...and she seems satisfied, anyway." HK said. "Still, it was weird."

"And we probably won't know more about it, either," I muttered, scratching up at my stitches again. "Almost makes you not want to go to sleep, though, doesn't it?"

HK chuckled. "I actually want to go to sleep right now either way...but I think I'll be fine, and I sorta want to stay up for whats to come," he said. "Besides, if I went to sleep while the Horizon stuff is going on, I'd probably never hear the end of it from Miranda."

The ship made a soft hitching movement beneath my feet, as if accentuating the point. I glanced at Rupert, concerned, and he just shrugged and went back to polishing a glass. "Ship's moving," I heard one of the crewmen coming around the corner say. I thought her name was Rolsten. "Wonder where we're heading to this time..."

"Horizon," I muttered to HK, standing. "I-"

Miranda appeared in the doorway of her office, dressed, but her hair was wet. So that had been a shower in there after all. "You two," she said, "you head up to the briefing room. The Commander wants a word."

"Crap," I muttered.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I wasn't sure where HK or Abby were at the moment. I knew that HK was alright, of course, as were the rest of the team. I was just wandering down the hall, thinking about everything I'd just said to Garrus... and everything we'd agreed on. I also couldn't help but wonder if I'd screw things up somehow, or do something really stupid.

I went over a mental list in my mind, trying to recall everything that Rupert had asked me to do. He'd handed me a list of chores and duties to perform on a daily basis, to make sure the ship operated smoothly. After all, even the little things made a difference. I had learned that lesson a long time ago-something as simple as picking up trash off the floor could be very helpful. Simply because it meant no one else had to do it... or had to step on trash, if for no other reason.

Still, I was excited. I was scared, but excited at the same time over what I'd agreed to do with Garrus, whenever there was time. I just hoped that we would be going to the Citadel, eventually. But surely we would... Shepard would want to go see the Council at some point anyway, wouldn't she?

I didn't feel like cleaning at the moment. Oh, I would later, but right now... I just felt like roaming around on the ship a little, on my own. I passed a few crewmembers as I wandered down the hallway, but for the most part we all just ignored each other, except for a small greeting or nod of acknowledgement.

Eventually I found myself at the elevator, and I got inside. After the doors closed my hand hovered over the controls for a moment. I squinted at it as I tried to decide where I was going this time. Then... I got a wild idea.

I pressed the button to take me down to the engineering section. What was I doing? Well... even I wasn't really sure. Maybe I just wanted to try and face my fears, because... if there was one thing I'd been learning it was that, sometimes at least, if I was scared or nervous about something... there were times when it wasn't as bad as my imagination was making it out to be.

Maybe I wanted to test that for myself. So... was Jack really all that scary or terrible, or was she at least approachable? Maybe I just wanted to see for myself. Besides... part of me wanted to see if she was... ticked off at me at all, for the... um, incident that happened in the men's bathroom. I swear I blushed slightly when I remembered that.

When I reached the engineering section, I quietly stepped out of the lift, and then I very quietly found the stairs and tip-toed down them. I didn't want anyone to see me until and unless I was ready for them to see me. That was one way I could feel like I was in control.

When I reached the lower level of engineering, I found that it was dimly lit, and when I walked around to the area behind the stairs, that's when I saw her. She was sitting on the edge of a small rise on the floor, and seemed to be studying some datapads. I could see her makeshift bunk behind her.

I inched closer, folding my hands behind my back, feeling my eyes grow wider as I approached her. I couldn't tell if she knew I was there or not. Maybe she was just ignoring me... or perhaps she was engrossed in her reading. I wondered if I should say something, or cough to announce my presence, or just turn around and leave.

Jack looked up at me, finally, and just stared. "Going to talk, or are you gonna keep standing there and looking like a dumbass?"

I flinched and took a step back. "Uh... sorry, am I bothering you?" I finally stammered.

Jack just rolled her eyes, standing up and looking at the wall. "What the hell kind of question is that? Everyone bothers me, bitch, but our Commander and the cheerleader want me to not rip everyone's head off, so I guess you're okay."

I swallowed. Maybe this would be a good time to excuse myself and get out of here. But then again... I remembered that Shepard had been able to talk to her, and... at the very least, she never attacked the commander or anything. So... maybe if I just ignored her temper and her attitude, I could still talk to her.

"I just hope you're not mad at me or anything," I finally said, shuffling my feet on the floor a little. "I mean... about what happened in the bathroom." I averted my gaze, staring at the opposite wall.

"Ah, yeah, that. So you saw another woman take a piss? That's nothing. We've all come out of a woman's ass, so it shouldn't be a problem to watch something much less painful come out." Jack told me, leaning against the wall casually.

I pressed my lips together and looked away again, focusing my gaze on the opposite wall. I felt my face heating up, and I placed a hand on my cheeck absent-mindedly. "Uh... I wasn't talking about that," I muttered. "I meant when... I let Zaeed walk in on you." I grimanced. Did I really have to spell it out like that?

"Yeah, I've seen and done worse. If it had annoyed me, everyone on this ship would know it. He and the turian didn't bother me," Jack scoffed.

I still couldn't quite look at her. I knew that she had a... unique way of looking at things, and she was kind of crazy, but... how could she be so dang casual about all of this? "But... what happened in there?" I dared to ask. She didn't seem to care much about this subject, so I felt it was okay to press it and satisfy my curiousity.

She smiled. "If just watching pee drip into a toilet freaks you out, I don't think you want to know."

Now I looked at her, my eyes going wide, and I felt my eyebrows shoot up high to the top of my forehead.

"See? I knew it. Your friend was scarred enough...he ran out tof there faster than alot of people have ran when they see me. Hope he didn't have any business to take care of," Jack said with a laugh.

I turned away from her, moving toward the opposite wall. I was trying to get those... mental images out of my head, and I was strongly tempted to leave. But I couldn't leave. If I left now, I would only feel all the more awkward when I saw Jack again. And this was a small ship; you could avoid everyone forever.

"What do you think of Garrus?" I finally blurted out. Frankly, that had now become my default question, when I was talking to someone and couldn't think of anything else to say. Besides... part of me was always curious what others thought of him. And it gave me something to say when I couldn't stand the silence, or-as in this case-I desperately wanted to change the subject.

"No, I don't wanna screw him. He's all yours," Jack answered with a shrug, still smiling creepily.

That did it. I buried my face into my hands, turning away from her completely. Somebody kill me, right now.

"Oh, don't be dramatic. I've learned to live on my instincts, and alot of the crew may not know it, but I do. I've heard the rumors, and I've seen you two together a few times...yeah, its easy to figure out for someone with a brain." Jack said to me, her tone still an emotionless one, like always.

"It's... not like that," I said, moving my hands away from my face and lowering them. I still didn't quite look at her. "I mean... um... I'm helping him with something-or I'm GOING to help him with something, I mean, but... he's not interested." I winced. Gosh this was awkward. But I felt a need to set the record straight. If nothing else, I didn't want Garrus to think that I was thinking about ambushing him in his quarters or something.

"I'm not talking about whether he's interested, I know that _you_ are. And helping him with something, huh? Don't care, but yeah, I know that for you, its more than some stupid little deal. But hey, thats okay. I say go for it." Jack said.

I turned to look at her now, feeling my eyes tighten into a scowl. Of course, I wasn't surprised that she was... thinking along those lines. I mean, probably everyone on the ship knew about my feelings for Garrus now, and any newcomer who came aboard would know about it soon after coming aboard. It was inevitable. But...

"Hey... I just wanna help him take care of, um... some unfinished business. That doesn't mean I want to jump him," I finally said, a bit defensively.

"Yes, yes it does," Jack said, laughing and shaking her head. "Everyone on this ship has shit that they need to deal with, but are you going around to them asking to help? No, you're only going to him."

I looked down at the floor, feeling my cheeks heat up again. Or maybe I had been blushing the entire time; I couldn't tell anymore. Well... it was true that I wasn't going around to help out everyone. But it seemed so stupid. And I hated it when people made those kinds of assumptions about me or my motives, especially when they were at least %90 right.

I cleared my throat. It helped me find my voice. "Well... I do want to help him," I finally said. "And uh... I do like him. A lot. But at the same time... ummm... well... I..." I squeezed my eyes shut briefly, trying to decide if I wanted to finish that sentence or not.

Jack walked towards me, staring me right in the face. "Don't bother with that emotional crap...you know what you want, so be smart and go for it. Tell him that after you help him, you're going to go see him, and you two are going to have a little fun. Simple as that."

I took a couple of hasty steps back. "But... that's not right! I shouldn't make a deal like that. I mean... shouldn't it be his choice if he wants to?" Ugh, I couldn't believe I was even saying this. There was NO WAY I was going to walk up to Garrus and make that kind of demand. I'd never be able to show my face in public again.

Jack snorted. "Bitch, you're worrying about morals while serving on a Cerberus frigate? Whats right and wrong doesn't matter, it just drags you down and turns you into a wimp. Live like you want to, have a little fun...who gives two shits about his feelings, or anyone else's? Not your problem."

I turned away from her again, locking my eyes onto the opposite wall. "But... that goes against everything I believe, and everything I was always taught. I mean... um... I think that something like sex should totally be a mutual decision, not the result of a deal, and it shouldn't be... pressured." Good lord I couldn't believe I was even having this conversation.

Jack just walked back over to the wall. "Well, suit it yourself, but you're missing out on alot in life using that viewpoint."

I glanced over my shoulder in her direction. "But what good is it, if both parties don't agree to it on their own?" I muttered aloud. I probably should have just kept my mouth shut and left. But no, I had to press the issue.

"Then they miss out on it, and its their loss. Simple as that," Jack answered, shrugging.

"Yeah but... I just feel like... if Garrus did it just because we made a deal, or because I did him a big favor... that wouldn't be real, would it? I mean... you can have a casual time with anyone."

"Real? Why the hell does it even have to be real?" Jack scoffed. "But I get it...you are one of the mushy, lovey-dovey types. You want true love and all that...well, then of course you don't like my idea. I'm not into that shit."

_Then I am totally talking to the wrong person about this, _I thought. I wasn't even sure how the hell we even got on this topic of conversation. Still... it did make me rethink some things. What did I really want, true love? Somehow... I couldn't really imagine Garrus being that kind of person, at least not for me. He'd made it clear he wasn't interested, and I wasn't sure if he was into anything more than a casual fling.

After all... he had gotten with a female turian before, on one of the ships he'd served on in the past. Somehow, that dampened my feelings at least a bit.

"I think I'll go back upstairs," I finally muttered, shaking my head a bit.

"Yup," Jack simply said.

* * *

**(Abby)**

Commander Shepard was waiting for us there, stern-faced and stiff-backed as ever. She hadn't even had the chance to change out of her armor yet, poor lady. A streak of orange blood across her face served as a reminder of the dreadful operation on Korlus, and the slight sag of her shoulders, no matter how much she tried to hide it, belied a deep weariness I could tell was still seeping into her limbs.

"Sit down," she said, gesturing to the chairs set up around the meeting table. She sat across from us, forcing a small smile on her face. "Doctor Chakwas doesn't feel you're up to another ground assault yet, Abby," she said, "and I won't make HK go again. But if we're going in blind, I'm going to need some sort of answers."

"Should I go get another piece of paper?" I asked sarcastically.

"No need. EDI, bring it up."

A large, topographic map appeared without a hitch on the holo-projector fitted in the exact center of the table. I knew immediately it was Horizon. "We're going to drop off here," she said, pointing to a particular spot. I got up and circled around, trying to orient myself. I could see Shepard watching me out of the corner of her eye.

"Is there any way we can enlarge... this square area here?"

EDI complied. "There's the warehouse," I said, pointing. I followed the line with my finger, all the way to the knot of buildings right before the large battle. "Ah. Okay, then." I went back to the original spot. "You'll meet the first of your resistance about here. Collectors, naturally. There are also husks with them."

"Husks?" Shepard echoed. "Like the geth used?"

"The geth took that technology from Sovereign, Commander," I told her. "It's very advanced, see? The Collectors are working with a Reaper, just like you already knew. And this Reaper can possess individual Collectors, boosting their armor and biotic barriers. No, the Collectors aren't biotic, except for the ones that glow orange, okay? Take those guys out first."

I glanced at HK, biting my lip as I tried to remember the rest. "The husks have newer... variations. Not fun. Uh... there's the normal guys. They suck. There are red ones who run up to you and implode, and to be honest I don't think your shields will help. And the Scions... the Scions are basically a lot of humans grounded together. There is a blue sack behind their gun arm-"

"They're your worst nightmare," HK said fervently.

"Uh pretty much!" I agreed. "They suck. A lot. Uber suckishness."

Shepard didn't look impressed. "Weapons? Armaments?"

"The Scions are equipped with a special weapon that shoots out... well... I don't know what it is, but if you see or feel it coming for you you better get the heck out of the way. Quickly. It's some kind of biotic-based attack, I don't know. It hurts. It's like a shockwave of biotic Warp coming your way."

"Okay."

"There are some Collectors that have particle-beam weapons. Stay away from them and take them out from long-range. And...

"The Praetorian."

"You'll want your own particle beam for that one, which you'll find lying around on Horizon somewhere. Keep an eye out, it shouldn't be hard to find. But the Praetorian is probably the worst Collector you will ever encounter...he can kill you in a matter of seconds. Keep moving, and stay behind things as much as possible. Harbi-er, the possessed Collector, the Scions, and the Praetorian will all approach you. Keep as far away as possible, especially with the Praetorian. You can take care of it, but its going to be able to repeatedly put its barrier back up. You and whoever else is with you just need to keep firing at it as you move, but don't focus so much on that that you get yourselves killed." HK finished, shuddering as he thought about it.

I giggled a little hysterically there. "The Collector's particle beam works, or the grenade launcher. Or the nuke. Nukes work, but I'd save that for a... special occassion. Also, quick question: when are we arriving at Horizon?"

"A day. It's far out there." She gave me a look. "And Kaidan Alenko is there."

"Yeah, I know," I said. "Funny thing... isn't it?"

"You haven't told me what happens to him. He and I were good friends."

I raised an eyebrow. "With benefits," I muttered HK's way.

She turned to him, her cheeks heating up. Perhaps she felt she'd get better answers out of him than me... she was probably right. "HK," she said, "I need you to tell me if Kaidan is alive or not down there."

HK's jaw dropped, and his eyes went wide. He glared at me, before looking back to her. "Well, okay...yes, he's alive, but I can't tell you anymore than that. Its your business, not ours...but he's not dead. You'll find out everything else down there."

"If this another damn thing you can't tell me?" she asked, her voice going icy. Scary icy. I could feel the hairs on the back of my neck prick up. "Because I've had enough of that bullshit. You tell me, right now, or-"

"Commander Shepard," EDI said, "Mordin wishes to see you."

She clenched her fists and consciously relaxed her shoulders. "Tell him I'll be a few minutes, EDI."

"Commander."

EDI's form took shape in the middle of the table, overtaking the map. She stared emotionlessly at Shepard, who visibly slumped and stood. She walked out of the room. EDI's ball form rotated slowly to face the both of us. "The Commander is upset at you. You consistently offer half-truths and ommissions to your stories that do not match up when you talk amongst yourselves. She will not talk to you about this yet, but be assured that you will answer for yourselves after tomorrow."

I nodded. "We're not trying to frustrate her! Honestly. This is just so hard! We've never exactly been in this type of situation before."

"Adapt." EDI winked out of existence, taking the map with her.

I stared at HK, my mouth hanging slightly open with frustration. "Wonderful."

HK looked completely shocked and horrified. "What am I supposed to tell her?" he growled. "The man she loves is going to break her heart? I can't...and what does EDI mean we are going to answer for ourselves?"

"No, we can't talk about this here," I said in a low growl, jerking my head at the table for emphasis. I hit the table with the palm of my hand. "But just in case anybody is listening... Shepard should take the best fighters. _Just saying! _Because it's going to make Garrus's mission look like a cakewalk."

"I don't care if they listen, if they want answers, they'll ge-okay, sorry, sorry...guess Shepard's outburst frusterated me," HK said with a sigh, putting his head in his palms. "But I can understand her point of view, especially when it comes to her boyfriend."

I was totally tempted to lean right into EDI's hole and yell, _Kaidan's changed and doesn't love her anymore so don't you go around patronizing us you ship cancer!_ I crossed my arms and took a few deep breaths to calm myself down. "At this rate we're going to be thrown off the dang ship."

"I...I just don't know what to tell them," HK whispered. "I mean...is Shepard just going to tie us up and force everything out of us? This...heck, I don't know what to say."

I felt my eyes go wide. Like a wish gone bad, almost... the person thinks they're getting everything, but it turns out horrible. Damn, I'd seen a lot of movies like that before... I never really liked them much, to be honest. "We can only highlight the path ahead by a few steps.. but we need to have her find things out herself, too. Or else it won't work. I mean, yeah, I know it's frustrating but holy crap, can't she just... take a chill pill?"

HK rubbed the back of his neck. "If I were in her position, I'd be pretty mad, but not sure if I'd be as mad as she is...but she just came back from the dead, like I said earlier, and now has this thrown on top of everything else. I understand, but she just needs to understand us, too. We can't hold her hand and walk her down the path to defeat the Collectors...lets hope she comes to know that."

I nodded, tapping my foot on the deck impatiently. "We'll be at Horizon in a day. She probably won't try to corner us until afterwards... hopefully. I'm not getting into this conversation with her."

HK nodded. "Lets hope that she has so much stuff that takes up her time so that she just...forgets about it, or cools down, or something." he said with a heavy sigh. "But for now, what do we do?"

"You should probably go clean up and get some sleep," I said wryly. "I'll hang around the ship for a while... but I'm avoiding the ground team for now. I'm not sure if I could omit so many things to Garrus or Jacob if they caught up with me, you know?"

"Fortunately for you," EDI said, popping up again. "Omitting things to Mr. Vakarian will not be hard, at least on personal matters like this. He and Sarah have already discussed his personal life indepthly, and have even struck a deal."

"...what kind of deal?" I asked suspisciously.

"To go after the man that betrayed him, Sidonis, whenever we stop at the Citadel." EDI answered.

I contemplated on that, then nodded. "O-kaay. I doubt it could screw up anything, and Garrus likes Sarah a lot, so..." I looked at HK. "Sounds good, right?"

HK nodded, looking like he was in deep thought for a moment. EDI dissappeared, and he looked at me. "You know..." he slowly began. "I wonder if, okay this is crazy, but I wonder if...Sarah has the right idea, or something. Like...maybe its just because my mind is on the missions, kinda, but maybe...we need to initiate them? Just a thought."

"We'll see after Horizon," I said, "but I see where you're getting at. If... a certain person's words are different after the mission, then we'll see what we can dig up. I think. I hope."

HK nodded. "Indeed...may help us get back into the good graces of some people," he commented. "But we'll have to see."

"Yup," I muttered. "Thanks, EDI."


	16. Horizon

**(HK)**

It had been a very solemn twenty-four hours. Both Abby and I were on edge, and we had also told Sarah, who saw Shepard's point-of-view on all of this clear and well, but had tried her best to keep her distance and go about her cleaning duties on the ship.

And I felt like the crew was on edge, too...not because of Shep getting at us, but just because we were about to encounter Collectors. Some, like Miranda and Jacob, were calm because they knew this day was coming. But everyone else, unless you were the uncaring ones like Jack and Grunt, seemed a little frightened of what was to come.

Not to mention, Shepard's former lover was on this planet too, and everyone was wondering how she'd react to that. I had to wonder if that was what put a few people on edge more than the thought of encountering Collectors.

I'd tried to get as much rest as I could in during the past day. I got several hours of sleep, but was too nerve-wracked to truly react. I was terrified of seeing Shepard after what had been said, and being on bad terms with the commanding officer of the ship you served on was not a good idea.

Now, Shepard, Garrus, and Zaeed were all down on Deck 5, getting ready to head to Horizon. Abby and I felt it was safe to head to the cockpit and try to...watch over things.

"Well," I said to her as we walked past the Galaxy map. "You're about to meet Joker."

Abby didn't even look excited at the prospect. Her hands were clenching and unclenching at her side. She just nodded and glanced over her shoulder. I looked back, too. Mordin was striding towards us-or towards the cockpit. He simply nodded as he fell into step beside us. "Very exciting," he stated. "Nervous?"

"Um, yeah, sorta," I replied with a shrug. "I'm not as...casual about this stuff as you, Mordin."

"Ah, but very exciting! First glance at relatively hidden species, with countermeasure that is first of a kind! Amazing!" Mordin exclaimed. "No need to fear."

I nodded with a chuckle. "Well, not only that, but I think the Commander's really mad at us for not telling her everything we know."

"Secrets common in salarian families. Necessary...nothing new for me. Hopefully Shepard will come to understand," Mordin said.

_Oh, she won't be in a good mood once Horizon is over, so I doubt she'll be understanding._

We walked into the cockpit, where Joker and EDI were sitting. EDI's blue form stared at us. "Mr. Moreau, the two that Shepard has spoken alot about are here...the ones with the predictions for the future. One is quite fanatical about you," she said.

I glanced at Abby, prepared the burst out laughing, but quailed underneath the withering stare she was directing at EDI. "Have they taken off yet?" she asked.

"Thanks for telling me I've got a fan, EDI, it'd be nice to have one around here, but I'm kinda focused on other things at the moment," Joker retorted to his AI rival. "And no, they haven't, but they're about to."

I stayed silent, ignoring the fact that Abby was not going absolutely nuts over Joker, but I wasn't quite surprised once I put my mind to it. We had alot more going on right now than meeting our idols.

"Okay, she's going now," Joker said.

Seconds later, we saw the shuttle fly out from underneath the Normandy, heading to the planet right in front of us.

"Lets hope this goes well," I whispered to Abby.

She nodded fervently. "Yup." She stroked the cut on her head again with her finger. It was an unconscious habit I'd noticed yesterday, when she was nervous. She blew out a deep breath.

Joker glanced over his shoulder, looking at us directly for the first time since we'd arrived. "Great," he grumbled, his eyes examining us. "Don't you kids have something better to do?"

"We need to stay up here," Abby said. "To help."

"Uh-huh, okay. Take a seat, then, and for God's sake don't press any buttons. I don't have time to babysit you three today." Joker turned back around, frowning over his statistics. "They're hitting planet-side now..."

"Ah, exciting," said Mordin, glancing out the viewport. "Wish I was down there with them... but Shepard's choice. Garrus and Zaeed much better combat-wise than I am, of course. Hope she collects samples of Collector DNA."

"I'm sure it's high on her to-do list," Joker said sarcastically.

I rolled my eyes slightly...I liked Joker, and his reaction was expected, but I wasn't quite in the mood for it. I'd just have to deal with it, though...and this was the first time that Joker had seen the crazy people onboard. It was how anyone would be, really...hopefully it'd improve in the future.

"Shepard is contacting us," EDI announced.

"We've hit groundside. Mordin, you sure these armor upgrades will hold against seeker swarms?" Shepard asked.

"Certainty impossible. But in limited numbers should confuse detection, make you invisible to swarms... in theory," Mordin replied, leaning over the comm unit.

"In theory?" Garrus repeated doubtfully. Abby grinned.

"Experimental technology, only test is contact with seeker swarms. Looking forward to see if you survive." Mordin answered.

The comm went dead after that.

"You'll still be able to talk to her for a little while, but its gonna get cut off soon enough...she'll be on her own," I said to the others.

"I'm already picking up some interferance," Joker said, scrolling through a very complicated-looking sequence. "Filtering through the white noise... Uh oh. Picking up some biometric readings."

"Shepard has engaged the Collectors," EDI said.

Abby sat down at EDI's terminal and brought her knees up to her chest. "You know," she said offhandidly, "It's kind of worse hearing the action and not being able to help instead of being down there with her."

I nodded in agreement. "Being on the battlefield's scary, but having to listen to it and not being able to do anything is really bad, too."

"Story of my life," Joker said with a snort.

I wanted to smack myself, as I totally forgot that that was how Joker lived. Always in the cockpit listening to Shepard's battle, not being able to do a thing...he had to endure that everyday. Every single day, whether it was two years ago or now.

It was hard to imagine having the kind of life that Joker did.

"Roughly, how difficult do you expect the Collectors to be?" Mordin inquired, giving us a curious look.

"Like we told Shepard, alot of them aren't going to be hard. For a rare, barely seen species, only a couple of them pack a real punch. This fight will be over within a minute or two." I answered, sitting down in a chair and putting my elbows on my knees. "You're countermeasure will work great, though."

"On this world, anyway," Abby said wryly. She must have been thinking about the ending mission. We were silent for what felt like a long time, until...

"They won," Joker announced. "But... ah shit." He typed a command into the keyboard and cursed when it didn't go through. "Commander, we're getting all kinds of interferance, we can't maintain the signal. You're on your own for now."

All that came through the intercom was white noise.

"It's the Collectors jamming communications," Abby said quietly. "Until Shepard reaches the main guns the Alliance was installing, you'll be out of luck."

"We'll see about that," Joker muttered. "Look alive, EDI. Think you can cut through the jamming?"

"Their devices are very advanced, Mr. Moreau," she answered. "I cannot penetrate the jamming. But I do detect a gradual softening on the farther side of the colony where the new AA weapon is located. Abby's assumption is correct."

Joker said nothing. Abby and I exchanged a glance. "So," she asked me, "how long do you think this entire thing will take, hmm?"

"Depends on how fast she moves," I responded in a monotone. "The colony isn't very big, but there are going to be alot of Collectors trying to kill them...and the husks. I'd say it'll be an hour or so."

"Husks?" Joker asked in shock.

"The Reapers like to use them," I simply answered.

Abby sighed, like she was getting ready to explain something. And she was. "So you know how the geth were working with Saren, who was working with Sovereign?"

Joker turned around halfway in his seat, staring at Abby with suspiscious eyes. "Yeah..."

"The husk technology isn't geth. It's far too advanced. The Reapers allocated some of their technology to the geth in return for their help. But they only got the most basic, basic form of husk technology. The Collectors, the slaves and pawns of the Reapers, have a bit more.. advanced stuff going on."

"Like?"

"The Dragon's Teeth aren't on Horizon," she said, "but the husks are there. Weird, right? Not really. You have your normal varient, the blue guys who like shocking you, but now you have some red guys who implode when they're around you, Scions, Praetorians..."

"Praetorians," EDI stated. "After the Emperor's guard in Rome?"

"That's what we call them," Abby said. "Thank God you guys will only see two, though. They're very, very hard to kill. But it's the Scions you have to worry the most about, because those are about... oh, twenty or so husks molded together and grafted into a... well, you'll see. It has a very powerful biotic attack, kind of like a shockwave of pure energy. More powerful than anything Shepard can recreate, even with her upgrades. I have a theory that Scions are the husks of humans with latent biotic abilities, unless the Collectors and Reapers have found a way to manipulate that talent as well."

Silence. Then: "Oh."

"Disgusting," said Mordin, still staring out into space. "Inhumane. Have seen the geth reports. After Sovereign was destroyed over the Citadel, husks vanished. Thought they may be Reaper technology before you told me, but theory confirmed. That is... troubling."

"You already knew about the Reapers before you got on this ship?" Joker asked. "What the hell?"

"Of course I did," Mordin said. "Commander Shepard helped a salarian STG squad under the command of Captain Kirrahe on Virmire. Word circulates around operatives and eventually reaches me."

"Do the STG members believe in Sovereign?" Abby asked curiously.

"Of course not," said Mordin. "Or at least, not most of them. Captain Kirrahe is half and half on the matter, I believe, but I do not know. The only thing I am certain of are the facts that were relayed back to me and my interpretation of them... and a little judicious hacking into classified Council records. Commander Shepard hasn't been wrong before, so why would she be incorrect about this assessment? To ignore a woman such as she isn't only stupid, it's suicidal. But how was I to help? I drifted to Omega... and have worked there ever since."

"Crazy," Joker said. "We saved the Council's ass back there and all they do is put us on a geth trail."

"And the Collectors found you, dragging you back in," Abby said, understanding. "That was one of the scariest parts I'd ever seen... but there are going to be worse parts ahead."

Joker laughed. "Hard to imagine."

Abby smiled sadly. "Sorry."

"The Council is in deep denial...I think they want to believe that they can continue to live their little lives out in peace," I said, shaking my head at them. I always hated the Council. "As...controversial as Cerberus is, they don't hesitate to get the job done."

_More like as vile, as cold-hearted as they are._

"Yeah," Joker said, and that was the end of that conversation.

The silence seemed to stretch on forever and forever. Abby had her eyes closed, her head resting on her knees; Joker was trying to get past the jamming, to no avail; Mordin watched the planet of Horizon rotate through the viewport, caught up in his own thoughts; EDI just stayed still and silent, possibly working through Collector algorithms; and I just kind of sat and watched.

It seemed like forever until they reached the transmitter. Commander Shepard's voice made us all jump. "Normandy, do you copy?" she sounded very harassed. I automatically winced.

"Joker here. Signal's weak, Commander, but we got you."

"EDI, can you get the colony's defense towers online?"

Abby glanced up and gave me a look, biting her lip. "Errors in the calibration software are easily rectified, but it will take time to bring them to full power," said EDI. "I recommend a defensive posture. I will not be able to mask an increased generator output."

"Those bastards will be swarming on us soon enough anyway," Zaeed said. "We'll take cover, Shepard."

Shepard sighed. "Got any other helpful tips?" she asked. It might have been sarcastically, but I couldn't tell for sure.

"Just one," EDI said. "Enemy reinforcements are closing in. I recommend you ready weapons."

"Good luck, Shep!" Abby called.

"Yes, good luck," I called as well, just to be kind, even though I knew that both of our voices were probably the last things that she wanted to hear right now. I looked to EDI. "You might want to go as fast as human-as fast as AI-ly possible."

"I will do my best," EDI assured.

I stood up, and began to pace for a few minutes out of nervousness...Joker was staring forward, I wasn't sure if EDI could get distracted like an organic could, so I doubted it bothered anyone.

A few minutes passed, and EDI said. "Defense towers at 40%."

I could hear some of the fire fight over the comm. The Collectors were literally raining down on the area. I winced at the thought.

"Defense towers at 60%," EDI announced a moment later.

"Come on, EDI!" Shepard snapped.

I continued to listen to the fight down on Horizon...it was starting to die down, but in reality, it was only just beginning. I glanced at Abby.

"Defense towers at 80%," EDI said.

While EDI continued to work, everything went silent for a moment...it was about twenty seconds, until I heard a _massive_ fight erupt. "What the hell is that thing?" Garrus yelled.

I looked at Abby again. "Here we go."

Abby leaned over Joker's shoulder to speak to the intercom. "Shepard, that's a Praetorian. It has a laser, so stay away from that. And do NOT get close to it. Knock down the armor as best as you can with heavy weapons. It has a biotic barrier it brings up a lot, too. You can do it!"

"How the hell does she know that?" Zaeed grunted. Garrus cried out in either surprise or pain, and we all tensed. "Ah... take that, you son of a bitch!"

Joker's knuckles were white. "Hurry it up, EDI..."

"Shepard-look out!"

"I got it-go around-"

Grunts. "My shields are down!" It was Zaeed. "Get it's attention, Vakarian!"

Heavy breathing from all three of them was all we could hear. We were all huddled around the comlink, and if I looked over my shoulder I could see the others of the crew eavesdropping as well.

"What the hell is it doing-? Garrus, get away from that thing! Zaeed, circle around and draw it's fire. Keep to cover! Garrus, to me! Get to one of the bridges and take a sniping position-ungh-"

"Shepard!"

She groaned. "We're good. Those two weren't lying." She panted heavily.

It was a few more seconds before we heard anything else. It seemed as though Shepard had dispersed the entire squad around the area in a triangle formation.

"Like I said, keep your distance!" I shouted, even though they likely knew that by now. I could hear the fight continuing, with Shepard shouting orders to Zaeed and Garrus.

"Defense towers at 100%. I have control. Firing on the Collector ship now," EDI announced to all of us. Right afterwards, we could vaguely hear more firepower...no doubt EDI throwing everything she could at the Collector's.

"Gah!" Garrus screamed.

I cringed at the thought of the pain you actually experienced when the Praetorian tried to obliterate you.

"Garrus, get to cover! Now!" Shepard boomed.

"Use the particle beam, use the particle beam! Or the grenade launcher or missiles...regular guns just won't work!" I shouted.

We heard several more screams of pain, from all three of them, over the next couple of minutes...you could feel the fear all across the cockpit. It was thicker than anything I had felt in a long, _long_ time.

"Come on, Shepard!" Joker blurted out.

"Keep at it! Thats it!" Shepard shouted.

"Very tough skin likely," Mordin observed.

I snorted. "Definitely," I remarked. "Its pure armor."

Seconds, in what felt like minutes, passed by...finally, after a battle which hadn't been too long but had seemed like an eternity, we all heard a sigh of relief over the comm. "Its gone," Shepard said, sounding utterly breathless.

I nearly collapsed back into my chair.

"Don't try going for the ship, its going to be-" I began.

However, right at that second, EDI spoke again. "The Collector vessel is lifting off."

"Yes, that." I finished.

Abby let out a breath and grinned. "Praetorians suck," she said, echoing her previous statements. "Uber suckishness."

Shepard keyed out of the communications, and we were left in the silence once more. "Give her three and a half minutes, then move in to get her out," Abby said, catching my eye again. "That's about as long as the conversation with Kaidan will be, anyway."

Joker's mouth opened slightly. He licked his lips. "Bad news?"

"Kaidan's... Mad at her. For working with Cerberus. He won't stick around to listen. He thinks she betrayed everything she once stood for."

Joker didn't have a firm reaction, but looked concerned.

"Yes, we know about their...past," I told him, figuring that was what was on his mind. "Shepard's a strong woman, and hopefully will continue to operate okay, but I think this'll hurt her, at least a little. Its like Abby said...Kaiden's just an Alliance soldier. Its who he is. He won't listen to anything she has to say."

"Yeah, kinda not surprising about him not being on the Cerberus train. I don't think Ashley would be, either," Joker said, turning back around to stare at the viewport.

_You can say that again._

"Ironically enough, I think the aliens are the only ones who actually understand her position," I muttered.

Abby actually snorted. "Crazyness," she said.

Joker started to move us out when the transmission came through. "Joker." Shepard's voice was dim and quiet compared to the battlecries. "Send the shuttle to pick us up. I've had enough of this colony."

"You're probably going to want to get some people down there to get them to MedBay," I said, thinking realistically. I had to remind myself to do that now. It became all too clear to me on Omega, and even moreso on Korlus. "They're going to be badly beaten up."

"Yeah, no shit," Joker mumbled.

"I will request that Miss Lawson sends a team down there immediately," EDI said.

The crew was beginning to leave now, likely to prepare for Shepard's return. They all knew that she wouldn't be feeling the best after this...physically or emotionally. I had to wonder, even if it was a game, how she survived all of that in the first place. It had to be insane.

_She may hate us right now, but I can get her position._

I looked to Abby again. "At least...Horizon's over," I whispered quietly.

She nodded, biting her lip. Probably worrying about Shepard's emotional state when she got on board. "I should draw something for her," she said halfheartedly, scratching her forehead again. If she wasn't careful, I thought, she'd soon be tugging out the stitches. "I already drew a present for Zaeed, you know, for the drawing utensils. Picture of his gun, Jessie." She shrugged. "She's not going to be a happy camper when she gets here..."

"Hey, don't go bothering the Commander until she calls for you," Joker said suddenly, his fingers making adjustments to the controls. "Leave her alone for once."

"Must go down to deck five," Mordin said, starting off.

"He's crazy," Joker muttered.

"Mordin Solus has no mental abnormalities that I am aware of, Mr. Moreau. His psyche file-"

"Can it, EDI. For once. Okay?"

"-warned of hyperactive behavior. Mr. Solus is an excellant addition to the team."

Joker sighed and pressed a button on the console. EDI went mercibly quiet. "So the mute button is real!" Abby said, delighted by the fact.

I blinked...Joker referenced that button in the game, but it was surprising to know that it did actually exist. And maybe nice for him, though I actually liked EDI and enjoyed hearing their bickering, but now wasn't much of a time for laughs and jokes.

I exhaled a deep breath. "So, what should we do now?" I asked Abby.

"Play with the mute button," she muttered. She caught my look and shrugged. "Or we could go... bother Chakwas."

Joker turned around. "I just can't win, can I?"

Abby looked like she was going to shoot off a snappish remark-in fact, I expected her to-but she just smiled sadly and said, "Yes, you do. C'mon, HK! Bye, Joker, nice meeting you, finally!"

Joker turned back to the controls. "They're weirding me out," he muttered in a sing-song voice.

"Join the club," I muttered with a snort. We had weirded out just about every single person on this ship at one point or another. It was about time that Joker was added to the list.

Despite his remarks, it was nice to meet him, though. And Abby finally got a life-long wish.

I sighed, thinking of Shepard as we walked through the hall. When she saw us...would she be enraged, uncaring, or something else? I hadn't quite figured the woman out, despite playing as her a thousand times.

We headed towards the elevator, but as we did, I saw Jacob with Kelly.

"Hey, Chambers, I know Shepard's pretty beat up right now...but when she gets a sec, can you tell her to come see me?" he asked, arms crossed in that Jacob-way.

"Sure," Kelly replied kindly.

I looked to Abby once again. "It's starting."

Abby nodded, but didn't say a word. We entered the elevator and she suddenly started to jump up and down. "I hope they're okay," she said sincerely. "This is getting really, really complicated. Fun, yet complicated. And you guys are the only idiots I'd do this with. Just thought I'd say so."

I thought for a moment. "I'm...okay, and this is...exciting in its own way, but I'm not sure what to think or feel. Shepard's mad at us, I still don't know whether she's going to lock us up or not, and we all could die. Its really nerve wracking...hopefully it'll be okay, but its nerve wracking. But you and Sarah are the only people I'd do this with, either, for the record...no one else, really. I have alot of friends, but doing this with anyone else would be too much insanity." I said, laughing as I finished.

Abby suddenly stopped jumping up and down, turning to stare at me with a confused look on her face. "Dude, question: has Shepard upgraded the ship... like, at all?"

"Um," I simply said, aghast that I had entirely forgotten about that. "I...I actually don't know. Mordin would, though, since she does it in the lab...but dang it. We have to do that, too, and get the resources, or else three people will die!"

Her eyes were wide. "Have we even DONE any mining?" she asked, her voice going up an octave.

"Erm...I don't think so," I answered in shock. "We've been busy with recruitment."

She swallowed. "Okay, mining. Mining. We need to do mining. Quickly. Before we go to the You-Know-What and recruit You-Know-Who." The elevator stopped and the door opened. We stepped off, circling around to check through the med bay's windows.

"Looks like it's only Sar and Chakwas," Abby said, waving to a busy Sarah as she concentrated on mopping the floors with some kind of science-fiction cleaning utensil.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

For past hour and a half or so I had been very busy trying to mop the floor. I swear it took me at least twenty-five minutes just to figure out how it worked. It seemed to be partially mechanical, partially manual. Or maybe I just kept screwing up the settings; I couldn't be sure. All I knew was that if I handled it a certain way, it would try to wrench itself out of my grasp-at least it seemed that way. At other times, it felt like I had a hard time getting it to move at all.

Ah well, leave it to me to have trouble using a futuristic mop, or whatever this thing was. I swear it looked like the cross-between of a mop and a skinny vacuum cleaner without a bag, and without the ability to suck in debris.

By the time I finally got the stupid thing to cooperate enough to clean a portion of the medical bay, I happened to glance up. I saw HK and Abby standing outside the window, and the latter person waved at me. I sometimes felt sheepish when people watched me while I was working, but at the same time I didn't care. I simply grinned at her and took one hand off of the mechanical mop-thingy, waving back at her.

And that turned out to be a mistake. I swear that, when I looked back on this later, I would have absolutely no clue what I did wrong. Maybe I accidentally let go of a lever, switch, or pressure point for all I knew. But when I took one hand off of it, the crazy thing _jerked_ sharply, causing me to stagger in an attempt to keep my balance. This caused my feet to slide across some soap suds and then, when the mop suddenly wrenched itself sideways, I ended up slipping and falling down on my rear, hard.

And that was when the medical bay doors opened, permitting a trio of people to enter-three people who looked pretty banged up, and not too happy. Shepard looked as though she was having one of the worst days of her life, and Zaeed... well, I guess he always had that grim, tough guy expression on his face, or whatever you called it. And Garrus just looked... I don't know, annoyed maybe? Along with being banged up.

"Uh... oops," I muttered sheepishly. This had to be the stupidest way to greet three people coming back from a dangerous mission. Not to mention an undigified position to be in. Plus these were probably the last three people I wanted to see right now. My conversation with Jack made me feel a little awkward around Garrus, and Zaeed... well, I felt intimidated by him, and that incident in the men's bathroom didn't help matters any. And Shepard... I swear I'd never seen that look in her eyes before. I blinked several times, knowing that she had seen Kaiden.

"Ah shit, its that crazy bitch! Get me out of here!" Zaeed yelled, looking right at me.

"Fall in line, Zaeed," Shepard said wearily. She just gave me this look, like she couldn't care less about whatever the hell I'd been up to before she entered, and caught Doctor Chakwas' eye at her desk. "Where do you want us?"

The doctor stood, examining the three of them with a critical expression. "Armor off, and tell me where it hurts," she said. Zaeed had taken a bullet to his leg during the final push, which had been sealed quickly with some medi-gel; Garrus's right side was covered in burns; Commander Shepard's chest was covered in large, glistening burns that were sick to look at, too. Obviously these two hadn't fared too well against the Praetorian.

Zaeed's mean words quickly faded from my mind when I looked at their injuries. Once again, this was far more real than the events in the game. All I would have seen if I was playing Mass Effect 2 would be their limp forms lying on the ground if they got badly hurt, easily healed by medi-gel. But this was no game. Their wounds were real, and were horrible to look at.

I felt a surge of disbelief and even anger rising up in me, and I shook my head slightly. "How could Kaiden accuse you of being a traitor when... when he saw you like this?" I blurted out. "He loved you. He shouldn't have..." I have stopped. I had a feeling that I shouldn't be saying that.

The atmosphere in the room immediately went still. We were all looking at Shepard, expecting the explosion, but she continued to stare past us and into the wall as Chakwas smeared a sweet-smelling ointment on her left side.

"Let it go, Sarah," Garrus said quietly, throwing a warning look Shepard's way.

My gaze snapped sharply in Garrus's direction. Of course, whenever he spoke I had a tendacy to pay attention anyway. Unless it was Shepard speaking to me in an authoritive tone or something. Or perhaps Rupert. I knew it was best to pay attention to my superiors... although I also paid attention to people I... really liked.

I subconsciously wiped at the back of my pants, trying to clear off some of the subs. It occupied a portion of my attention for a moment, plus it gave my hands something to do. But all it did was make them soapy. I cleared my throat and took a step toward Garrus. "You okay, Garrus?" I muttered, not quite looking at him.

He glanced down at his chest. "I've been better," he allowed. "Facing the Collectors for the first time was... challenging."

I nodded. I almost babbled something about how "I" had died several times before I could beat that stupid Praetorian, but I kept my mouth shut. I couldn't talk about the game, after all; it wasn't a game anymore. This was reality. I searched my brain for something else to say, anything at all, in the awkward silence that followed.

Finally, I blurted out something completely random. "I wonder if Conrad Verner is on Illum right now."

"Commander, your heart rate just shot up..." Chakwas noted, getting a nice idea of her life signs.

I took a step back, even though I was standing closer to Garrus than Shepard at the moment. "Forget I said anything," I muttered, turning away completely.

I glanced around and saw that the mop-or whatever it was-had somehow retreated several feet away. I figured that maybe if I could retrieve it, I could simply continue mopping, somewhere else perhaps. I walked over toward it and touched it with a single hand, gripping it firmly.

Next thing I knew, it jerked sideways again, sent my slipping across the floor again... and I ended up sprawled on top of Garrus on one of the medical beds.

Garrus _screamed_ out in pain, and very slowly tried to lift me off of him. "Ugh...oh...Sarah, get off me, please..." he moaned.

"S-sorry," I mumbled and tried to carefully manuever myself off of him without causing too much discomfort. Yet in my attempt to be careful, I just seemed to be causing him more pain, considering the grunts and moans he made as I moved. Finally I just rolled off of him altogether... and landed on the floor in a heap.

I think I hurt something.

"Sarah, are you alright?" Chakwas asked, whilst still tending to Shepard.

I gritted my teeth as I got to my feet. "Fine, I just banged my elbow," I replied, touching it gingerly. Yep, there was gonna be a bruise there. Other than that, it seemed fine.

"Normally I would look at it, but I am far busier as you can tell...perhaps it would be better if you left? You can finish cleaning once everyone is released," Chakwas suggested.

I couldn't really argue. "Will everybody be okay?" I asked as I slowly moved toward the door, casting an apologetic glance toward Garrus. I stopped a few feet short of the door.

"Get the hell out," Zaeed translated.

I pressed my lips together and hurried out the door. I actually felt tears stinging my eyes but I willed them back. Yeah, last thing any of us needed was me blubbering over something so stupid.

As I rushed out into the hall, I nearly ran right into HK and Abby. HK raised an eyebrow upon seeing me. "Sarah, whats wrong?"

"Nothing," I said quickly, forcing a smile. "You know, just worried about them." I jabbed a finger back in the direction of the medbay.

HK seemed to hesitate, and gave me a weird look, like he wondered if I was actually speaking the truth or not. "Alright then...they'll be okay, hopefully, but Abby and I listened during the battle. They all took a really bad beating," he explained with a sigh.

"Yeah well, just let the doctor work, then." I spoke a bit more snappy than I intended.

He blinked. "Okaayy...you share Joker's sentiments then, but you probably are right...I think we all need to talk anyways. Privately." he said, looking to Abby.

"Yeah well, I want something first." I purposely turned and walked directly toward Rupert. Yes, I agreed that me, HK and Abby did need to talk. But I wanted a better chance to compose myself, and whenever I felt bad... well, there was something I liked to do.

So I walked up to Rupert, feeling the bewildered gazes of HK and Abby on my back as I did so. When I was sure I had his attention, I decided to make my request... even if it seemed kind of silly now. "Do you have any... I don't know, coke or rice krispies treats?" Hey, what could I say? I liked comfort food or beverages sometimes.

Rupert chuckled. "Surprised you don't want alcohol...its always alot better, but I think I've got some coke stashed around here somewhere," he said, leaning down and rummaging through one of his cabinets. Finally, he pulled out a can and tossed it to me. "Here you go. Least I can do after all the hard work you've put in."

"Thanks," I said gratefully, and cracked it open. I took a nice long drink from it. Cold coke, _perfect._

"We have a weird friend," Abby said wryly. She glanced worriedly at the Med Bay, but Doctor Chakwas had darkened the windows, making it impossible to see inside. "Shepard's going to corner us soon, I'm betting..."

I finished my coke, set the can back on the counter, and I approached HK and Abby again. "Is there anywhere we can go where EDI won't be able to listen?" I mused.

HK glanced at both Abby and I again. "Hmm, I don't know...she's really not out of earsight anywhere. We just need to talk quietly and discreetly...come on, lets go to our quarters. With all the chaos, I imagine its totally empty right now."

Well, going to our room seemed like as good a thing to do as any. It was definitely more... private than the rest of the ship, so to speak. "Sure," I said, and Abby seemed to agree as well, so I turned and headed toward the elevator, leading the way toward it.

Once the three of us were inside it, I tapped the button to take us to the floor that our quarters was located on. "Up we go," I muttered. "Or is it down?"

"I could've sworn it was on this deck," HK said, looking very confused.

My head snapped in HK's direction. "...What? Oh... uh..." I looked at Abby. I didn't care if she agreed with me or disagreed with me, I just felt like something was messed up here and I wanted it straightened out, now.

Abby coughed politely and stepped out of the elevator. "To the room!" she announced dramatically.

I scowled briefly at her back, but I wiped the expression off my face quickly. I simply shrugged and stepped out of the elevator as well.

A couple of minutes later, the three of us were in our room. After we walked in through the door, I simply went over and casually sat on the edge of my bed. I said nothing; I simply glanced at HK and Abby, waiting for one of them to break the silence.

Abby sat down across from me, her hands gripping her knees. "So-we have something to talk to you about. Try not to freak out," she cautioned.

Okay... anytime someone said something like that to me, there was, perhaps, cause to freak out. Or at least be very, very concerned. "Like what?" I asked in a very calm voice, surprising myself a little.

"You're part of the crew," Abby said slowly, enunciating her words. "_I hope you thought that through_."

I narrowed my eyes and lowered my eyebrows, my eyes darting back and fourth. It was the expression I made when I was feeling puzzled, and thinking hard. Part of the crew? Well yeah, I guess I was part of the crew now. But... thought it through? What did that mean?

"Um... what do you mean?"

Abby looked like she was trying to say something without being too obvious about it. It was kind of frustrating. "You remember that one tiny little dream we had about stuff happening and the stuff going on and the human milkshakes, yaddah yaddah?"

My puzzled, deep-thinking squint intensified, so that I was sure my eyes and forehead looked scrunched up. Human milkshakes? What, did Abby have a dream when she was thirsty or something? "Uh... I think Rupert might be able to make a milkshake if you want one..."

"Sarah-focus."

I blinked, then my expression softened. I shrugged. "On what?"

Abby looked even more frustrated. "Reaper IFF. What happens after we take it? We take a shuttle somewhere, and...?"

Ah yeah, Shepard took a shuttle somewhere with the teammembers after she got the IFF thing, because...

My eyes widened as realization finally dawned on me. I also realized what Abby meant by "human milkshakes". My eyes darted around the room. I looked from Abby to HK, to the wall, and back at Abby again. "O-ohh," I finally managed.

"LIGHTBULB!" Abby crowed. "So you understand what I said about hoping you thought this through, right?" Suddenly, she went serious. "Sarah, listen-if you go through with this, I promise we won't let anything happen to you. We'll get you out of there. I promise."

I said nothing. My thoughts were racing. I knew what happened to the colonists-they were going to be procressed into liquid goo soon, if they weren't already. And depending on how fast Shepard and the crew were later... Kelly might suffer the same fate, and Rupert...

Was I really willing to take that kind of chance?

I shifted and stood up, walking to the other side of the room. "Oh... shit," I muttered aloud.

"We don't like it either, we really don't..." HK interjected. "We hate this, but we can't do anything without alerting Shepard and everything spiraling out of control. But, we are going to try to make sure that Shepard has everything she needs before then...upgrades, loyalty missions done, and hopefully...it'll be okay."

I slowly turned to look at him and Abby. "This isn't a game anymore," I muttered out loud. Somehow, realizing that my life was at stake made that fact sink in more than ever. "And just because I've chosen to be part of the crew, where I thought I might be safer and more useful... I might have a painful, helpless death, just because I don't go on missions like you guys do."

"But you won't," Abby interjected. "We won't let you die."

Could I really believe that? There were a million things that could go wrong. And HK and Abby had been giving Shepard all kinds of advice so far, but what if something happened to either of them on one of the missions? Or what if they died on the collector base?

I hadn't felt this conflicted or insecure since the moments where I was considering leaving the Normandy. I had left those thoughts behind, though; I had no intention of leaving. But I didn't want to die either. And no matter what HK or Abby said... there was still a possiblity that something could go wrong, somewhere. There were just too many... variables and possibilities.

I turned away again, staring at the wall, still thinking all of this over.

"I understand the uncertainty...I mean, we are uncertain too, about everything. This is all so real now...but we all just have to stick to what we know to do, and hopefully it'll turn out okay. We have alot ahead even before any of that happens, so we shouldn't worry about it too much right now, but again, I understand why you're worried." HK told me, sighing.

I shook my head. I just... needed some time to process this, at the very least. I was just starting to adjust to my new life onboard the Normandy, despite the fears and stress of worrying about everyone when they went on missions, and now I realize that I was going to be captured, and I might die. And all because we had agreed to let things play out as naturally as they would have in the game.

I turned toward the door. "Please excuse me," I murmured, taking a step toward the door.

"Sarah...if you need to talk, we're right here," HK lightly encouraged.

"Yeah," I muttered simply, and approached the door. It opened, and I hesitated in the doorway. "I'm just gonna take a walk," I told them.

"Okay," HK simply replied. It seemed like even he was not sure what to say in a time like this.

I walked out, and I heard the door hiss softly as it shut behind me. I simply started off down the hall, with no particular direction or destination in mind.

Well, this certainly sucked. It seemed like I had three options. I could either try to become a party member instead of a regular crewmember, (and we all knew how THAT attempt had gone before) or I could just keep doing what I was doing now and hope for the best, or I could still leave the Normandy... no, no way. I promised I wouldn't, and I would stay no matter what. Besides, at least I'd found a way to belong here now.

Then again, there was a fourth option... NO. I couldn't.

...Could I?

No way. HK and Abby would probably consider me a traitor, and never speak to me again.

Quite suddenly, I got a weird idea. I wasn't sure what compelled me to make this decision, perhaps it was simply something she said earlier. But regardless... I found myself heading to the elevator, and I took it down to the engineering level.

Once there, I stepped out and walked down the hall, then went through the next door and proceeded down the stairs. I was going to... talk to Jack.

I slowly approached the area that Kelly had cutely called her "hidey hole" in the game, somehow feeling... more confident, or at least bolder, than I had on my first visit. "Hi," I said softly as I approached her.

Jack snorted when she saw me. "Hey," she simply said.

I couldn't believe I was doing this. Then again, why not? Everything else had turned upside-down and inside out ever since I ended up here. "I was thinking about what we talked about earlier," I told her.

"Screwed the turian yet?"

I felt my cheeks heating up again. Damnit, why did she have to do that? "Um..." Okay, now I forgot how I was going to bring up what I wanted to talk about. So I ended up fumbling with words. "You... you mentioned that... um... you just do whatever you feel like in life. Why is that?"

"_Why_? Are you a total dumbass?" Jack asked, looking up at me and shaking her head. "Listen, I know that you and all your little friends live in a different world...one where you get pampered and live by the rules, but I didn't. I got it hard, and had to learn to fight for survival...I needed to take life while I could, and not be bound by all that stupid crap the Alliance or Cerberus spews out. People spend their lives wallowing like little babies and shit, just because of stupid fear or restrictions. I don't do that...I do whatever the hell I want because thats what life really is all about. Don't let yourself get lost in crappy fantasies of what life should be, because all of that is pure bullshit."

Well, I had to admit that I'd had plenty of unrealistic fantasies and unfulfilled expectations in life. But I wasn't sure if I believed what she said, even though I knew she believed it. Why did I come down here exactly, anyway? Was it because I wanted to do what I wanted to for once, and this was someone who could... re-affirm that?

I could never admit this aloud. But the fourth idea I was pondering was... just telling Shepard every single detail I could about the mission, the loyalty quests, the collector base, everything. That could help us make sure that everyone survived, instead of taking this step-by-step procress that Abby and HK seemed to insist on. I had to admit, to myself at least, that it was tempting. Wouldn't it be awesome, just once in life, to be able to take control and help make things work out the way you'd like them to? That way, maybe nobody could get hurt anymore than they'd need to.

Then again... maybe that would be cheating people of experiences they needed to go through on their own.

I studied Jack for a moment, then I asked, "Um... has anything bad ever happened because you did something you wanted to do? I mean, any unforeseen consequences?"

Jack shrugged. "Not to me, so who cares?"

Well, okay, THAT was the problem right there. Jack only thought of herself. Because she had to. No one else cared about her or looked out for her, ever. Abby and HK were a lot better than that; they cared deeply about Shepard and her crew, and were trying to do right by them. Also, while Jack only thought of herself, we had a lot of other lives to think about, that we were impacting.

It was a mistake to come down here. I should have known. "I think I'll be going," I finally said, turning to leave.

"Yup," Jack said, like always.

I headed back up the stairs and then got back into the elevator. I rode back up to the command deck, then stepped out and kept my gaze focused straight ahead as I headed toward the lab. Most of the crew seemed focused on their stations, although Kelly greeted me as I passed her. I simply smiled at her in friendly way and kept on walking.

I hesitated slightly before entering the lab. I wanted to collect my thoughts on how I was going to start this conversation so I wouldn't end up fumbling over words again. But of course, Mordin did not render me speechless in the same ways that Jack did. And I doubt he could anymore, especailly since he now knew that I didn't have a crush on him.

Finally, I entered and I approached his lab desk. He seemed to be working on something, and I just hoped I wasn't bothering him. "Hi," I said in a friendly tone as I approached.

Mordin glanced up. He seemed to be in good spirits. His fingers flew over a large, orange projection that took on the same shape and form of a human chest guard. "Sarah. Hello. I'm very pleased with the success of my armor upgrades. Not the first time I've done something like this, of course, but perhaps the most difficult."

I looked at the holographic image for a moment, curious in spite of myself. In some ways, I didn't really care too much what he was doing, especially since I knew most of it would be way over my head anyway. But I was a little intrigued, and it seemed impolite not to ask for some reason. "Is that what Shepard and the others used on Horizon?" I asked.

"No, no, no. I'm looking at the basic layer here." He typed in a command and the armor was suddenly replaced by the sphere of what looked like the inside of a nucleus. "With the armor upgrades Shepard used on Horizon, only had to put small, pheromone-inceptors within the suit's overlay. Working on subatomic levels. Quite normal, except that Collector gene is unlike anything I've ever seen before. _Fascinating. _Won't work against larger swarms, of course." He sighed, as if that disappointed him. "Will work on it later, but there's nothing I can do to make it completely fail-safe."

Yup, Mordin was as long-winded as ever. I didn't really have anything useful or productive I could say to that, so I simply decided to get to the point of my visit. "Can I ask you something?"

"Certainly, certainly, but make it quick. About to test new bioweapon. Not on us. Didn't think I had to specify, but Joker got nervous."

I had to chuckle a little at that. It always made me smile when I heard that line in the game. "Well first of all... how much do you know about the, um, visions and dreams that me and my friends have?"

"Have theory on that. But yes. Go on."

I blinked. Okay, he had me curious now. And a little nervous. "Uh... what theory?" I couldn't help but ask.

"Can't tell you. Still in development."

I frowned slightly in disappointment. But I chose not to press the matter. "Well anyway, I was wondering... if you had the power to tell somebody how the future is going to go, to the point where it might save a lot of lives, or at least make things easier... would you do it? Even if it might rob those people of valuable experiences and insights they would get along the way if you just keep your mouth shut?"

He frowned. "Not sure I understand... you are wondering about the difference between the road we must all take to gain our knowledge and the feasability of bypassing that road, am I correct?" I nodded, slightly confused. "Then I would say that it would be up to you. If you told us everything that would happen now, would that save lives? Personally, would give all intel to Commander Shepard. Make mission easier, better."

"Yeah well... I see your point. But do you think it's a good idea to play God, and to make everything eaiser for everybody else? I mean, I'm not sure if I'd be much better than the Reapers or something if I did that."

Mordin shrugged one shoulder. "Tell Shepard," he said, "or don't. Up to you. Up to HK. Up to Abby. Personally hoping you'll tell her."

"No offense, but you're not making it any easier," I muttered. "I mean... Abby and HK firmly think that we should just let events play out as they would have anyway. They just want us to offer guidance as we go along. If I tell Shepard, they might get... upset."

"Would you rather I told you not to tell her?" Mordin queried. "Fine. Then don't tell her. Do what will save the most lives."

In spite of myself I chuckled a little, and shook my head. "I was just asking for your honest opinion... I wasn't asking you to say what I want to hear, I guess." Or was I?

"No room for indecisiveness on this mission. You have to be ready for the Collectors." He walked back to his table. "If you're this conflicted, go home. Can only get us killed."

I narrowed my eyes at him, feeling a bit... stung. I knew that salarians talked fast and that they processed things in their brains faster than humans, but his direct bluntness caught me a bit off-guard. "Can't go home," I muttered out loud, more as a stall tactic than anything else while I thought.

Mordin looked... annoyed. I'd never seen him look like that before. "Make a choice. Soon. Things will only get more dangerous from here. Everybody on this crew must be ready, must be prepared to die. Are you?"

I already knew the answer to that, and the answer escaped my mouth before I could stop it. "No, I'm not ready to die."

"Then go tell Shepard. Tell her everything. Or trust that your friends would not let us die. They care, though Shepard may not see it. I do. But you have to decide this. Not me."

I folded my arms, studying him intently for a moment. "Would you think less of me, if I decide to keep my mouth shut?" I asked.

"Does not matter what I think," he argued. "Do not go through life wondering what other people think of you. I trust that you won't let me die. The stakes are high. If we fail, then the Collectors will continue to harvest the humans and the Reapers will kill us all. And I have no fear of... dying. If my death serves a higher cause, then it is my honor. I will fight for Shepard. Save humans."

"Yeah well... maybe I'll swing by the med-bay and... by that time I'll make a decision," I murmured out loud. I turned toward the door, then stopped at the last minute. "Hey um..." I looked back in Mordin's direction, then cut myself off. I hesitated, debating internally whether I should say it or just get out.

Mordin just gave me a blank stare. Waiting.

"You sure you can't make me a Biotic?"

He just turned around and went back to his work. "No. Explained this earlier."

"Yeah I know. It's just... well... is there any way that we could up my chances of survival, or give me some kind of unique ability or something? Any implants or whatever?" I grinned in spite of myself at the thought. I had read way too many sci-fi books when I was a teenager, and I used to daydream about having "kewl powahs" as people on the internet called it. Then again, I still liked to daydream about it. Of course... this was a serious situation. But... since one dream had come true-me and my friends really were in the Mass Effect universe-was it possible another one could come true somehow? It was worth asking at least.

"All implants and immuno-upgrades are reserved for the ground crew," Mordin said.

"Is there any way I could... buy one, or earn one somehow?" I pressed.

He looked up, frowning. "Will talk to Shepard about it, I suppose, if it is this concerning to you. But I promise nothing."

Well, that was something at least. And of course I probably should have been talking to the commander about this anyway. Mordin was probably one of the smartest people on this ship, but he couldn't do everything. Especially not behind Shepard's back.

Still, I wanted to try something. It was really a longshot, but... well, all of this was crazy enough as it was. And all we were doing here was talking. So if the thing I was thinking of did not exist, Mordin would simply brush me off, and no harm done. Or if it did exist... maybe we could talk about it. And maybe I could get Shepard to work out a deal somehow.

I knew I was crazy. But... I was thinking of something that I saw in a book series I read years ago called the "Daystar series", where one of the characters had this... implant that enhanced brainwaves. In other words, through sheer concentration, she could actually move things with her mind. Not on the same level as a biotic could, but it was still fairly powerful. I was just curious if such a thing could possibly exist here. And if it did... maybe acting like I knew all about it would give me an edge.

I leaned forward, placing one of my arms on the edge of the lab table. "I know about an implant I think would really give me an advantage."

"I know. I can think of several. Means nothing until I talk to Commander Shepard."

I held up a hand. I didn't want him to get the wrong idea here. "I know, and I think we should both talk to Commander Shepard later," I stated, trying to make that clear. "I just have something specifc in mind, and I want to know if you've heard of it."

I wondered at how much valuable bioweapon time I was cutting into. "Go on," he said.

"It's an implant I've... read about," I began. "One that enhances brainwaves so that people can concentrate, and lift large, heavy objects with their minds. The only downside is that it can be incredibly exhausting, from what I've heard. So... do you know anything about it?" Now I was going to find out if it existed in this universe or not.

Now he just looked annoyed. "Biotic implant. Not possible."

"Not really... I'm not talking about biotics," I pressed, then fell silent. Okay, so apparently he'd never heard of it. And I was just wasting both our time.

Still looking at me, he pressed a button. On the other side of the room there was a small ping from a metal box in the corner. "Samples done. Must get back to work now."

"Yeah, okay. See yah around, thanks for your time." I quickly left the lab, feeling a tad sheepish.

**

* * *

**

**(HK)**

After Sarah had left, I worried for her..both Abby and I had. She now knew that she was going to get captured by mythical bugs, get taken to their lair, and be put in a pod where she very well could die if Shepard didn't get there fast enough.

_We have to make sure that she does. We just have to._

There were a million scenarios running around in my head, ones that I dare not mention to Sarah to freak her out even more. What if Shepard delays it so much that everyone gets fried? What if she even goes to one place afterwards, but Kelly is switched with Sarah?

Not that I wanted either one of them to die, but...but..

_Dangit._

I was a member of this team now. I had been out on two full-fledged missions, I was trained, and therefore I was a member of Commander Shepard's league of loons, including the crew and party. They would try to protect me as much as I would try to protect them, despite some fears I still had, but something troubled me, especially now.

Was I putting Sarah, and Abby for that matter, above the others? Was that thought I had just now me basically saying "Lets hope that Kelly's still where she is if Shepard happens to go some place after the capturings"?

To me, it shouldn't be like that...maybe it was understandable, because I had known Sarah and Abby for years, and only just recently had the rest of these people ceased being fictional characters and turned into real people.

But as a member of this team...everyone had to be on the same level. At least everyone except Shepard.

_But who's death will tear me up more? Watching Kelly get liquified, or watching Sarah get liquified?_

The truth was, watching Sarah die was what would get to me more. I had never actually seen Kelly's death in the game, because I always went to the base immediately after they all got kidnapped, but I had watched clips of it, and had known it would happen...so it would be easier, even if it did hurt. But watching Sarah, one of my best friends, die would get to me much more, as bad as I felt for admitting it.

_Thats not the way its supposed to be, though, or is it? Again, everyone needs to be on the same level, but...heck, I don't know. I care about everyone here, but Sarah dying is a far more horrifying thought._

I sighed outloud. Like we had stated only fourty-thousand times in the past day or two, this was getting _really_ complicated.

I sat on my bed, but looked up when I heard the door swing open. I almost expected it to be Sarah, back after a good while of thinking, but instead...

It was the person I did _not_ want to see right now.

Commander Shepard.

She stared at both Abby and I, and I could see alot of patches on her body, where she had been injured. "I think its time we talk," she said.

Abby threw me a look, and it wasn't a happy one. "Alright," she said.

I chose to remain silent for the moment.

Shepard walked inside the room, and the door slid shut behind her. "I encountered Kaiden," she said solemnly. I almost thought I saw some pain in her eyes, emotional pain, but I wasn't sure. "Would have been nice for a little warning."

"It's not our place, Commander-"

"You say that everytime." Shepard pointed out. Though her tone was not the snappy, angry one that it was yesterday.

"But this one truly wasn't...this is your personal life, not ours. What happened between you and Kaiden is between you two...it would have just distracted you if we said that he was going to totally shun you." I argued.

"I understand what you're saying, but it doesn't mean I'm happy about it," she said. "I could have come up with something to make him actually listen if I'd known that's how he would react."

"That would have been wrong, Commander," Abby said gently, shaking her head. "Kaiden is a wonderful man, but you have to understand. Everything that happens now will have repurcussions that we just can't figure out. Every one of our dreams dealt with Kaiden being upset. There was virtually no change. But there's still a chance, after this mission... if you stay loyal to him."

"Has he stayed loyal to me?" she asked.

"Commander, you've been clinically dead for two years. Wouldn't you want him to go and find some happiness for himself?" Shepard nodded, looking away with one hand balled at her hip. "Listen," Abby said, even more gently, "I know for a fact that he couldn't get over you for the longest time. He loved you. He's just going through an emotional rollarcoaster right now. We all are."

"If it makes you feel any better," I said, looking to Abby. I figured revealing this couldn't hurt. "He's going to send you an email and...apologize. He'll still want to be with you."

"I don't know if its not too late at this point," Shepard said, still looking at the wall. "And I may be dead, again, soon."

"We aren't sure about that, either, Commander, but don't give up," I encouraged lightly.

"We are heading into the biggest mission of our lives...we can't let oursevles be distracted. I think its time I try to put everything, including Kaiden, behind me. He could've joined me, but he didn't, and I respect his decision. I think it ends there," Shepard explained, turning back to face us.

_Dang, is she really just letting him go like this? Guess it comes with being a soldier._

"Now, more importantly, I want to know if there's anything you can tell me right now. The stakes are higher than ever," Shepard finished.

"I think Jacob wants to talk to you about his father," Abby said. "And I think we should go to the Citadel one day soon and retrieve Kasumi Goto... also, have you been upgrading the ship?"

"Here and there."

"Have you installed the weapon and armor mods?"

"For the ship? Just the weapons. The armor seems like overkill."

"Trust me, its not. Its going to be what you need, along with shields...Jacob can help with the armor, and the shields...well, someone else will be able to help you with the shields. Those are the main things you need, though any other upgrades would be nice...if you need more resources, ju-" I explained, but she cut me off.

"Mine planets. I'm not stupid." Shepard told me.

"Erm, sorry," I said, feeling embarrassed. "But yes, you should go get Kasumi sometime soon, and speak to the Council and all that, but I also recommend recruiting Thane Krios, first, because you're going to have to make alot of trips to the Citadel if you don't. The Illusive Man has more information on people to recruit..one of them is an old friend, if that comforts you any."

"Better go speak to the Illusive Man and Jacob then," Shepard decided with a nod.

"Oh, and Miranda's going to want to be seeing you, too." I reminded.

"Alright...thanks, at least, for what you've been able to tell me." she said.

"Commander, we're really trying to help you," Abby said. "We're just as confused as you are on this entire thing. Between trying to figure out what to reveal and what not to, it's actually pretty difficult."

"I don't understand, but..." Shepard shrugged. "I guess we will later. One day, perhaps. Maybe. Right now this just feels like a dream I can't wake up from."

"I bet teh Praetorian woke your butt up," Abby muttered. "Hate that thing. It's unnatural."

"Nothing about the Reapers is natural," said Shepard. "Will we fight a Praetorian again?"

"Just once more. And I'll tell you exactly where when it comes up."

"Thanks."

"We're trying. Hard."

I nodded in agreement. "We are, Commander. We really are."

With that, Shepard simply bid us goodbye, and headed up to speak to the Illusive Man.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

By the time I got to the medbay, it was pretty much vacated. Shepard wasn't there, and it looked like Chakwas was tending to Zaeed.

Garrus came out just as I approached the doors, and I nearly bumped into him. I took a hasty step backward, averting my gaze. What happened earlier was still fresh in my mind. "Sorry," I muttered. "I mean... I'm sorry about, you know, what happened earlier."

"Its alright," Garrus said with a sigh. "Just try not to fall so hard next time. It really hurts."

"Are you okay?" I asked, looking him over. He was out of his armor and wearing what appeared to be casual clothing. Either that or it was medbay garb for turians, for all I knew.

"I'm fine, I just took a few bad hits out there. I've faced alot in my time, but never something like that. That Praetorian can really tear through you. But I'll be okay," Garrus replied calmly.

I nodded, feeling relief flow through me. Then I glanced toward the medbay. "Where's Shepard?" I asked.

"As I was walking out and saw you, I thought I saw her get on board the elevator. Do you need to see her? She was just talking to Abby and HK, I think," Garrus answered, motioning towards the elevator.

I looked toward the elevator. Okay, so it seemed I just missed her, then. "Maybe later," I finally said. Then I turned back to the turian. Then, in spite of my awkward conversation with Mordin earlier, I couldn't help but ask him something, just for the sheer hell of it. "Hey... do you know anything about... implants that enhance brainwaves, so you can move stuff with your mind?" Hey, you can't blame a girl for trying.

"I'm a soldier, Sarah, not a scientist. Maybe Dr. Solus would know more?" Garrus asked, looking slightly confused after what I had just said. "In fact, I'm no biotic specialist, but I've never heard of anything like that."

"It's not biotic," I muttered a bit defensively. I could see why people would think that, but I also felt the need to make that correction. "It just... enhances brainwaves. No biotics involved." I shrugged.

"Never heard of it, but I wouldn't know much. Only thing I know like that that exists is biotics," Garrus said, shaking his head.

"Um okay. Sorry for bothering you," I said with another shrug.

"Are you alright, Sarah? Maybe its not my place to ask, but you look...distressed," Garrus commented.

"I don't want to talk out here," I growled, glancing around.

"Okay, its your choice...I probably need to get back to the gunnery, anyway, and try to relax," Garrus said, looking in the direction of his usual station.

"Um, mind if we go in there and talk?" I muttered.

Garrus nodded. "Sure," he said, leading the way to the gunnery. Once we were both inside, he shut the door as he went back to his console, like he usually did. "So, what is on your mind?"

For a moment I just stood there behind him, clasping my hands behind my back. Then I turned and walked over to a nearby crate, sitting down on the edge of it. "A couple of things, I guess," I finally muttered.

"And those are...?" Garrus asked.

"Let's just say I had a couple of weird chats with Jack," I began. I figured the less said about that, the better. "But anyway... the other thing is... well, I realized more than ever that I might die. Because of... something I've seen in the... visions."

This got Garrus's full attention off of the console. "Jack's weird, everyone knows that, and we could all die, but the way you say it sounds like there's something more."

"Yeah well... there is." I scooted myself backward a bit and shifted so I could put my feet up on the crate. Then I rested my arms on my knees. "What if... I can actually see myself dying, if things don't go quite right? I mean... I don't know for sure what will happen, but I don't like placing my fate completely on someone else's shoulders."

"Hmm...I don't get the visions you and your friends get, but I think we all have to put our lives in someone else's hands. Shepard's mainly...she's the leader of this. We're here to help here, and we need to place ourselves at her will and just trust her. Thats the only way I see any of this working out." Garrus told me, sitting on a crate himself.

I thought about that. Well, that was certainly true enough... but still, when I was playing Mass Effect 2, I was controlling Shepard. Her choices were my choices. Then again, maybe that was still the case here, in a way. Were we actually the ones still in control, in some ways? It was just that me, Abby and HK were interacting with the characters and living with them now, and we were acting as advisors. Shepard was the one in charge, but... we could still push buttons, so to speak.

"What if I said... I had the power to decide, maybe, if I got captured or not?" I finally asked, choosing my words very carefully.

"Captured?" Garrus repeated, raising an eyebrow. "Well, if I were you, I'd use everything in my power to not get captured."

I couldn't say anything. I had decided... despite what might happen to all of us... I couldn't spill the beans on everything. I shifted my position a bit, and turned to look at him. In spite of myself, I was curious about something, even if it was silly. So I took the conversation in another direction. "How would you feel if I got captured by Collectors?" I asked aloud, keeping my expression carefully neutral.

Garrus gave me a weirded out look. "Are you saying thats going to-wait, nevermind, I don't want to know...but if you were, I'd be concerned for you. You are strange, Sarah, but I do consider you something of a friend, for all you are saying you'll do for me and I think you have good intentions."

I smiled at him. I felt touched by his words and amused by the look on his face. And since he was not wearing any armor at the moment... a weird idea crossed my mind. "Hey... can I ask you favor?" I asked, keeping very still where I was.

"Sure," Garrus simply answered.

I put my feet on the floor and stood up, but I didn't move near him... yet. "Can I... hug you?"

Garrus gave me a strange look. "Erm, well...I can't say I'm the most loving type, but...okay?"

I smiled, taking a single step toward him, and waited to see if he would stand up.

Garrus stood, very hesitantly, and slowly embraced me...it was not a tight hug, he simply wrapped his arms around me in a way that signified he was confused, but would do it anyways. He pulled back after a moment. "There."

I simply looked at him for a moment. "Thanks," I finally said with a smile.

"Your, uh, welcome...now I should really try to relax and then see about these calibrations," Garrus said, turning back to his console.

I looked at him for another long moment, thinking about the embrace. Finally I simply nodded and left.


	17. Tali'Zora vas Neema

From the team-

Thank you ALL so much for the awesome comments. They really mean a lot and we're so glad you like this fic! You all are great. ^0^

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I found myself standing in the middle of our room, glancing toward HK. I moved closer to him so that I could speak softly to him, not wanting to wake the others up-even though they seemed dead to the world. "I'm gonna go talk to Shepard," I whispered to him.

"Oh?" he asked in a whisper, looking a little surprised at what I just said.

My eyes darted toward the closest female, who was dozing oblivious to the world. I had a way of redundantly looking at something to make sure it was the way I thought it was, even if I had looked at it twice before. It was my way of making sure I wasn't making a mistake; and yes, she was definitely asleep.

"Just something I've been thinking about," I told him. Indeed, I had been thinking about it for a while, ever since they'd broken the news to me about my predicament. I hesitated for a moment, then I figured I might as well tell him. "I want to go on the next mission... maybe."

HK's eyes went wide in shock. "What? I thought we all pretty much figured out that you were better on the ship crew."

"Yeah, but we've also talked about other stuff since then, too," I said, being careful to keep my voice down. "Think about it. There's a chance I could die. But maybe if I prove myself as a member of the ground team, instead of a crewmember... maybe that won't happen. And that way, I wouldn't have to disrupt anything by telling Shep more than any of us should." I sighed. "I just want to give it one more try, that's all I'm saying."

HK sighed as well, looking like this got to him, but after a moment, he nodded. "I understand...you're probably smart for doing so. Just don't be surprised if she refuses." he whispered to me.

I nodded. "Yeah I know... especially considering what happened before. But I need to try, at least." With that, I simply walked out of the room, hearing the door hiss shut behind me.

When I arrived at Shepard's quarters a few minutes later, I pressed the door buzzer to get her attention, hoping she was in there and hoping she would let me in.

Shepard answered the door a few seconds later, and she had her normal outfit that she wore on the Normandy on...her hair looked wet, like she had just gotten out of the shower. "Hello," she simply said.

"Hi," I returned the greeting simply, smiling a little. "I um... I'd like to talk to you about something."

"Well, come in...though I don't usually oversee crew matters unless extremely important. Do you need something?" Shepard asked, leading me inside her quarters.

I followed her inside, then I decided to get right to the point. "I want to go on the next mission... whatever it is," I stated. Might as well just get it out in the open instead of beating around the bush.

Shepard raised an eyebrow. "Sarah, I thought we discussed this already. The last training session didn't go so well and you do alot better as a janitor. We're heading into geth space to get Tali...that could be very dangerous."

So that was where we were headed next, eh? I winced a little as I thought of the radio-active sun that burned out shields, and the geth that would be everywhere. Not to mention that collosus... still, I needed to try... right?

"I know," I said, still trying to figure out how I was going to explain this. "But... I need another chance. I'd like to try going on just one mission to see if I can prove myself as a member of the ground team." Part of me wondered if she would just say no outright, or take it into consideration.

Shepard sighed. She still looked calm, though. "Sarah, I'm not out to get people killed...and you don't have the proper training. You have not learned much about shooting or hand-to-hand, and I don't know what we're going to find here. I have a hard time believing I can take you."

She said she didn't want people to get killed. Perhaps I could play that card. "Commander... in one of my visions... There's a possiblity I'll get killed if I'm not a member of the ground team." I glanced away, looking at the opposite wall. "I can't say anything else about it, but... yeah. So I just want to try this, at least."

She gave me a hard stare. "What? How...or is this something else you can't tell me? You rarely step foot off of the Normandy."

"I can't say anymore," I told her, turning back to look at her. "Let's just say it's something that could happen to me. I don't know if it will, but..." I trailed off, shrugging a little.

"Are you absolutely sure this is necessary?" Shepard asked, still staring hard at me.

I hesitated. I was sure she picked up on my hesitation. "It... might be," I finally said. I wasn't about to tell her that my life rested entirely in her hands if I remained a crewmember. I also wasn't going to tell her how frightening the idea of becoming a ground party member seemed to me.

Shepard looked away for a moment, as if she was heavily thinking about something. "You and Garrus get along good, right?"

The memory of when he hugged me sprang into my mind, but I shoved it aside. "Um, yeah," I nodded. Did this mean that she was going to send me on a mission with him, or what?

"Then, if you really need to go on this mission...and I doubt we'll see anything but geth, who typically remain afar, except for one or two kinds...get a crash course in shooting from him. I think hand-to-hand training would be a bad idea, considering the last circus you caused, and you will not have enough time to learn alot, but just...try to learn how to fire a gun."

"I'll do my best," I promised. "And... don't worry, I would never bite Garrus." I had to turn my face away so she wouldn't see me grin in spite of myself.

"This is serious, Sarah. As your commanding officer, no matter whether you are ship or ground crew, I'm telling you that right now, so take it seriously. I doubt this is going to be anymore of a joyride than everywhere else we've been to." Shepard warned.

My expression turned serious as I looked at her again. "Trust me, Commander, I know. In fact, I already know some things about that world we're going to. Like, we won't be able to stand in direct sunlight because it will burn out our shields." I knew I probably shouldn't have done that. But I needed to make it clear that I did have a pretty good idea what we were in for.

Shepard was silent for a moment. "We'll have to try to avoid natural light, then."

I nodded. "Well then... where should I meet Garrus?" I assumed she meant that I should start right away with him.

"Deck Five. Your friends, Jacob, and others still spar down there alot. You and Garrus can use that as a shooting range, as well." Shepard told me, turning back to her desk in the process.

"Um... can you ask Garrus to meet me down there?" At times, I preferred it when the person in charge passed on certain directions on their own. I figured that if Shepard told him to go to Deck Five, he could go without much question. And she could also explain what this was all about. I'd rather not have to do that. I just wanted to go down there and meet him there.

Shepard nodded. "I'll tell him immediately."

I smiled at her a little. "Thanks, I'll head down there right now." I hesitated for a moment, then I offered a small salute. "Commander." Figured I might as well act like I was in the military. Since technically, I was now.

Then I turned and left the room.

* * *

Somehow, by the time I got to Deck Five, Garrus was already there and waiting. I raised my eyebrows with surprise when I saw him. I didn't think it had taken me _that _long to get here... but then again, I did get turned around a couple of times, and I needed to ask EDI for directions a couple of times. Then again, the sparring areas were places that I tried to avoid like the plague because I didn't to fight. So maybe that was why Garrus got here first.

Or maybe he didn't press Shepard for many details, I don't know. I had no idea if they exchanged many words or not when the commander called him.

"Hi Garrus," I greeted with a smile as I walked toward him.

Garrus looked at me, very confused. "Sarah...whats this all about?" he asked. "You wanting to be part of the ground team?"

My face fell a little. I was hoping that Shepard would have told him to spare me of any explanation. Unless she wanted me to explain it for myself? Maybe she thought that was best... or perhaps this was her way of trying to get me to spill more. I wasn't sure.

"Well," I said after inhaling deeply, "Let's just say it has something to do with that... talk we had before." I hoped we would be able to leave it at that.

"Alright then, but just...stay calm and focus. The last time we tried shooting or fighting, it didn't go so well. I still recall you blowing out EDI's terminal," Garrus said with a sigh. He took out a very simple pistol. "This is slow, and has eighteen rounds...its a good starter's weapon. Here."

I looked at the weapon for a moment. It was then that I remembered something. I actually intended to ask Shepard about implants while I was in her office, but... I guess it totally slipped my mind. Well, there probably wouldn't be time to get one anyway, not now at least. Maybe I could just see how this mission went, and if things went well... I could ask for one later.

"Actually I was wondering... could I learn to use a sniper rifle?" I asked, almost meekly.

Garrus's eyes went wider than I had ever seen them before. "A...sniper rifle?" he repeated.

"Well... I figured maybe I could just stay back at a distance and provide cover fire," I suggested with a shrug. Hey, that was what I did sometimes, in the game, when I played.

"Well, uh, I mean...its a good idea but...a sniper rifle takes time to master, and you have to have experience. It can kill in one shot, and if you take one wrong aim, Sarah...someone innocent could be dead." Garrus warned, looking extremely uncertain.

"Yeah... you have a good point there," I murmured, and slowly extended my hand and reached for the gun he offered. "So... uh, eight rounds, you said?"

Garrus sighed. "Eighteen."

"Oh," I said, coming close to smacking myself in the forehead. "Eighteen, yeah, got it. I'll remember!"

Garrus slowly handed me the gun. "Okay, first, put a new thermal clip in," he instructed.

I stared at the gun for a moment. "Where does it go again?" I asked after a long moment.

He just shook his head, and pointed to the back of the gun. "Right here, in this empty slot," he replied.

"Okies," I said, and snapped the thermal clip into place... with some difficulty. Then I raised the gun to my face, peering through the sights... and then I realized I was inadvertantly pointing it at Garrus's foot.

"Er...you might want to point it a little...higher. And at those glass bottles over there," Garrus said, motioning to the bottles across from both of us.

"Sorry," I muttered, then I raised the gun toward the nearest glass bottle. It was about... maybe ten feet away. I did my best to line it up in my sights. My hand shook slightly with anticipation and nervousness; I took a moment to steady it, then another moment to make certain I had it lined up properly. Then I fired. The kick-back jolt startled me a little, and caught me off-guard.

The bullet hit the bottle, but Garrus rushed over to me as I went stumbling backwards. "Yeah...you might want to be a little more careful about the kick-back, Sarah."

I took a moment to regain my balance, then I looked at him. "Is there anything that doesn't have a kickback?" I finally asked.

Garrus shook his head. "No, Sarah...pretty much all good guns do. Just be a little more careful." he said, then turned back to face the bottles. "Now try again."

I sucked in a deep breath, then I lifted the gun again. I held it as far away from my face as possible and gripped the handle very tightly, trying to eyeball it in order to line up the sights correctly. When I held it so far from my face, I couldn't see into the sights very well.

This time, my arms handled it a bit better when it kick-fired, but I missed the target completely.

The bullet hit the wall, then went flying off of it...it went right into one of the many fans in the room, stopping it.

Garrus groaned. "EDI, I think the Commander's going to want that fixed,"

"I shall inform Engineer Donelly and Engineer Daniels," EDI said.

"Okay, Sarah...you need to find a balance between proper aim and not getting the full force of the kickback." Garrus told me, crossing his arms.

After casting him a long glance, I decided to try again. I experimented different ways of holding the gun, even positioning my feet and legs in different ways to help balance myself in different ways. I was trying to envision the "feel" of the kickback, and trying to figure out which stance would make it easier to handle.

Finally I crouched down on the floor and bent my arms at the elbows, gripping the gun firmly between two hands. I was taking my sweet time, trying to aim very percisely.

Garrus stood perfectly still and silent, watching closely.

I pulled the trigger. This time, I was more or less prepared. My hands jolted a bit, but my arms stayed fairly steady, and the glass bottle shattered as the bullet went through the middle of it.

I stared for a moment, then I grinned. "I DID IT!" I couldn't help but yell. Then I blinked. "I mean, I did it!" I repeated more quietly.

"Excellent. A real target is going to be ten times tougher, but this is a start...you can shoot straight, at least. Just do, in the future, what you did just now." Garrus told me.

I nodded, and then I focused by gaze on the bottle at the opposite end of the room. It looked like was about thirty-five or forty feet away. I simply did the same thing I did before, maintaining my crouched position and keeping my arms bent. This seemed to help me deal with the kick-back. Then, after aiming carefully, I fired.

I didn't exactly hit the target very well, but I didn't miss either. The very top of the bottle got shot off in a clean hit, and the rest of the bottle simply fell over, rolled off of the crate, and shattered on the floor.

"Better than alot of the other times we've tried to teach you. Its a little slow, but its progress," Garrus encouraged. "Try again."

I nodded and then I focused on another target mid-way through the room. I was starting to feel a bit more confident, perhaps smugly so. It just felt good to be hitting targets, and the minor praise from Garrus made me glow inside. But I pushed it down, forcing myself to focus. I was determined to keep doing this right.

Once again I aimed carefully. This time I realized part of what I was doing that helped me brace myself each time. I was crouched on the ground, with my knees up in front of me, and I could anchor my feet against the ground and keep my arms bent. This kept me from being effected much by the kick-back, and I could still aim. Well, if I was out in the field... so long as I had time to crouch, and so long as the enemy stood still, maybe I stood a chance.

I fired. This time the blast grazed the side of the bottle, tipping it over and causing it to fall off the edge of the crate.

"Good," Garrus said kindly. "Now try to hit it straight on."

Three busted bottles later, I felt like maybe I was finally starting to get the hang of it, perhaps. I found that if I just sort of used the strength in my arms to keep them rigid at the right moment while firing, it made it easier. But I still kept crouching whenever I fired; that system seemed to work well for me, and I had no desire to change it. I managed to hit two of the bottles, dead-on.

Finally I looked at Garrus with smug triumph. "I think I can handle myself out there," I said with half-hearted confidence.

Garrus scratched his chin in thought. "Well, you've only shot some bottles...but the fact is, you have good aim, and geth aren't usually that hard to beat, but its still not much. Your targets will be moving and trying to hit you, too, but I think we have to make due right now. Sure you can handle yourself?"

I nodded firmly with confidence, although I wasn't quite sure how genuine it was. "I'll be okay," I said. "I'll stay alive and I won't kill anybody on our team."

"I don't know, it still worries me...just let Shepard and everyone else do the brunt of the fighting, okay? You got one of the shortest crash courses in history, but as long as you don't take the lead and apply what you've learned here to moving targets, and remember to take cover, it should be...okay. I hope." Garrus said, sounding very uncertain.

"Are you coming with us?" I asked, sounding a bit more hopeful than I'd intended.

Garrus thought for a moment. "Actually, yes...I think Shepard mentioned it. It is Tali that we're trying to recruit, and I think she's going to need to see some familiar faces before she joins Cerberus. Mordin's coming along, too, because he hasn't gotten out since he joined."

I found myself smiling in spite of myself. Good, I was going with my three favorite people, then. "That's awesome," I commented in a heart-felt tone.

"Just...keep on your toes once we're there, don't get too cocky, and remember what you've learned. Abby and HK did okay after mostly just hitting bottles, so hopefully you should be okay, too...even if it was in a shorter amount of time. Hopefully, it'll all be okay," Garrus said.

"It will be," I said. "I promise I won't shoot you in the back." I smiled, trying to insert some humor into this. But I don't think he appreciated it.

Garrus looked like he was uncertain of that. "Lets hope not," he said with a small chuckle.

My smile widened a little when I heard his chuckle. "So, when do we leave?" I asked.

"Not too long...it'll take a little while to get from that station we stopped at to Haestorm. In the meantime, I suggest preparing some armor for yourself, maybe a little more practice, and just...trying to ready yourself for this. Probably won't be pretty, and you'd know best," Garrus answered.

"What kind of armor should I wear?" I asked. I sort of felt like a kid asking all these questions, but I needed to ask them.

"The strongest type you can find, but something that lets you walk easy enough so that you don't get killed while being weighed down by heavy armor. Its hard to get into specifics, but just basically something that'll keep you protected," Garrus replied.

"Do we even have something like that aboard that's my size? Or is there time to... customize something?"

"I think we should have something thats your size, though human armor really isn't my speciality. I don't think there's enough time to customize anything, but again, there should be something for you," Garrus assured me.

"Okay then... where would I find some armor, then?" I asked. I had never bothered to learn where the armor was kept.

"Erm...the armory?"

"Yeah well... where is it? In here somewhere?"

"Where Jacob usually is, I think. Right across from Mordin's lab," Garrus said.

"Ohhhh yeah," I said, nearly doing a facepalm. Of course I should have remember that from the game. "Well... can we go take a look?" I hoped he would come with me. I hadn't really interacted with Jacob much since I apologized, and... I didn't really want to go in there by myself if he was in there.

"Sure...Jacob's been busy today and distracted lately anyway. Its probably empty right now, so you and I can look, but again I am...not specialized in human armor," Garrus said, heading towards the elevator.

* * *

About twelve hours later, I found myself seated in the back of a shuttle, sitting beside Mordin. Shepard and Garrus were seated side by side on the opposite seat. Part of me was a little worried that Mordin was still annoyed with me because of what I said the last time I was in his office. But he acted like nothing ever happened, so if he had been really aggravated at me, apparently he was long over it.

I sat as still as I could, feeling a bit uncomfortable in my newly aquired armor. We'd managed to find a set that was my size, along with a helmet. The only thing was that it made me feel a bit... stiff. I could move my joints okay, but I still felt like I was wearing heavy, rigid clothing. It was annoying, not to mention a bit... hot.

"How long until we get there?" I asked out loud a few minutes after we left the Normandy.

"Only a couple of minutes," Shepard replied. "We have managed to pinpoint Tali's location in the ruins of a city...we're heading towards there now. Garrus told me you did well in target practice...think you're going to hold your own?"

"Yeah, don't worry about me," I muttered, glancing out the window.

Shepard exchanged a look with Garrus, who simply nodded at her, probably assuring her that I did know what I was doing...hopefully, but even Garrus still seemed slightly on edge.

"Haestrom most likely dangerous, due to geth presence. Be on the ready," Mordin warned.

"I'm not sure how dangerous it is out there...no one knows much about what the geth overrun out here, but if its important enough for Tali to venture out here, something has to be going on," Shepard said.

Right at this point, I didn't really care about spilling the beans. Especially since I was only going to talk about the mission anyway; So long as I stuck with that, I wouldn't be giving too much intel on future events. And maybe I would ensure my survival odds, and prove my value on this mission. So I leaned back in my seat as best I could in my armor-then quickly decided that sitting up straight felt less awkward-and I said, "Tali's here on behalf of the admiralty board... I think. She's investigating dark energy in the star, because um... well I don't know all the technical details, but it's doing things that a young star shouldn't be doing. And most of her team is going to die down there." I fell silent, waiting to hear their reactions and opinions on this bit of info.

"Hmm...strange for star to die young. Very mysterious, see why quarians sent a team out," Mordin said, looking up at the sun as we entered the planet's atmosphere.

"It sounds like Tali's in trouble, then," Garrus deduced, looking at me.

"Which means we should get to her as soon as possible. We should be landing any minute now," Shepard announced.

"Not gonna be easy," I murmured. "By the time we get there, there's gonna be a geth collossus right outside her door."

Garrus looked concerned. "A collossus? Those huge things we use to face in the mako? They were bad enough then, but facing one on foot..." he trailed off.

"Wrex, Ash, and I faced an armature on foot on Therum, but we haven't faced a collossus on our own before...but if we work right, we should be able to get it down. We'll get a closer idea when we're there." Shepard said.

About two seconds later, we felt the shuttle set down.

Somehow or other, I had felt only minor nervous anticipation up until now. But once I felt the slight "bump" of the shuttle touching the ground, and heard the engines shutting down... I felt my eyes widening. Sometimes, I swear, it takes a while for the reality of a situation to set in. At thus, at times, it doesn't fully sink in until right before I'm actually gonna do something.

I felt frozen to my seat, and I swallowed. I looked out the window, shrinking a bit in the seat-at least, as much as I could with armor on.

"Come on," Shepard ordered, opening the exit hatch. "We don't have any time to waste."

I quickly inhaled a deep breath, then I shoved myself off of the seat quickly-only to bump my head against the edge of the window. Good thing I had my helmet on.

"Perhaps not best idea to bring her," Mordin said, jumping out of the shuttle.

Shepard just groaned, jumping out of the shuttle herself. "EDI, have the shuttle on stand-by incase we need to make an emergency pick-up," she commanded.

"Shepard, depending on how deep Tali is in the city, I am not sure it would be easily accessible in the middle of a ba-"

"Not for Tali."

"Affirmative." EDI simply replied.

I recognized the intent behind that remark and its reference to me. I pushed it out of my mind, choosing to pretend I didn't hear it.

I was the last one out of the shuttle, and I was thankful that I managed not to stumble or twist my ankle or something on the way out. That would have looked worse. Then I glanced at the others, and grabbed my pistol from its holster. I made sure to aim it toward the ground as I walked over to stand beside Mordin; I didn't want to accidentally point it at anyone.

The shuttle ascended to the sky, and Shepard immediately walked forward. We walked through the usual area, to that large hill that headed downwards. Mordin and Garrus did their usual complaints about the sun, once it hit them, and Shepard simply nodded as we ran for shade.

When I felt the sun hit my shields for the first time, I heard the annoying beeping noises that they made as the radioactive light quickly wore them down. Not only that, but somehow it felt particularlly nasty to be in the sunlight. I never liked standing in direct sunlight on hot days anyway, but this somehow felt like it might burn my skin off or something if I stayed in it too long. Then again, maybe it was just my imagination. Along with the fact that I had never stood in sunlight dressed from head to toe in dark-colored metal before; that was bound to soak up extra heat.

We continued down the hill, and once getting to a dark area, there was that usual red gate before us, with a side door. Shepard silently went through it, and we heard a log come up.

"Emergency log entry: The geth are here. I've stayed to buy the others time. Anyone who gets this, find Tali'Zorah. She and that data are the only thing that matters. Keelah se'lai."

Garrus glanced at all of us, but Shepard didn't have a firm reaction. She walked over to the gate controls, and opened them. Turning around, she headed back out the door. "Come on."

As we headed through the gate I found I had to quicken my pace to keep up. That probably wouldn't have been so bad if it weren't for the armor and this stupid sun. "I'm hot," I grumbled out, a litlte more loudly than I intended. "I hate the sun." Hey, I had to complain a little. Otherwise it would be totally unbearable.

Before anyone could say anything, while walking forward, Mordin pointed to the sky. "Dropship coming!"

One second later, a bunch of geth dropped out of it, immediately going into action and firing.

"Take cover!" Shepard shouted, darting behind some barrels.

I immediately ducked behind a large, fallen collum with a startled squeak. This was really the first time I had actually faced any real enemies. How the hell did HK and Abby handle this? I was already half-convinced somebody was gonna get injured.

...And that was when I realized something terrible. Apparently I had dropped my gun the moment I started to run for cover. It was now about ten feet away from me.

"Ah crap," Garrus commented, noticing that I had dropped my gun.

"Forget about that, focus on the geth!" Shepard screamed, pointing and firing at the geth, who were sending a barrage of bullets our way.

"Right!" Mordin yelled.

The fight continued for a moment, with the three of them constantly firing and throwing out biotics, until the geth were down.

"There are more up ahead," Shepard said, motioning forward. She looked to me. "Grab your gun, hold onto it, and lets go."

I scrambled out from cover, nearly stumbling over my own feet as I did so. I simply was not used to moving around in armor. I stooped down and reached for my gun-although it took me a couple of tries to pick it up. I wasn't used to handling things with armor over my hands!

Then I hurried after Shepard as she and the others proceeded forward with caution. I concentrated on hanging onto my gun, realizing something. I should have practiced firing more while I was wearing armor. Well, um... no time for more practice now, I guess.

Suddenly I heard a shout, and I realized that more geth were indeed ahead, and we had gotten closer to them. The others dove for cover, but I didn't even notice right away; I was still focusing on my gun, and trying to aim it-and the geth opened fire. I shrieked and pressed the trigger. The shot from my gun missed the targets completely; it went right past the geth.

All of a sudden I heard another shout, and someone-I couldn't tell who at first-roughly shoved me out of the line of fire, behind another fallen collum. I went face-down on the ground... yet somehow, miraculously, managed to hang onto my gun.

"Keep down!" Shepard snapped, firing at the incoming geth. There was some frusteration in her voice, definitely. The fire-fight continued for several more seconds, until these geth were dead.

Shepard grabbed my hand, pulling me up. "I hope you'll get used to having armor and a gun soon," she said.

"Shepard," Garrus said, getting her attention. He motioned to the other side of the area. "Its way too sunny to get across that way...we're going to have to find a shortcut."

She nodded. "You're probably right...follow me."

Shepard then led us down into a dark area at the side of the battlefield, where many boxes were stacked. We had to go through some more piercing sun in the process, but we eventually got to the shade.

However, the geth from the ramp above began to fire upon us.

"Damnit!" I shouted as the bullets began to rain down on us. Once again everyone ducked into cover. I stayed right where I was for a moment, behind a large crate, and then slowly peered over the top.

That was when the crate I was hiding behind suddenly broke under a well-placed, powerful shot from a geth. Apparently I had chosen a "fragile" crate to hide behind. "EEP!" I got to my feet and looked around for more cover. Then a fast-moving projectile impacted me square in the chest, but my shields took the brunt of it.

I thought I heard Shepard shouting at me, but I was totally focused on getting to cover. I found a nearby piller that was still standing and I pressed myself tightly against it. Maybe if I was lucky, I wouldn't get hit.

The geth took a few more shots at me, but they bounced off of the pillar...several seconds later, the shots ceased, and Shepard motioned for everyone to get out of cover. "Lets head up this way," she said.

We all followed Shepard up the red-colored ramp, to the second level of the ruins...we emerged from the ramp into a place with many, many boxes and other items stacked up.

Barely any time passed before more geth, from across the platform, began firing furiously at us. This time, Shepard _shoved_ me behind the boxes, with her taking cover as well and beginning to fire once more, along with the other two.

At this point, part of me wanted to join in as well. I mean... what good was I, if I kept having to be protected every time a firefight started? So I carefully peered over the top of the crates and began to aim my gun carefully. I also realized that this was another thing that made reality different from the game. In Mass Effect 2, you never had to worry about anyone dropping their gun. In this case... it was very possible.

I tried my best to aim at one of the smaller, black geth as a larger geth came forward. Damnit, couldn't they just stay still so I could actually shoot one of them? I found I had to keep re-adjusting my position, trying to get my target to stay in my sights. Finally, my victim paused, raising its own weapon. Was it going to take a shot at me?

We both fired at the same time. I actually managed to hit it somewhere in the chest-and a shot hit me squarely in the head. My helmet, along with my kinetic barriers, protected me. I squeaked and ducked back down behind my cover.

Shepard, Garrus, and Mordin all continued to throw everything they had at the geth, ignoring what happened to me. A minute or two later, Shepard exhaled a deep breath, and the fight ended. She simply made a hand motion, probably telling us all to follow her again.

We headed to the other side of the platform, which was in the sun. Shepard immediately headed for a ledge that was nicely covered, while Garrus and Mordin took cover behind some boxes.

"More geth," Shepard said, pointing downwards to where the gate and a side hall was. She began firing as another battle erupted.

"Not again," I groaned out loud. I thought that this had been annoying sometimes in the game, when you encountered swarms and swarms of enemies, but this was almost ridiculous. Then again... what exactly had I been expecting?

Gritting my teeth, I peered out of my cover once again, trying to see if I could get in a good shot. There seemed to be a few more this time. I tried a few times to make accurate shots, but the blasted geth just wouldn't stay still. Finally, I just started firing off wild shots, just to make it look like I knew what I was doing, or that I was helping. I did this until I ran out of firepower.

"What the hell are you doing?" Shepard yelled. "You just used all your ammo and barely hit any geth!"

Seconds later, the three took care of the remaining geth, finally clearing this area.

Wordlessly, I got up and looked down at my gun. I glanced at the others, feeling too sheepish to actually ask for another thermal clip.

Mordin didn't say anything, and Garrus just shook his head, while Shepard sighed, glancing at her old friend again. No words were exchanged, and she simply led us down the ramp, and to the gate. She also picked up a spare thermal clip on the ground, and tossed it to me.

"No controls to this gate," Mordin observed, looking at it.

"There's another path right over here," Shepard simply answered.

We turned and headed down the path off to the right, and Shepard shot one remaining geth. We rounded a corner, and saw geth finishing off part of the quarian group...they then turned their attention towards us, and the three began firing again.

I simply plopped myself down behind cover, because... I was still trying to get the new thermal clip into my gun. I had managed to pull out the used one while we were walking, but the thick, armor-like gloves on my hands made it difficult to do anything. So now... I simply sat there, leaning against the crate, trying to get the stupid new clip into the back of my gun. Why couldn't it just cooperate?

While I continued to achieve this task, Shepard and the other two finished off the geth. They walked forward, and then we heard a familiar voice over the comm.

"Break, break, break, OP-1. This is squad leader Kal'Reegar, do you copy?"

"He'll have information on Tali," Garrus said.

Shepard nodded, heading towards it and picking up some things in the process. Kal'Reegar's voice came through again. "The geth sent a dropship towards OP-2. Tali'Zorah's secure, but we need backup."

Shepard finally walked over to the comm, picking it up. "OP-1, this is squad leader Kal'Reegar, come in, over." Kal'Reegar repeated.

"This is Commander Shepard of the Normandy. Can we provide assistance?" Shepard asked.

"Patch your radio into channel 617 Theta," Kal instructed, as Shepard, Garrus, and Mordin did so. "We were on a stealth mission. High risk. We found what we were after, but the geth found us. They've got us pinned down. Can't get to our ship, can't transmit data through the solar radiation."

"How are you holding up? We can be there in a few minutes," Shepard told him.

"Take it slow and careful. Direct sunlight fries your shields all to hell. We're bunkered down at base camp across the valley. I left Tali'Zorah at a secure location, then doubled back to hold the choke-point. Getting Tali to safety is our top priority. If you can extract her, we'll keep them off you."

"Hold your position. We'll hit their back ranks." Shepard said.

"Wait! Watch your ass! We've got a dropship coming in!" Kal'Reegar yelled, causing us all to look up while the geth dropship flew over, blasting at the quarians a short distance away. They all got killed, and that pillar collapsed, just like in the game.

"Crap!" Kal'Reegar exclaimed. "Doorway's blocked. Grab the demo charges in the buildings nearby. Use them to clear a path. They're coming in at the side, I've got to fall back!"

The geth arrived yet again, and EDI's voice chimed in. "Shepard, I've scanned the area and located the demolition charges the quarian commander mentioned."

"Put it on my radar," Shepard told her, while beginning to fire at the geth.

"Done," EDI said, a mere second later. "You will need both sets of charges to clear the rubble."

Ugh. Maybe if I had been a bit faster... I could have warned Shepard about this. That way we wouldn't have needed to get those stupid charges. But... off we went again.

"Hey... Garrus?" I called out, jogging up toward him.

Garrus glanced at me, giving me a very strange look. He turned back to focus on the geth, continuing to throw everything he could at them. "Um...yes?" he said.

"Nevermind." I simply slumped down and kept perfectly still while the others continued to fire.

"This way," Shepard said, after the wave of geth right in front of us was down. She led us forward, and gestured to the building on our left, while firing at more geth over there. "One set of charges is right in there."

"Can somebody help me with this?" I asked suddenly, blurting out the question I had almost asked Garrus a few moments ago, while we were still under fire. I wanted it done before we encountered any more geth.

Shepard finished off the geth, but still looked on edge. "I see more in the building...Garrus, stay behind and help her, but make it quick," she said, sounding a bit irritated. However, she said nothing more as she and Mordin went forward.

Garrus immediately took the gun from me, and placed the thermal clip firmly inside. "Here," he said, handing it back to me.

"Thanks," I said, taking it back and then rushing forward. I could definitely hear more gunfire up ahead. Though thankfully we had only one of the charges left to get. And then we would be home free-

That thought stopped in its tracks when I suddenly remembered the colloluss. Ugh, somebody kill me right now.

Suddenly I heard Garrus shouting behind me, and some part of my mind heard the sound of his footsteps quickening. Then I realized why he was shouting-I was headed straight in the direction of a geth prime that was now charging in my direction.

Before I could even think about raising my gun, it pointed its gun at me and fired a few shots before Garrus's weapon could take it out. The first two shots from the geth's weapon drained my shields, the third one knocked them down completely... and the fourth and fifth ones went right into me.

I screamed out as the bullets ripped right through my side, as if I wasn't wearing any armor at all. I fell into a heap on the ground, clutching at my side. When I lifted my hand away from the wound and held it in front of my face, I saw that it was covered with blood.

The geth prime continued its vicious attack, but bullets, and even a large beam, suddenly went through it. It stumbled back, and within the next thirty seconds, was down for the count. I saw other remaining geth go down, as well.

Shepard rushed to my side. "Sarah," she said with a sigh. "How are you feeling?"

I was having trouble breathing and my right side hurt like hell. I wondered if it was just blood loss or if maybe that shot had punctured a lung. When I tried to speak, I ended up coughing up some blood. This seemed to re-affirm my theory.

"Wounds deep. Don't think she'll be able to continue on," Mordin stated.

Shepard just shook her head. "Sarah, can you speak?" she asked.

"Y-yeah," I finally managed. I winced, allowing myself to go limp on the ground, at least for the moment. "Can we... get armor off?" I hated talking in fragmented sentences, but this wasn't the time to worry about proper grammer.

"There's not enough time, and more importantly, if we do, you're just going to get more shot up than you are now. I can hear more geth down near the second charge," Shepard replied.

I tried to say something, but it only came out sounding like a half-grumble, half-groan. My eyes were wide open, darting every which way. Then, on impulse, I reached out and grabbed Garrus's wrist, clinging to it as tightly as I could in my injured state.

Garrus looked down at me in my injured state, and sighed. "Just...hold on, and...I'm sorry," he simply said, frowning. "I should never have let you come out here like this. You needed alot more time."

"I shouldn't have said yes to her request," Shepard said, opening her comm. "EDI, bring the shuttle back in. Sarah's injured, and she needs to get back to the Normandy now. We've got to get Tali before its too late."

I feebly squeezed Garrus's wrist, then I felt my fingers slipping off of it. My vision began to swim and voices began to sound further away.

"They'd better get here quick," Garrus said, still looking down at me, or that was what little I could tell anyway.

"Tell Chakwas to be ready to treat her. It looks bad," Shepard said to EDI.

And that was when the world went black.

* * *

The next thing I knew... I was staring up into a bright, white light. The pain had been replaced by an odd numb feeling, and... I found myself trying to figure out where the heck I was, and trying to remember what happened.

"Ahh, you're awake," Dr. Chakwas said, looming over me. "How do you feel?"

I thought about that for a moment. "Thirsty."

"I'll get you some water soon...you took quite a beating out there. You culd have very well died," Chakwas told me, looking like she was examining all of my life signs. "Do you remember what occurred on Haestrom?"

"Oh... God," I murmured as the memories came back into my mind. "I... got hit by the geth." I looked at the doctor. "Are... are they okay?" I wanted to know if Shepard, Garrus and Mordin got back alright.

"Yes, and so am I...I have been looking forward to meeting the strange woman that nearly died trying to save me," a woman's voice said, as I heard the door swing open and someone walk inside.

"Sarah, meet Tali'Zorah vas Neema," Chakwas introduced.

I at straight up in surprise-only to feel my head spin. I plopped back down against the bed, feeling my head hit the pillow. "T-Tali!" I exclaimed. "Hi!" I blurted. "Hi there!" I was happy to see her, just totally taken aback. I'd always considered Tali to be a sweet girl, though tough at the same time. She was probably my second-favorite person next to Garrus.

"I hope I am not bursting in on you too soon, but I was on the deck trying to introduce myself, and I have heard alot of...things about you, such as your brief journey on Haestrom. Thank you for the effort." Tali said, approaching my side.

I smiled at her, still feeling a bit dazed. I extended my hand toward her as best I could from the bed I was on. "Hey I'm really glad to meet you," I said, smiling at her. I hoped I wasn't grinning like an idiot. I probably had a lot of painkiller meds in my system, so there was no way to tell.

"I am...pleased to meet you, as well. My opinions on Cerberus are not the greatest, but the crew here is nicer than I expected, and I wanted to personally thank you for trying to help me...not many would have done that, especially if they hadn't had any combat training before." Tali said kindly.

For a moment I wasn't quite sure what to say to that. In all honesty... I hadn't really gone on the mission to help her. I was simply trying to find a way to avoid being captured by Collectors and dying later-and ironically, I nearly got killed while I was out there. And... funnily enough... I hadn't really thought much about meeting Tali, or what I would say to her when I did. And I was also certain that I had been more of a hinderance on that mission than a help.

But... I didn't see any reason to say any of these things to Tali. In fact, I wasn't sure what to say. So I decided to turn the subject over to her. "How are you?" I asked.

"I am good, thankful to be alive. Shepard never fails...she got both me and Kal'Reegar out, and now I am back to serve on the Normandy again. We'll probably be seeing a fair amount of each other, though she did tell me that you more than likely, um, won't be serving on the ground team again..." Tali answered.

"Ugh. Trust me, I don't wanna go out there again." That was for certain. I would just take my chances with the Collectors. If I set foot off of this ship again, it was guaranteed I was going to get killed. At least if I stayed here, and counted on Shepard... I stood a chance.

"How's Garrus?" The question was out of my mouth before I really thought about it much. Must have been my daze from the drugs.

"He took quite a few bad hits in the battle with a geth collossus, but overall has remained alright. I think he's in the gunnery now," Tali said, turning to the window. "He seems...a bit different than he did two years ago, but we've all changed."

I peered at her curiously. "How would you say he's different?" I asked.

"I'm not sure, we've only been serving on the same ship for a few hours. Something just feels slightly off, but I may be completely wrong. My mind is very scrambled since that fiasco on Haestrom," Tali replied.

I nodded a little. "Yeah... you lost everybody on your team to the geth today, except for one. Just like you lost everybody on Freedom's Progress." I glanced downward. "That had to be rough."

"Wait," Tali said, whirling around to look at me. "How did you know that? Did Shepard tell you?"

"Um... she didn't have to." I smiled, still not really looking at her. I wondered if she knew anything at all about the "visions" that me, HK and Abby were believed to have.

"Wait...hmm, Shepard mentioned something to me about how some of you on this ship...knew things. She seemed to be uncertain about it all, but said that you'd been proven right before. Is this what she meant?" Tali questioned. She looked over at the neighboring bed, and with a jolt I realized that it was occupied by none other than Abby, who had a shiner underneath her right eye.

I looked at her face, and met her eyes. Frankly, her eyes were the only thing I could really see through her mask, and only at certain angles. "Yeah, pretty much," I said simply with a nod, wondering what the heck Abby had gotten into now.

"I see...Cerberus has more interesting people than I thought," Tali commented. "Ah well, I should get down to the engines...Shepard has given me full access, and I need to see if I've heard from the Admiralty Board yet. Take care."

I opened my mouth, almost getting ready to ask her if maybe she could... tell Garrus I said hi if she happened to see him again, or maybe even ask him if he could visit me. But I stopped myself. He was probably busy, and well... what would I say, even if he did stop by? Plus part of me didn't want to ask. It... would be better if he simply stopped by on his own, if he really wanted to. I probably made him uncomfortable enough with that stupid hug I requested.

"Yeah, okay," I said to Tali. "Take care, and it was nice to meet you."

"Consider that a great gift," Dr. Chakwas told me. "Tali has always been kind, though she seems a little more mature now...but any and all quarians should hate Cerberus, and they probably do after what they've done. You are a lucky one, in multiple ways."

"Yeah well... I'm not really with Cerberus," I murmured out loud. I wasn't really... was I?

"I can understand...I am not, either. I work for Shepard, not for Cerberus...forgive me, however I must say, your group still confuses me slightly. You and Abby seem nice enough from what I have seen of you, but I just don't know what to make of any of you." Dr. Chakwas explained.

I shrugged as best I could in my current condition. Ah, at least it felt good to be out of that armor. "I bet I'm the weirdest of the bunch," I said suddenly, grinning in spite of myself. I glanced over at Abby. "What happened to her? She okay?"

"Abby is a very unique girl...but I have heard alot about you and your adventures on board this ship, and more recently, outside this ship. I also still recall the ryncol incident, so you may be right," Chakwas told me. "Abby is going to be fine. She and Zaeed were practicing downstairs and, well..." For once, the doctor looked uncomfortable. "I'm not sure what happened, precisely. Something about 'helicoptering' her into a cargo container."

"Ow."

"She'll be perfectly fine. It was just an extraordinarily hard fall, and she redirected most of the downward force so she didn't break her neck."

"She'll be fine," I said. "She's Abby." I rested back and gazed up at the ceiling. "How long until I can get out of here?"

"Not too much longer...mostly everything is getting better, with the rest you've had these past several hours. Sometime over the next couple of hours, you should be able to leave," she replied.

"Okay. Until then... I think I'd just like to sleep."


	18. Introspection

**(HK)**

It had been a very strange day.

Not that that was uncommon on this ship. Basically, Sarah convinced Shepard to let her on to the ground team, amazingly, and got the quickest shooting lesson ever. Even shorter than Abby's and my own, but what could you expect when you told Shepard you were going to die if you weren't part of the party, and the next mission was set to start in twelve hours?

She hit some bottles, like our original training, and decided she was ready...but the mission on Haestrom had gone totally insane and she got wounded on the battlefield. Now she was up in Medical Bay, and was _never_ going to be on the ground team again, according to her and Shepard. Abby was also up there, after some spar with Zaeed went awry.

They'd both be fine, per what Dr. Chakwas had told me, but I was the only one who could walk the ship right now.

_Not surprising._

Though, right now, I wasn't as much walking as I was getting pumelled by Jacob. After Zaeed and Abby finished whatever they were doing, we decided to spar, partially because I needed to and partially because Jacob needed a major distraction.

I could tell that he was tense...he didn't let it show, too much, but I figured it out by his fighting. Unconsciously, he was really letting his emotions out when he threw a punch or kick at me. He didn't know he was doing it, but he was...and I could understand. It would be hard not to.

Normally, I held my own against Jacob as much as possible, but today he was coming at me so strong I really wasn't able to.

I reached out to hit a pressure point behind the ear, but right exactly as I struck it, his knee slammed into my stomach. I collapsed to the ground, while he froze for a moment, before falling down as well, nearly right on top of me.

In the next instant, he grabbed my wrist, and pulled it in a 'cross armlock': He pulled my entire arm up to his chest, squeezing it tightly. It was a move I knew of, and had often seen soldiers or marines do...but I never realized until now how much it _hurt_.

I groaned out in pain, and finally decided to give up. "Okay, okay, I give up!" I shouted, trying to not yell out in pain. "Seriously, Jacob, you win, you win!"

He released me, and a wave of relief washed over me as I finally felt the pain in my arm cease. Jacob stood, brushing himself off. He held out a hand to me. "I thought you'd fight back, actually," he told me calmly.

I grabbed his hand, and slowly stood. "Maybe I would, but not after that intense fight." I told him, breathless and exhausted after all of that.

Jacob just shrugged, and I didn't say or do anything more. Jacob was a decent opponent, especially with all of the muscle he had, but today he was just...harder than usual, or maybe it was just me. However, when people's loyalty missions came around, they always got alot more tense.

He grabbed a towel to wipe his face with, and tossed me one, since sweat covered us. I did the same, and watched while he sat down to rest. He was very quiet, barely giving me another glance...I knew it wasn't me or anything, it was just all of this with his father. He wasn't speaking of it, he was trying to conceal it, but it was obvious that it caused him to be slightly different in general.

He was still Jacob, though, and he didn't seem all depressed or anything.

_Should I talk to him? Abby's his good friend, not me...I think we're friends, but I'm just a student of his, technically...and Jacob's one of those guys who doesn't like to get into a bunch of emotional, heart-to-heart talks. I learned that enough times in the game, and can see it even more here. If I go up there and say "Hey, lets talk about how your father may not be really dead and has enslaved women and killed officers for years", it could just irritate him...not to mention, he knows that we all now whats going to happen there. If I try to comfort him, it'd almost seem like I was just taunting him or something, even if thats not the case._

My respect for Jacob had grown alot in my experience on the Normandy. He didn't act like we were crazy people, minus maybe some uncertainty at first, and treated us, with the exception of Sarah after that biting incident, like a normal part of the crew. He was one of the very few that did...and also, he hadn't asked me, or Abby as far as I knew, about any details on his father. He had to suspect that we knew, but he understood that we couldn't tell him, and hadn't said a word, as much as he probably wanted to.

_It must be torture for him._

But Jacob was a good, strong guy...he'd make it through this.

"HK," EDI's voice said, coming through the intercom. "Miss Lawson requests that you come up to her office immediately."

For a split second, I wondered why, but then I realized why...her loyalty quest had reared its head, too, and we were likely heading to Illium next...which meant it was going to happen there.

_Oh dear._

"Uh, can I shower first or something?" I asked.

"She says it is an urgent matter." EDI replied.

"Guess you better get up there," Jacob told me.

"I suppose so," I said, looking at him. "Jacob, just...well, hang in there, alright?"

He gave me a look, but simply nodded.

With that, I turned and headed up to Deck Three, a bit afraid of what would take place up there.

After a couple of minutes, the elevator stopped at Deck Three...I walked out of the elevator, and took a right. Everything was like normal up here; the crew was chatting, Rupert was at his usual station, Dr. Chakwas was tending to her patients. Nothing out of the ordinary.

Some simply gave me a nod, or just ignored me altogether. I tried to keep a straight face, but my stomach was in knots.

I had always liked Miranda in the game...and even here, she wasn't...too bad. She sorta saved my life on Korlus, but she still scared me slightly. She probably shouldn't, but still...I didn't want to get in ther, and her have a bunch of weapons at the ready if I didn't tell her what happened to Oriana.

The door swung open while I approached it, and Miranda sat at her desk, with that cold look of hers. "Sit," she told me.

"Umm...okay," I said nervously, taking a seat. "Whats this ab-"

"Do not play coy, you know what its about. One of your friends even mouthed off about it when I first met you." Miranda snapped, cutting me off.

"Oriana."

"Yes. We both know the situation, and there's not much time. I want to know how to keep her safe," Miranda said. Her tone was cold and firm, but I could see some emotion creeping onto her face. "_If_ she'll be safe."

I went silent. I couldn't tell Miranda anything, but I knew that she wasn't going to take that for an answer...but she'd hbave to. I couldn't tell her all the details right here and now.

I felt bad for her, too...maybe even moreso then Jacob. They were both going through alot, but Miranda was sitting here in fear of the horrors that Oriana would go through if their father got her back, and she had someone who knew but wouldn't tell her. Miranda was an ice queen, yes, she was hard to get along with, but you just knew how much this was hurting her.

"You know I can't tell you anything," I said very softly.

"This isn't a matter of what you can and can't do. You need to tell me, so an innocent girl can be safe," Miranda said, still calm, but in an authoritative manner. "In fact, you can say anything, you just refuse to. This has nothing to do with the Reapers, nothing to do with our mission, just a tip that I got."

"And therefore, its your personal life, nothing that I should be interfering in," I shot back, telling her just what I had told Shepard. "Listen, Miranda, with all due respect, you should know that I'm not going to tell you much...do I like it? No. No one does, but its what we have to do. You should speak to the Commander about this, not me."

Miranda gave me a hard, long stare. "I've devoted my life to make sure this girl stays safe and has a normal life, and now thats in danger. I have to keep her safe, no matter what the cost, even if it means getting information out of you that you don't want to give."

"I understand, really, I do," I said kindly, frowning. "But I can't tell you what happens to Oriana. Just do what you'd do if you didn't have us on the ship, and it'll all turn out how it should."

Miranda stood, and slammed her fist down on the table. Her frusteration was getting the better of her. "Damnit, you-"

The door opened again, and I looked back to see Shepard entering the room. "Miranda, Chambers said that you wanted to see me," she said, glancing down at me.

"Yes, Commander," Miranda said with a sigh. "This conversation is getting nowhere, anyway."

"Then maybe I'll just be going, then," I said, quickly standing up and rushing out.

I exhaled a breath...things were getting really crazy on the ship. Jacob was tense, Miranda's anxiety was rising, and it was only going to get worse as more loyalty quests came along. I didn't want to be on a ship full of depressed people, but maybe I'd have to be.

I looked at the MedBay...maybe going and seeing Sarah and Abby would get my mind off of things. I did want to see how they were doing, anyway.

After taking a shower and changing clothes, I headed straight for the MedBay. Walking inside, I saw Abby was sound asleep...and Sarah looked like she had just aroused after some sleep, as well. Dr. Chakwas was overseeing them both.

"Well, well," I said, heavily sighing as I walked over to Sarah's side. "What a day."

Sarah looked at me, then she sat up a bit on the bed. "Something happen?" she asked with a small shrug.

"Actually, I was moreso referring to what happened to you," I replied, though it looked like her healing process was coming along nicely. "But something else has, too...Miranda knows about Oriana, now, and tried to get information out of me."

Sarah blinked, her forehead crinkling as she seemed to think over what I said, briefly. "So it's started," she muttered.

"Yes...Jacob already knows about his, and is concerned about it, he just doesn't let it show as much like she does, but ah well...I think we're going to Ilium next, anyway, so we can get it out of the way there," I said, rubbing my head. "How are you feeling?"

She glanced over in Abby's direction-the younger girl was still sleeping like a log-then turned back to look at me. "Fine. In fact," she added briskly, swinging her legs over the side of the bed, "I just wanna get out of here. Don't care what Dr. Chakwas says." She carefully pushed herself off of the bed with her hands, wincing at the sudden movement.

"Oh, dear, just be carefu-" I began.

Dr. Chakwas whirled around, looking at Sarah. "Sarah, what are you doing?"

Sarah looked a bit disappointed that the doctor had noticed. "I feel much better," she said, dropping her hands from the edge of the bed to her sides, no longer leaning on the mattress for support. She was standing, and she kept her expression carefully neutral, but there seemed to be some effort in appearing completely fine.

"Sarah, you nearly got killed on a battlefield a mere twelve hours ago. I am not sure if I can trust you to be alright in such a short amount of time," Chakwas told her. "Though your stats do check out alright..."

"If I start feeling dizzy or sick or anything, I'll come right back," Sarah said. Her tone sounded like she was humoring the doctor, though it also held a slightly dismissive tone as well, as though she were finished with this conversation.

"Alright, just be careful," Chakwas said with a sigh.

EDI's blue head popped up. "Sarah, Mr. Vakarian requested that you come see him once you are ready and able enough," she said.

Sarah had been taking a couple of careful steps away from the bed with EDI's head popped up and she delievered the message. Once the words were spoken, Sarah blinked a few times as though trying to process the information.

Then she nearly fell down.

My eyes widened, and I darted to Sarah's side, grabbing her as gently as possible before she could fall any further. "Oh my, Sarah, are you alright?" I asked in shock, as Chakwas rushed over.

I looked at EDI. "Maybe this wasn't the best time to tell her that tidbit, EDI..." I said respectfully.

"I'm fine," Sarah muttered, regaining her balance and backing away from me. She then held up a hand to re-assure Chakwas-or perhaps to stop her from coming any closer. "Just took me by surprise, that's all."

"I hope so, but if anything more happens, come see me immediately. Doctor's orders," she said, backing away and going back to Abby.

I shook my head. So, Garrus wants to see Sarah, for once, not the other way around? _Thats...unusual. I'm glad that Garrus is easy-going enough to be a friend and not call her a stalker, like some would..._

Suddenly, scenarios started playing out in my head of what would've happened if it had been people like Miranda or Jack that Sarah had a fixation with, and the insanity that would-

No, not even going to bother to go _there._

"Please excuse me," Sarah said simply, breaking into my train of thought. "Thanks for stopping by, and see you later." With that, she moved toward the door.

I watched her leave, and didn't say or do anything...it was getting real interesting on the ship. Abby was becoming real close to Jacob and Zaeed, judging by how they interacted and all the crazy training sessions that the three had...likewise, Sarah was getting close to Garrus and maybe Mordin. It seemed like Garrus had become more of a friend than someone who was weirded out by how many times she approached him.

But the fact was, that was a good thing...because everyone else probably regarded Sarah as a loon by now.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I had a pretty good idea why Garrus wanted to see me. It clicked in my mind almost immediately, considering what HK said about Miranda's loyalty mission and such. Apparently that stuff was starting to come up, and since I had dropped enough hints to Garrus about his-hell, I even made him agree to take me along-well, it was obvious what was going on.

I moved a bit stiffly. Everything seemed to be mostly patched up, thanks to that medi-gel stuff. I swear that stuff did wonders. It made me wonder if it was similar to kolto in KotOR at all... meh, not like I cared much about that game anymore.

I made my way toward the armory, offering nothing more than a polite smile or a simple, pleasent greeting to anyone I passed or anyone who looked at me. By the time I reached the long corridor that lead to the armory however, I didn't have to worry about passing anyone else, and I knew I was almost at my destination.

I walked in through the doors. Garrus's back was turned toward me; he was doing something at the console, like usual. "Hi," I said simply, moving to sit on one of the crates. I still wanted to take it easy so I wouldn't have to risk going back to the medbay.

"Sarah," Garrus said, immediately turning around. "Its good to see you. How are you?"

I raised my eyebrows a little. "I'm okay," I said with a smile, feeling my chest glowing because he asked. Though I couldn't help but wonder if he was just asking because I'd gotten hurt on his watch, so to speak-or because he needed my help to find Sidonis. Then again, he could _probably_ find Sidonis on his own if he really wanted to.

I still wondered if he really considered me a friend or not. Then again, at the very least, he didn't seem to think I was entirely crazy or anything.

"I...I wanted to..apologize," Garrus said slowly, looking downwards. "I should have known better than to send you out there after no time of training."

I shrugged dismissively. "It's not like you're the one who shot me," I said, trying to lighten things up a bit. Besides, well... eh, maybe it was just because I was pumped up on painkillers right now, but I felt like I could care less that I almost died. I was okay. That's all that mattered.

Besides... who could possibly be mad-or stay mad-at Garrus when he looked like that? He was cuter than a puppydog.

"I know, its just...you weren't prepared, and I told Shepard that you could do it...I made yet another mistake, and nearly got yet another person killed," Garrus said, slowly looking up at me. "But thats for me to deal with, not you. I just wanted to say I'm sorry."

"I appreciate it, but it's really okay," I told him. Part of me almost wanted to touch his shoulder or something, but I stayed where I was. I simply folded my hands on my lap. "Besides... um... this isn't like what happened to your men on Omega, if that's what you're thinking about." I wanted to re-assure him if I could, plus I wanted to get to the subject of Sidonis... if that was the main reason he called me here.

"Thanks," Garrus said with a nod. "And speaking of which...I think we may be going to the Citadel after Ilium, if all goes according to plan."

I nodded. "Yeah, so we're going after Sidonis," I acknowledged, getting to the heart of the matter.

"Yes, I just...hope it'll all turn out the way it should," he said. "But hopefully, it will. Once Sidonis is dead, I can finally put this mess behind me."

At times, when I had spare time to think about it-and I could do a lot of thinking when I cleaned or helped out with the cooking-I wondered how many different ways this could turn out. Especially since... this was reality now. Things didn't have to stay linear like they did in the game... did they?

"Just curious... the last time you saw him... what was the last thing you two said to each other?" I asked aloud. I wasn't sure why I was asking. Maybe it was just because... I wasn't sure how much I could say without giving everything away. But I still wanted to discuss the subject.

Garrus hesitated for a moment. "There wasn't any final confrontation, if thats what you're asking...Sidonis just told me a place to go, lying about what would happen there, and then he took off while my team and I went there. Our last words to each other were very non-eventful, and next thing I knew, he was a traitor and everyone else was gone."

"How well did you know him?" I asked, still curious.

"I knew him well enough, but not like I thought I did...he was a regular member of the team, for awhile, but then I discovered he was a coward, and someone who couldn't be trusted. He's a low-life, and he has to pay for what he did," Garrus replied.

"You know... there is something that worries me a little," I stated, eyeing him carefully.

"What?" Garrus asked curiously.

Frankly, I didn't like to tell people when I thought they were doing something wrong-or at least, had the wrong attitude about something. But since I had nearly gotten myself killed, and for all I knew I might get killed this time when I went with Garrus, I figured... why hold back?

But I did glance down at the floor while I spoke. "Just seems like... you really hate it when people get away from you. I mean, you wanted to kill 'Dr. Heart' on sight when you saw him, and now you've made it clear you won't relax until Sidonis is dead. So..." I paused for a second, choosing my words carefully, then continued. "Is your wanting to go after Sidonis really justice, is it just that he's the one who got away, like that salarian?" Now I looked at him.

Garrus narrowed his eyes. "The situations are different...maybe I was off with the Dr. Heart situation, but Sidonis practically killed ten people...he's a murderor, and a traitor, and he deserves to die. Its the only way to avenge my team's death." he replied coldly.

Well, I couldn't really think of much to say to that. I'd say that Dr. Saleon was probably a personal case as well, because he got away under Garrus's watch. But... well, "Heart" hadn't killed anyone who Garrus knew personally.

Those men... they were probably like his family in a manner of speaking. Or at least good friends. In spite of myself, I ended up asking something I hadn't thought I would ask before. "Say... how's your father doing? I know he didn't exactly approve when you left C-sec to go with Shepard. What did he think of you going to Omega? Or did you even tell him?"

"Haven't talked to him since I went to Omega," Garrus simply answered.

I cocked my head to one side. Then suddenly, I grinned in spite of myself-I did feel slightly loopy, probably a side-affect of the drugs Chakwas put in me. "Say... you know that time when you were on a turian ship, going after a batarian pirate squad or whatever, and you and a female turian decided to go to her quarters? Did your dad know about that?"

...Okay, somebody shoot me now.

"Uhhh...no I really didn't see the need to tell him about that, didn't really tell anyone..." Garrus slowly replied, blinking.

"Um... sorry, I shouldn't have said that," I muttered, turning away to stare at the wall.

"Its okay...just, uh, a strange question," Garrus simply said.

I couldn't tell if I was blushing now or not. "So uh... any kids?"

...Maybe I should just get out right now.

"Uhh...Sarah, are you sure that you didn't take a worse hit than you thought out there?" Garrus asked.

I cleared my throat, looking down at the floor. "I don't know. I think it was something Chakwas gave me," I replied.

"Well, um, maybe you should rest or something...I need to get back to these calibrations, anyway," Garrus said, turning back to his console.

* * *

**(Abby)**

I came to slowly, aware only of the bright lights shining from above. The air smelled familiar... uncomfortable, because it reminded me of a hosipital, but safe. Doctor Chakwas was injecting something into the crook of my elbow. "Have you ever heard that saying, 'don't do anything you don't want to explain to the paramedics?'" she asked conversationally.

"Yeah..." Coming out of unconsciousness is a slow thing, and I could feel my mind struggling to connect the dots. "Oh-did you already take care of Zaeed?"

She frowned. "No, he wasn't hurt."

Actually, now that I was beginning to remember, I seemed to recall myself flying through the air. _Urawaza_, they called it in Japanese. It was that spiriling motion that lifted the attacker off her feet and brought her to the floor. Apparently Zaeed has his own version, and it sure as hell wasn't peaceful.

Though, you'd have to kind of expect that. You don't create a merc ring like the Blue Suns while preaching about 'living in harmony' with the natural world, or whatever.

"So I take it he 'helicoptered' you into a wall of cargo boxes..."

"Yes."

"While you were training."

"Yes."

"And do you think he meant to do that?"

"Uh..." I could see HK in the corner of my eye, watching with a raised eyebrow. "Well... It was partly my fault." She waited for me to explain. "I kind of moved and did something... and it kinda triggered his badass instincts, I guess you'd call it..." I laughed. "And, well... I think I poked his bad eye, the blue one, or whatever while he was throwing me, and he spun around faster... I kind of had the choice between a broken arm or hitting the boxes with my head. So I tucked my arms and..." I smiled wryly. "That was fun. Can I go? It doesn't even hurt anymore."

"That's because I sealed the wound-again-with medigel and gave you painkillers. Since it's not as bad as your last cut, I'll allow you to leave. But come back in a few hours and take more medication."

I jumped off the bed. "No problem! Hi, HK! How long you been here?"

HK smirked at me. "Not too long, but a little while...just coming to visit you and Sarah. I must say, between your adventures with Zaeed and Jacob, and her adventures with Garrus, I don't know what to do with you two," he said, half-jokingly.

"Yeah?" I asked. I allowed a shrug. "Well... can't help it. Where'd Sarah run off to?"

"Oh, you don't know, do you?" HK said, a look of concern crossing his face. "Well, to put it as simply as possible...Sarah decided to join the ground team, and got badly injured out on the battlefield."

I looked around. "And where is she now...?"

"She got released a little bit ago, and Garrus wanted to see her, so I guess she's talking with him," HK replied. "Good news is that we have Tali now."

"Good," I said. "And how the hell did she get on ground team, anyway? That's kind of like a suicide wish."

"Uh, well...she sorta told the Commander that she'd _die_ if she didn't become part of the ground team," HK said, rubbing his neck. "So Garrus gave her the quickest crash course in shooting ever, and things unravelled from there."

"That is completely stupid," I muttered, disgusted. "What is the issue with trusting us? Don't answer that. Should we go down and meet Tali? Maybe we can see if Ken and Gabby are all they're cracked up to be, too."

"I can get her position to a certain extent...she is facing a very dangerous unknown, but regardless, I don't think she'll be going on the ground team ever again. But sure about Tali...I actually don't think I've been to Deck Four since we arrived." HK answered, turning to the door.

"I've been down only once," I admitted, heading out behind him. "I checked out Grunt. I swear, if he starts calling us 'meatbags' I'm going to..." I left the sentence unfinished. I shook my head. "Crazy krogan. Really crazy krogan. Good luck, Shep."

I could see HK shudder. "I have not dared to see him yet...I always liked him in our...visions, but I don't know about in real life. And just watch, one of these days, Shepard's going to want us to spar with him."

"As long as I get a knife," I muttered darkly.

HK snorted. "I think that'll be yet another one of our famed moments," he said, as we boarded the elevator. "Deck Four's where all the crazy people reside, I've noticed...Jack, Zaeed, Grunt. Tali's the only normal one down there."

"If you could count somebody coming along on this mission as 'normal,'" I said. The door closed in front of us, and I hit the button for D-Four. "I have another thing I've been thinking about for a while. You know how Shepard has to get the loyalty of everybody on this ship? Instead of her gaining our loyalty... d'you think we have to get her's?"

HK froze for a moment, as if mulling over the idea. "I...I don't know, its a good thought, because I sure don't see how we're going to have loyalty quests, considering we come from an entirely other universe, but how would we get hers? Our 'predictions' keep coming true until she finally trusts us?" he wondered. "Speaking of loyalty, you already know that Jacob's stressed out over his, but also...Miranda's has popped up."

I winced. "Ah... fun fun. Is she going to come at us and demand to know about the ending, you think?"

"Well..." HK said, coughing slightly. "She kinda already did."

I grimaced. "Ah... What happened?"

"Not much," he replied with a heavy sigh. "I felt bad, because as cold as she is to everyone, we both know what pain she's going through, and I could see it in her face, but I gave her the usual speech...we couldn't tell her, she'd just need to do what she would if we weren't here, and before things got too heated Shepard came in to talk to her."

"You better watch," I said, only half-jokingly, "next time I wake up you guys will be pointing guns at each other."

"I like Miranda, she just...well you know how she is," HK said, smirking slightly, but it faded fast enough. "Luckily, we're heading to Ilium next, so it'll be gotten out of the way."

"Good," I said. "Then hopefully to Jacob's father as well. We're going to be hopping all around the galaxy for this stuff."

He nodded. "Yes, we do need to get that out of the way, too, because you can tell its getting him down...but being Jacob, he's not as vocal about it as Miranda. I also hope that we go and get Kasumi soon."

"And Thane and Samara... and do every singal loyalty mission, plus whatever the Illusive Man cooks up... plus random stuff popping up everywhere..." I wasn't liking the sound of this. Or maybe I was. More time in the Mass Effect universe, after all. "You know what's weird? Suddenly I'm in the mood for ice cream. Chocolate ice cream. The only thing that sucks about this place is that there are no good treats aboard."

"Er..." HK said, blinking. The elevator suddenly stopped. "Oh good, we're here!"

I laughed and stepped lightly out, skipping towards the windows overlooking the cargo bay, our training area. "It's all so shiny," I muttered, shaking my head. I observed the door leading into Zaeed's room and toyed with the notion of going in there and giving him a piece of my mind, but I figured that wouldn't be the most healthy thing to do under the circumstances. "Wanna make some rounds? Grunt, Jack, then Tali?"

"S-Sure...lets hope Grunt can control himself enough not to stomp us into the ground," HK said, looking warily in the direction of the cargo bay that he always stayed in.

I was suddenly excited for the chance to annoy this large, robust giant. I jogged silently down the hall and waited for him just an inch away from the door's motion detector that would open it. I held out a hand, a smirk on my face.

I really, really needed a better hobby.


	19. Shopping on Illium

**A/N: **THANK YOU SO SO MUCH FOR YOUR AMAZING REVIEWS! It really makes us all feel great. :D

* * *

**(Abby)**

You'd think being one of the three resident psychics aboard a warship heading for certain death, the commanding officer would at least let you know what planet you're heading for next. Hell, it didn't even have to be the CO. Just a little information or an announcement over the loadspeaker courtesy of my favorite pilot in the world would have sufficed. But, being the clean, efficient Cerberus people that they were, everybody already knew. Even the cook knew, but he seemed like the type of person who knew everything on the ship so I let that one slide.

I thought about asking HK and Sarah, but I didn't want to go on a manhunt for either and get in the way of the crew, who were changing their posts out as they completed another 6-hour rotation. The ship time (which was Earth time, thank God, and not Citadel time) said it was noon. Lunch time. Food.

It wasn't as though nobody was telling me where we were heading to next. In fact, I could have probably asked one of them and they would tell me right away. But I wanted to use the question as an excuse to talk to somebody, and I figured I probably wouldn't get another chance.

Okay, maybe I would. Maybe I was being too tactical. Tacticality is awesome, after all, right?

I smiled cheerfully at Garrus as he sat down to eat and ordered whatever was on the menu from Rupert. "Two plates," I told him.

"You must be hungry," he noted.

"Nah, I'm bringing some food to somebody."

I took the plates and, ignoring the looks from the mess hall, got into the elevator and hit Deck Two. Kelly turned around immediately and greeted me with a smile... then her eyes traveled to the plates and I realized immediately I must have broken some rules. "Hey, girl!" she said, still cheerful. "You can't eat up here, sorry. There are a lot of technical things in here that would just go haywire if crumbs got into it."

Damn it.

"Ack, okay, thanks," I said, stepping back into the elevator. To my surprise, a voice called out, "Hold the elevator, I'm coming, too."

Jacob stepped in, possibly a good person to ask for our destination, and hit the button for Deck Three. He appraised the food in my hand warily. "Two plates?" he asked.

"One was for Joker," I mumbled, embarassed.

He laughed. "Ah, got it. Kelly give you the speech about no food on deck?"

"Yeah. I'm an idiot. Should've realized that."

"Don't worry about it. If this is the biggest mistake you've made so far, you're smooth sailing."

I snorted and glanced sideways at him. He looked perfectly relaxed when he first came in, but there was a certain set to his shoulders now that made me think he was thinking about something. Hard. "How about you eat with me today?" he asked suddenly, as if he just made up his mind. "I need to ask a few questions."

Ah. Motherfluffer. "Okay," I said, keeping my voice light. "But you understand... I can't answer all of your questions."

"I know." He took one of the plates from me and led me out of the elevator when the doors opened. We sat down away from everybody else and I dug in with gusto. He just watched me warily. "You know?"

"About the distress beacon?" I clarified. He nodded. "Then yeah."

"What can you tell me?"

"He's alive," I said. I kept my face and voice neutral, well aware that if I hinted in one way at all that nothing was well down there then he might just order Shepard to turn around or take the drop shuttle there himself. "And for now, it'll keep. When are we heading there?"

"Soon," said Jacob. "After Illium."

Ah. "We're heading to Illium?" I asked, interested. "Samara and Thane?"

For once, he didn't even look surprised that I knew. "Any funny surprises I should watch out for... when I meet my father again?" My mouth was full, so I held up a finger, begging him to wait. He stared at me intensely, and I could almost hear the silent pleading in his head for information. I swallowed, but I still didn't say anything. "Come on," he said. "Please. Tell me."

"Ah..." I pursed my lips and looked away, down the table, aware that some people could possibly be listening in. I lowered my voice, my face heating up. "He's not the guy you knew. I-I can't say anymore. Please don't ask me again."

"What do you mean?" he asked harshly. "I deserve to-"

My hackles went up. "Stop," I whispered. "Slow down. Think. Calm down, before you whack somebody. Please."

He stood up abruptly and placed his uneaten plate of food on Rupert's counter. He left, and HK took his vacated seat with an apprehensive air. "He wanted to know about his father," I said, answering the unasked question. "I told him no. I hope we get this done soon."

"Oh, dear...yes, I knew it was getting to him. Both him and Miranda are on edge, though hopefully, Miranda's will be done soon enough," HK said with a sigh, looking at me. "All these loyalty missions...they're going to be hard, you know? I mean, on the crew. They're all going to be under major pressure, and they know we know the answers, but aren't telling them."

I nodded, saddened by the fact. "They trust us to lead them out of a fight unscathed, but when it comes to personal issues we're just somebody they'll be able to blame," I said, grimacing. I ran through all the missions in my head, trying to figure out which ones would give us the most trouble. "Miranda and Jacob are certainly... vocal enough," I allowed. "Mordin... he'll be okay. He may not even ask. Garrus is taken care of. Legion will be interesting. Zaeed will demand that both of us come, I think, to make sure Vido dies. Jack won't ask, because as far as she knows the base is deserted. We'll just... stay away from Grunt for a while. I'd rather he break a window than my face, to be honest. Tali may ask us about her tribunal, or at least the subject on it. Samara and Thane will be just... I don't know. I'm itching to see their reactions to us."

HK nodded. "I'm never sure of anyone's reaction until we actually meet them, so I don't know. I'm glad we're getting Miranda's out of the way, because she probably is the most vocal about it...Jacob is on and off, I think. You're his good friend, so he feels like he can ask you, but he gets frusterated when you won't tell him, like anyone would. He just won't interrogate the answers out of you like Operative Lawson would."

I giggled. "She would, wouldn't she?" I asked. "I don't even know why I find that funny, but it is."

"She almost did with me, but Shepard interrupted, thank goodness," HK told me, shaking his head. "So, when do we get to Illium, anyways? Any idea?"

"Oh I have no clue," I said, grimacing. "I hope we stay there for a while, though. I don't know about you, but I'd like some clothes. Normal clothes. Clothes that Miss Bellydancer Kelly doesn't own."

HK snorted. "Yes, it'd be nice for something other than Cerberus attire," he said, glancing down at his own, standard Cerberus outfit. "Though I doubt we'd ever wear them. Not on this mission, anyway."

"D'you think we're getting any money for this?" I asked. "Because if I have to go up to Shepard and ask her for money to spend on my wardrobe, I think she'd be a tiny bit _annoyed."_

"We randomly drop onto her ship, and are suddenly part of the crew, being weird and knowing almost everything...and she's going to pay us for that?" HK sarcastically asked with a chuckle. "No, I don't think we're getting any money."

"Aw, damn. I could've put it towards my video game fund. Sigh." And for effect, I did. "Okay, then I'll have to brave the waters and ask for some small fund, at least to get some new clothes. I still have orange blood stains. I wonder if Billy Mayes can come up with a cleaning solution for your everyday alien blood stains-"

"If he were alive, maybe," HK said, his eyebrow raised.

"Ah, oh yeah. Slight issue there. La-de-dah. Whoops." My foot tapped impatiently on the floor. A sure sign of Aikido withdrawel. "At least you have armor, you don't have to deal with that stuff. Cleaning it must be a piece of cake for you. But I have to take a shower every time I gut something. And look!" I held out my forearms, highlighting small, halfway-healed burn scars. "Blowing up mechs is nasty business! Shrapnel goes everywhere and I'm talking way too much again, aren't I? Urgh! I want to go out and walk around on Illium, then get into the statistical 2.73 fights Legion says we get a day. Rounded down."

HK slowly nodded after my long statements. "Yes, I know...believe me, I've gotten in fights too, but armor does help a lot. But I _do_ want to get to Illium soon, because I feel like I've been on this ship way too long. I love the Normandy, but I'm getting cage-bound."

"We're going stir-crazy!" I said cheerfully. Then I winced. "My other life is sore right now." I looked back through the real-time memories of Earth still winding through my brain. "I took a high fall wrong. Well, that was stupid. And I just finished uchideishi week... and now I'm waiting impatiently for the next class to start. This is so cool, yet so weird, knowing everything. It's like the rest of my brain has picked up the slack and is working double-time. Feel that way to you?"

"It is...weird. I think I'm mostly trying to ignore it, and let my Earth life take its course...I'm physically here, so I'm going to focus on that. I think my normal life will be fine for the time being. Any knowledge I need, I'll get," HK explained.

"It's kind of like watching a television show," I said. Then I just snorted. "Ah, well... Hey! I have an idea! Let's go ambush Shepard and ask for some denero for the shopping trip."

HK smirked. "Want me there with you in case she rejects our request, don't you?"

"I need backup," I said, grinning. "C'mon, let's eat fast and get her. Maybe we can even meet Liara. I wonder what an asari smells like. Krogan smell bad, and so do batarians. Turians smell awesome, really sweet, you know? But I haven't smelled an asari yet..." I caught a few stares from the people sitting next to me. "Eat your food!" I said, chagrined.

Five or ten more minutes passed, and HK had eaten his food. We were both standing up, and walking towards the elevator. "Ready to face her?" he asked, chuckling.

"La-dee-dum-dum," I answered.

* * *

Commander Shepard was in her cabin, as we had guessed. And apprently EDI had warned her, too, because she didn't even look surprised when she opened the door to find us two idiots standing there looking like we were about to face the wrath of God. She let us in without a word and crossed back to her desk, sorting through datapads. "It struck me quite recently," she said, a twitch of a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth, "that as much as you three seem to be helping us, you aren't being rewarded. Everybody on this ship has credits being transferred to their accounts except for you. They could get whatever they want with that amount of salary."

She opened up a file on her terminal. "So," she continued, "how much money would you think is fair? For helping Cerberus save the galaxy."

"Ummm." HK replied, glancing at me for a moment. "I'm not sure. How much do you think is fair?"

"How much do _you_ think is fair?" Shepard asked pointedly.

"Uh, honestly, we don't know," I said, throwing a look at HK. "Just some money to go shopping for clothes would be good. So... maybe four-hundred credits?"

"That's insane."

I grimaced. "Sorry. I'm not very-"

"How about fourteen-thousand?"

HK's eyes widened. "Fourteen-thousand? Uh, wow...I'm not one to reject that much money, so thats fine with me." he replied with a shrug.

I stared at Shepard with wide eyes. "Are you SURE?" I asked. "The most credits I've ever had was one-hundred and twenty. Wow. I'm not sure I'd know what to do with all of that."

She tilted her head. A green light beeped on her console. "Actually, that's not much money," she said, glancing at it. "Everybody on this mission is being paid half a million. Why should you be different?"

"Shit." I was so flustered I didn't even care that I just cussed in the presence of one who could kill me with her thumb if she wanted to. "What can we do with all of that?"

"Save it. Use it for college."

"College..." I repeated, my mouth going dry.

"Cerberus budgets stretch far," Shepard said. "So you two and your friend Sarah will each get half a million credits."

"Uh..." I glanced at HK, my eyes wide. "I-I can't accept that. Just... maybe fourteen-hundred. That sounds... fair. Give the rest to charity or something."

"Any charity I'd give to, minus maybe one or two, would probably be against Cerberus ideals," HK said, looking breathless. "So, uhh...I'll...er, I can't believe this. I'll take all of mine, I guess...thanks. Wow, I'm really grateful, I just don't know what to say."

Shepard nodded. "Abby?"

"Hmm?"

"Take the money."

"You're insane."

I was wavering, and she could tell. "I just opened up three joint bank accounts in your names. The money is already there."

Motherfluffer. "It is?"

"Yes."

"Oh."

"When we get to Illium we'll go to the bank and get your cards."

"Oh-kaaaay?"

"Now was there anything else?" she asked pointedly. "Besides the information about Miss Lawson's sister and Mistor Taylor's father you were going to give me."

"Uh, we can't tell you that," I said, eyes wide. I glanced at HK. "Wait... Can we?" I thought about it. "We could, you know... as long as she promises not to go tell anybody."

"Its not about her, so I guess there...wouldn't be any trouble with it. Especially since its nothing too big, though its susbstantial," HK replied, looking conflicted. "Okay...let's do it."

"_Hai_!" I said, nodding. "So Miranda already told you about Oriana, right?" Shepard nodded. "Okay. Miranda has a trusted friend that's shuttling Oriana, but he's a traitor. He's going to let the Eclipse know. His name is Niket. There will be a fight, but Oriana and her family will live. Miranda should talk to her sister."

I looked at HK. "That's the gist of it," I told him. "I can't remember the fighting areas that well."

"You're just going to run through alot of cargo areas and shoot a bunch of mercs. The normal," HK said casually. "She's not going to believe you about Niket, so don't push it. Maybe suggest it, but she really does trust him. Just go along with her, its pretty much her operation."

Shepard nodded.

"Thats about it, on that mission anyways...it'll be a little more intense when you're actually out there. Miranda's emotions will be running high," HK explained. "And then, as for Jacob...well, er, lets just say that his father is pretty much a prejudiced, lying moron...to put it bluntly. But lets not say it in that manner to Jacob."

"Hell no," I agreed fervently. "His father was very selfish and made a lot of morally ambiguous choices. Jacob will be very upset."

"Here's how the mission goes: You're going to have to scan the planet, but you've done mining before, so its basically that, plus finding the anomaly. You'll go down to the planet, investiate, and then fight off the remaining male crew members that have gone insane."

"_Male_ crew members? Why be that specific?" Shepard asked.

"Here's where the prejudice comes in. And it may make you mad, being a woman, but don't get too mad when you see the disgusting sight. His father enslaved all the women and assigned them to male officers like pets, toys. Its like he wanted to go back several thousand years...and alot of the women will be scared, angry, and just confused. No one has any logic except for Ronald Taylor himself. You're going to have to fight through his army of mechs, too, and he'll make dumb excuses for what happened, but its all lies. When you confront him...well, you'll just have to see that for yourself." HK finished.

"Well, that pretty much sounds bad," I muttered lightly. "Good job reassuring her, man."

Shepard scowled. "We'll see," she said. "Miranda's takes priority. I promised Jacob we would look into his issues after we're all done here. How long on average would you expect this to take?"

"Two to three days here," I said. "A day for Samara, a day for Thane, a day for relaxation. Recruiting Thane and Samara will be pretty easy, actually. Just whack everybody. There's a gunship on Samara's mission, so just take some heavy weapons. Also, you're going to meet Liara here. Uh, let's see... Conrad Verner, too. Interesting little guy." I chuckled.

"Illium's basically going to be a place for old friends. Parasini, Shiala, even the Rachni Queen will all be there. Okay, well that last one will be there in a weird way." HK told her. "But nothing will be extremely hard. Liara may be a little different, but overall, its not a bad planet."

"The Rachni Queen is going to be on Illium?" Shepard repeated. For once, she looked shell-shocked. "What will happen?"

I laughed. "Don't worry, you'll see," I said, standing. "Well! We should probably get going, I guess. When are we getting there?"

"Tomorrow..."

"Thanks!"

We retreated without a goodbye. I was silent until the elevator door closed, and then I began to laugh. "Wow! That was a great meeting!"

HK nodded in agreement, chuckling as well. "Yes, probably the most comfortable I've felt with Shepard."

"She gave us a half a million creds," I told him. "She's our new best friend."

* * *

Shepard came down herself and told Sarah about the new financial arrangements a little while later, offering to bring her along to get a card and some new clothes. Sarah was stammering and flustered at this sudden news and thanked Shepard profusely, but she wasn't keen to step outside of the Normandy so soon after her little accident on Haestrom. Despite our urging, she decided to just sit this one out. "I don't need anything, anyway," she said somewhat nervously, but she did wave goodbye to us as we departed.

Kelly grinned at HK and I as we passed by accompanying the Commander, Garrus, and Tali. Or maybe she was grinning at the latter three. The idea of the three of them working together again must've appealed to her... or maybe she really liked staring at Garrus. _I think she likes looking at Garrus. _Jacob watched us depart, standing just outside the armory door with a frown on his face; I didn't look at him, afraid to see any remnants of his anger there.

Joker turned around as we approached. "We're all set, Commander. Looks like we got a welcoming party. Surprise-surprise."

"Hostile?" asked the Commander.

Joker ran one clinical eye over Shepard's armored, weaponized frame. I could see his apprehension at answering this question. Anybody with a guilty conscious who saw Shepard would run for their lives or try to assassinate her, no ands, ifs, or buts about it. "Naw. Well, if they are, not for long, anyway."

"The probability of aggression is in statistically low numbers," said EDI.

Joker looked at HK and I. "You taking those two out so soon after that last fiasco?" Joker asked.

Shepard nodded. "They've proved themselves to be reliable."

I grinned, slightly embarassed. "I need some new clothes," I told him, gesturing down to the ones I was wearing. A few vigorous washes later left Kelly's clothes cleaner than clean, but the krogan blood stains could still be seen. Hopefully people would think it was some crazy human getup, you know, with the patterns and crap, but for those who recognized it (like krogan, for example!) it might spell out trouble.

And the last thing I wanted right now was trouble. We were going in unarmed, or so Shepard thought. After that craziness when we recruited Mordin, I'd come to value the awesomeness of a nice, pointy kitchen knife. Except the knife I carried now was actually a loan from Zaeed, who had so many it was a surprise that he could still keep track of them all.

"Right, a shopping trip," Joker mumbled, turning back around. "See you guys later. Comm's open if you need a quick exit."

"Will we need a quick exit?" Shepard asked us.

HK and I exchanged a look. "Nope," I said. "We're good."

He nodded fervently.

"Good," said Shepard. "Let's go, then."

I slid into the back of the group, tuning out the conversation in front. Tali and Garrus were continuing some topic of conversation they must have started before, and as much as I would've liked to eavesdrop I wanted to spend some more time with my friend and actually get a game plan for the shopping spree. "Joker seems cordial," I muttered archly.

"Joker seems...well, like he's Joker," HK said with a shrug. "Though, his brand of humor takes a little getting used to in person, but he's pretty much like he is...in our visions. Now, how should we go about this shopping trip? We've never shopped on Illium before."

"We could get a fish," I suggested lightly.

"I thought we were here to get clothes," HK replied with a snort. "Besides, they'd have to go up in Shepard's room, anyway."

"We could get a-okay, nevermind." I snickered. "Okay! Well, I suggest we tag around long enough to meet Liara and get our cards. After that we could explore. We shouldn't get any fancy-smancy clothes, though. Stuff that's lightweight and durable. Maybe two or three casual outfits. Boots, too... maybe even some fingerless gloves or something so we don't get blisters from pistils or whatever gun we happen to be firing."

"And here I wanted to get a tuxedo for when we go through the Omega 4 Relay!" HK exclaimed with a laugh. "But, yes, I agree...lightweight and simple clothes, along with some other stuff. It'll be nice to wear something thats not borrowed from someone else."

"I'd almost suggest we get armor, except well... we're not exactly usual customers, and there are laws. Laws we're breaking anyway, but still..." I sighed. "How can a fourteen-year-old find a black market around here?"

"Dunno. May be a little easier for a sixteen-year-old, but I doubt it. I've got some good armor on the ship, so I think I'm pretty much set in that category," HK told me. "Oh, and by the way, excited to meet Dr. T'Soni?"

I raised one eyebrow, anticipating Commander Shepard's reaction. "You know it. That'll be entertaining. I wonder-"

We were cut off when Shepard raised her fist in front of us, the universal human signal for 'stop walking and pay attention.' The welcoming party, led by that asari and her band of LOKI mechs, was approaching.

Shepard had a quick conversation with her and the woman dismissed the mechs, claiming that you could never be too careful around these parts. They had a quick conversation I couldn't hear, and Shepard's interest was perked, I guessed, with the mention of Liara T'Soni. She threw us a quick look, nodded a few times, and said the classic Shepard line: "I should go."

"If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask," said the asari charmingly.

Shepard beckoned for us to follow her.

Illium was just... WOW on the tenth degree. Awesome. Awe-inspiring. "It's beautiful here!" I gasped, looking around with wide eyes.

I could tell HK was amazed, as well. He looked around as we walked out into the common area, and couldn't stop gazing around. "Wow...this is, by far, the best planet we've been to so far. Nothing can compare to this..."

"It's not hard to get better than Omega," Garrus said.

"True," HK agreed. "But still."

"Look over there!" I said excitedly, pointing. "Rainbows are reflecting off of that building. Wow. The material used to build this place is just awesome. And it smells _great! _Commander, we should have some shore leave here or something! There should be an Aikido dojo here. It's peaceful enough."

"Yes, it is peaceful here...er, except for all the slavery. But it feels good to actually be able to walk the streets without being worried about someone coming and assaulting you," HK commented.

I remembered something and started laughing, fully aware that the team and Shepard were giving us weird, half-amused looks. "Remember that thing about Mr Thax? I think that's his name. And the krogan comes up, and he is disgustingly nice? Or the krogan and the asari, and the krogan sprouting love poems about his little 'Blue Rose of Illium?'"

"Commander," I heard Tali say in a low voice, "is this... normal?"

"You should see the other one," Garrus muttered.

"I have, actually," Tali said. "If you're speaking of that one that nearly got herself killed on Haestrom."

"Yes, her," HK told her. "And its not normal, none of us really are...but, uh, you can expect alot more of this."

"Interesting," Tali said slowly. "You always picked up the odd ones, Commander. And I probably should include myself in that."

We continued walking a little ways, until we heard someone call out for Shepard. Shepard looked to her right to see the asari that relayed the Rachni Queen's message, and the Commander began to approach her.

"Oh boy," HK whispered to me.

I giggled, anticipating her reaction. I gestured with my head to retreat, leaving the Commander with some privacy. I scrolled through the electronic kiosk that sold not only fish, but other cool and alien pets as well. "I think the rachni will play a part in the next dream we have," I said lightly, keeping one eye on Shepard as they conversed.

"The asari over there implies it," HK mentioned quietly, helping me look through everything. "She even says something about how the Reapers indoctrinated the rachni into doing it, or something of that manner. I hope she does play a part, though...we'll need all the help we can get."

"Yeah, something about how a 'sour yellow note resonated through the minds of the rachni, and we were driven mad!'" I mimicked the queen's voice from the first game. "Poor rachni."

HK nodded. "Yes, I've always felt sympathy for them, especially if the Reapers were behind it," he said, glancing back to see Shepard talking with the asari. He looked back to me. "Found anything interesting?"

I highlighted a Pyjack. "I want it."

"Heck no. You want one of those annoying little creatures?"

"...I'll train it to steal Jack's clothes."

"What clothes?" HK asked, smirking.

I snorted. "Okay, TRUE! I'll just have it irritate Grunt, ninja-style. He'll never kill it."

"Um, have you forgotten that puberty is coming up for him soon?" HK inquired, blinking.

I almost said something bad there. Almost. Who can't think of a dirty joke when it comes to pubescant krogan, anyway? I just pursed my lips and tried not to giggle as I checked out the Shepard/Rachni situation. They were still talking, looking engrossed in their conversation, but Garrus was watching us. I checked through the rest of the manifest and highlighted a Golden Retriever, then read the information accompanying it. "Batarians are allergic. Nice to know."

We checked through some more stuff, and then we were kicked off by Shepard. The asari had disappeared and Shepard looked slightly awed. "You knew that was going to happen?" she asked.

"Yup! It's so nice, don't you think? I'm glad you didn't fry the queen back on Noveria, no matter what the Council said. They're idiots. Especially the turian dude. He should die, he's too annoying to live."

"Are you so ready to doll out life or death to whomever you want?" Shepard asked crossly.

"Many that live deserve death. Some that die deserve life," I said, quoting Gandalf. "But the turian dude is annoying. Extremely. I wonder how he got such a high office with that pigheaded obstinance of his. Actually... I wonder that about all three of them. Hopefully by the next round of visions they'll have figured out you were telling the truth, but right now they're just an obstacle we have to work with." I shrugged.

"You sound like you know a great deal about the Council," Tali said, perturbed.

"Only as much as Shepard will know," I said, a grin on my face. "C'mon, let's go see Liara! I want to meet her."

"Yes, lets g-" HK started, but was cut off when someone _else_ called for Shepard.

Gianna Parasini.

Shepard went over and greeted her brief accomplice in the mission to get a garage pass and expose Anoleis for what he was, and we waited for the next ten or fifteen minutes while Shepard spoke to her and got updates on her life, helped her deal with that asari, before finally bidding farewell to each other.

She walked back over to us. "Any other old friends I'm going to see before I can head up and see the one I want to see the most?" she asked.

HK chuckled and shook his head. "No. _Now_ we can go see Liara."

"Shiala!" I said, remembering. "And the mom of that asari greeter to the Consort on the Citadel-yeah, she kinda died two years ago. That was sad. Her sister was an administrative assistant in the Embassy. She died, too. But we can deal with them-oh, and Conrad Verner!"

Garrus actually blanched. "That man disturbs me," he said, "and not in a criminal way. Can we avoid him?"

I thought about it. "Actually... no. You're meeting Miranda's contact at the bar, right? He's there. I might pop in and see how it goes." I grinned.

"...lets go see Liara," HK repeated.

Shepard just shook her head. "Agreed. We may not have much time, anyway." she said, turning and leading us towards Liara's office.

I smirked. We made to go to Liara's office, but Shepard looked around and frowned. "Okay," she said, "where is she at?"

We led her to Liara's office, up the stairs and to the greeter, Nyxeris. She was very pretty in person, and the details Bioware put into her headtails were just amazing. "Hello," she said serenely, "how can I help you today?"

"We're looking for Liara T'Soni," said the Commander. "We heard she was up here."

"Oh, you must be Commander Shepard!" Nyxeris said, new knowledge lighting up her eyes. "Liara will be so pleased to see you."

Shepard nodded and passed through the door...

and beheld Liara in her eternal glory. I grinned, anticipating the reaction. A hologram of a male human in a very nice-cut suit watched in fear as Liara hovered over him, a datapad in her hand. "Have you ever faced an asari commando unit before?" she asked cooly. "Few humans have."

Garrus made a noise beside me. Tali stiffened.

"I'll make it simple," Liara continued. "Either you pay me... or I flay you alive. With my _mind." _The hologram buzzed out, and Liara turned around sharply. "Shepard! Nyxeris, hold my calls!"

In the corner, Nyxeris bowed and left the room.

"Ah... Shepard..." Liara hugged the Commander tightly. She released quickly. "My sources said you were alive," she said wonderingly, staring at Shepard's face with undisguised awe, "but I never believed-it's so good to see you again."

"You have sources now?" Shepard asked, crossing her arms.

"A few," Liara allowed. "Sources, contacts, even a little hired muscle. I've been working as an information broker. It's paid the bills since you... well, for the last two years. And now you're back, gunning for the Collectors with Cerberus."

"That's not exactly public knowledge." Shepard and Liara sat down.

"Neither is the fact you're alive. Information is my business now... Amelia." Hearing Shepard being called by her first name made us all start. Liara looked to the rest of us. "Garrus, Tali," she said with a small smile. "It's wonderful to see you as well." Her eyes rested on us. "And who might these two be?"

"Useful information brokers in their own right," said Shepard, tossing us a warning look. "They make... educated guesses that always turn out correct. It's a long story, but they're here for the ride."

"I see," said Liara. "I respect anybody who can hold their own among Shepard's team," she told us, inclining her head in respect. Without giving us a chance to speak, she said, "If you need help finding people, Shepard, I would be happy to help."

"There is an asari named Samara here on Illium," Shepard started. "Do you know where I could find her?"

"Samara..." Liara repeated, looking up the information she had on her. "Yes. She arrived here recently and registered with Tracking Officer Dara. You can find Dara at the transportation hub."

"Thanks," Shepard said with a nod. "And I'm also looking for Thane Krios. He's supposed to be here on Illium."

Liara nodded back. "The assassin. Yes, he arrived here a few days ago. My sources tell me he may be targetting a corporate executive: Nassana Dantius."

"That name sounds familiar..." Garrus whispered to Tali, loud enough that we could hear.

However, Shepard and Liara didn't seem to notice. "I think we met her back on the Citadel.." Tali muttered.

"He contacted a woman named Seryna," Liara continued. "Seryna has an office in the cargo transfer levels. Perhaps she can tell you where Krios is."

"That was all just off the top of your head?" Shepard asked, with a tone of surprise.

"I'm a very good information broker, Shepard. The world of intrigue isn't that different from a dig site. Except the bodies still smell."

"Just a minute, Liara," Shepard said, turning around to face us. She held out something. "Here's a card to go and get whatever you want...it'll keep you busy, and get that out of the way, while I finish up things."

HK looked at me. "Fine by me," he said with a shrug.

"We'll pay you back," I promised, taking it and sticking it in my pocket. "We have our comms on us if you need us."

Shepard nodded, and we left. Nyxeris looked up from her desk. "Leaving so soon?" she asked politely.

"Yes, ma'am." _You're going to die soon. Liara's gonna whack you. _"Shepard's still talking with her, though."

Nyxeris nodded. "I got you. I'll see you soon if you return."

We retreated to the bottom of the stairs, away from Nyxeris and her prying eyes, and I caught sight of the first terminal Shepard would use if she decided to help out her old friend. "Nyxeris is still as slippery as we knew she was," I said, shaking my head. "I wish we could see her face when we give Liara the information later on."

"I wish we could've seen it in the first place," HK whispered. "But I'm guessing Shepard won't find the information on her until later...it sounded like she was focused on Thane and Samara, mainly."

"Whatever," I said. "Nyxeris is going down either way. I hope Shepard asks us who the Observer is right in front of her, too. That would be hilarious. And since the Shadow Broker is working with the Collectors, Shepard might actually take her time if she whacks her. Wow, I sound way too casual about that, don't I?"

"We must have seen it too many times," HK told me, shaking his head, like it slightly dissappointed him that we were so casual about it. "I do wish someone would take their time on her, though...Liara doesn't even try to get any information out of her. I know the Broker always hires people through agents, but still, Liara just invites her into her office and wipes her out within two minutes. She even gets rid of the body before we get back."

"Liara's an expert," I said, nodding. "Come on! Let's go get some clothes. Maybe we should pick something up for Sarah while we're out, too."

"She'd probably like that, though I have no clue what to get her," HK said, starting to walk with me. "But, uh, where are the clothes shops around here? Some hidden area we didn't see in our visions?"

"There was once a cheat in Knights of the Old Republic, you know, the Xbox version, where if you pressed the right buttons in the right sequence you could look anywhere. I actually tried it here once, but it didn't work. They should put it in the next game. But for now... I just think we're on our own."

I crossed towards the edge of the walkway (_CAUTION: DO NOT LEAN OVER EDGE_) and peered over it to take a peek at the levels below us. "Looks like there are a few shopping stores four levels down. And... there's the elevator, right over there!"

I held the elevator door open for a slow-moving elcor passenger and the doors closed. We descended a few levels, funky music playing jovially above us. The elcor got out without a word and we followed. "Nice place," I said appreciateivly. I raked my eyes over the different store names and pointed at a place named _'Tenkan' _a few buildings away.

Illium was like a shopper's paradise. I had to constantly remind myself that I couldn't just buy whatever clothes I thought were awesome, and that they had to be resistent to wear and tear, too. HK and I split up in every store, he to the boys section, me to the girls. Eventually, when I got tired of the girls, I would follow him around, find some pants or a shirt I liked, and try them on.

We didn't buy a lot, but we didn't buy too little, either. I found a cool-looking moon rock bracelet (_For twenty-five credits only, wear a piece of Luna on your wrist!) _and, figuring Sarah would like it, picked one up for her. I myself bought a bottle of shampoo and conditioner, having grown tired with hair smelling like Kelly all of the time.

HK appeared at my shoulder for the briefest of seconds in one of the stores, his face beet red. "Guess what I found," he whispered.

"Hmm?"

He pointed at a large lump of clothing in one of the further aisles and I walked up to it, swinging my bag in my hand. Wondering what in the world could make HK so embarassed, I peered at the label.

I abruptly walked back to my original area, eyes wide. "Hell," I choked out.

He just nodded.

"I didn't know," I began, then coughed. "Well... damn."

We left the store soon after that, smirking and giggling to ourselves. In a new bag I carried our object of fascination. "I can't believe you bought it," HK said, but he was laughing.

I didn't have enough breath to answer, so I took a few gulps of fresh air and said, "Did you see the look on the clerk's face?"

"Did you see the look on her _child's_?"

"I thought we were going to get kicked out."

"Who needs a fish to remember this place?" HK muttered, shaking his head.

"Those with no imagination."

We went to a variety of other stores. I carried the bag with me, seeing as HK didn't even want to _touch_ it. I found an outfit I really liked, very comfortable-looking and resistant, tried it on, and bought it. HK found a few more good things.

"Dude, check these out!" I waved him over and pointed at a small display on the counter. "Those are beautiful."

And they were. They were two hand-crafted hairpieces, wrought of gold and embedded with a blue pearl. "They would go great with your hair," HK allowed.

"Can't get them, though," I muttered, chagrined. "Yeah, I know."

The asari at the counter was hovering near us protectively, watching the precious hairpieces with a look that said she didn't trust two human children. When we walked away I imagined I heard her sigh with relief.

Shopping made for a hungry day, so with HK's consent we took a small table at an outdoor cafe that served, thankfully, human food. You could tell it wasn't made by a human, though, just with the spices and unnatural sauces they put in it. I was dipping my pizza in some asari-smelling thing from Thessia when I heard the first of the commotion.

"You hear that?" I asked, frowning.

HK, who was in the middle of chewing something, shook his head.

I cocked my head, straining my ear. "It sounds like... screaming? What's going on over there?"

HK followed me out, towards another store that sold 'adult' clothing. Apparently there was such a commotion inside that nobody objected to two underage teenagers walking in.

The sight that met our eyes was terrifying. A tall, African nun, dressed in the traditional black and white garb of the Christian church, was chasing a thin, lithe asari woman. The nun had a Bible in her hands that looked like it had seen some heavy usage... and she was trying to smack the asari with it.

I looked at HK, my eyes wide. "YOU DIDN'T!" Without waiting for an answer I grabbed his arm and pulled him behind the counter, taking him out of harm's way. The asari flew into the space where we'd just vacated, hitting the ground hard.

"Please don't!" she screamed. "What did I do?"

The nun whacked her once with the Bible. Sister Ethea, a creation of HK's from long ago, was here... and she meant some serious business.

"Where did she come from? This doesn't make any sense! I don't think I wished her in here or any-" HK began, looking like he was in total shock.

Sister Ethea's screams interrupted him. "PRAISE THE LORD!" she yelled, grabbing the asari and beating her again. "Child, do you know who created this universe? God. He created us, gave us life, and expected us to do His work! And obey His laws! Have you not read the Bible? This entire store is a sin!" she screamed.

"Stop, please-AHH!" the asari screamed.

"Girl, I don't know what you are thinking. And that Goddess you mentioned? How dare you worship idols! Whats the matter with you! How dare you disobey the Lord!" Sister Ethea yelled, continuing to beat her over the head.

I swallowed. "Aw, hell... crap-crap-crap-crap-crap-crap-crap! We need to get her out of here before-"

The door opened, and a chime sounded. "Step away from the woman!" an authorative voice spoke. I looked up over the counter to see an asari police officer. "Put the book down. Calm-"

Sister Ethea gave the asari one more whack over the head and turned to regard the police. "Thank goodness you're here!" she cried. "This woman is defiling the minds of every child on this planet, selling this here garbage! Now I don't know what kind of home she comes from, but she needs to get on her knees and repent, repent, repent for this here sin of a job."

The police officer had a small tazor aimed at Ethea's chest. "Ma'am, I'm going to respectfully ask you to-"

Ethea was looking around the store, rambling to herself. "Look at this garbage! People, selling their bodies like this." She picked up a few video cards and plugged them into her datapad. The loud sounds of a woman moaning in ecstacy were cut off by Ethea's scream of distress and she took the vid-chip out immediately. "That's porn!"

"Ma'am, this is an adult store-"

"We are all adults here," Ethea said, her voice shaking with rage. "And you mean to tell me that you act like this here woman?"

"That is neither here nor there. I'd like you to calm down, now. I'm going to take you to a safe place."

"Girl, you will be taking me nowhere. I have the Lord's work to do! There's alot more sin that must be stopped," Sister Ethea said. The officer approached her with the tazer, but she just grabbed it out of her hands. "Why thank you. This can help show these sinners not to sin!"

Sister Ethea whirled around and tazed the asari. "That's the type of punishment you'll be getting if you continue with this sin! Do ya'll know what the burning fires of hell will feel like? It'll be much worse than this, let me tell ya that right now!" she yelled.

"Ma'am, I'm going to have to call in reenfor-"

"My goodness, I know I don't see hanar preaching about those idols they worship across the street! I need to go tell them about the Lord's work!" Sister Ethea yelled. She looked at all of us. "I'll be back, don't you worry! I'll bring the Lord into your SOULS!"

Before anyone could do anything, the crazy nun left.

HK looked at me, jaw hanging wide open. "What...was that about?"

I looked at him, my face frozen in an expression of purest shock. "I am so glad she didn't look and see what we bought," I mumbled.

HK shuddered. "Erm...yes. Still cannot believe that you bought that..." he said. "And, uh, speaking of which...should we go before we get arrested for being in an adult store, and the entire Illium police force sees what we, uh, got?"

"It'd be a good icebreaker story, " I said, still shocked, "but yes. Let's sneak out. I don't want to buy anything here." I stepped over teh inert, sobbing body of Sister Ethea's poor victim and exited the store.

HK blew out a giant breath and stared at the bag in my hands. "You almost have to wonder... how?"

I glanced at it. "I'll google when we get back on the Normandy. Uh oh. Looks like the police are chasing after Ethea. RUN GRANNY RUN!"

HK just shook his head as they all got out of our eyesight. "If I know my character, she'll be able to escape...authorities don't have anything on her," he said with a sigh. "Soon, we'll be seeing Jaskia Paine, Scout Gash, Sora Trok, or...Erin."

I shuddered. "Not Erin. Ethea is enough..."

We stood there for a moment, contemplating the Illium viewscape. I heard running footsteps and turned around just in time to see a small boy, tear-tracks on his dirt-smudged face, before he plunged straight into my legs. If HK hadn't caught me I probably would have fallen close to the edge of the railing. "Hey, hey, hey, what's the matter, honey?" I asked, dropping to one knee.

"M-My mommy! She's hurt and sh-she's bleeding and she won't wake up!" he choked out.

I exchanged an alarmed glance with HK. "Show us where."

He ran away, and we had to run fast to keep up. He led us into an alley, deserted and far away from the main streets, sobbing ahead of us...

No, wait...

Not sobbing. Laughing.

He stopped right next to one of the biggest, meanest krogan I'd ever seen, tears gone. The krogan just nodded, like he was expecting us. Then, before we could react, his strong, muscular arms reached out and took the boy's face. "Can't let you live," he rumbled, and twisted violently.

I knew what would happen before it did. The boy screamed only once before his neck broke. The krogan dropped him to the ground. He hadn't even looked at the child once. "Trap," I muttered. "It's a trap."

HK stumbled back slowly, absolutely horrified at what he just saw. "R-run!" he shouted.

We took off, as fast as we could, but we had barely made it a few kilometers before HK screamed out, after the krogan charged at him and literally slammed him into the wall. He slumped downward, some blood coming out of his mouth, and it looked like he could barely move.

* * *

_"Why do we ki-ai?" _

_We were sitting in a circle. It was one of the last classes of the day, before the evening class. Friday afternoon, and we were all sore and aching. I sat in seiza with minor difficulty, but after the first ten minutes my legs were starting to go numb. Nevertheless, I looked around the small circle of uchideishi students, waiting for them to give the answer I already knew._

_They were either clueless or too tired to make their brains function properly. It was with some chagrin that I raised my hand. Sensei turned and called on me. "Abby?"_

_"To frighten the person attacking you. To improve your strikes and extension. And most importantly, to alert others to the fact that you're in trouble."_

_"Hai. Yes. Don't be afraid to scream. It's smart, not weak."_

* * *

I screamed as loud as I could, and that was _loud. _I fumbled for my comm with my fingers, but there was no signal. The krogan stepped over my friend's limp, spread-eagled body, and stared me down.

His finger flexed, and too late I noticed the stun-gun in his hand. I screamed for real then, dropping to the ground as thousands of volts of electricity arced through my body. I grasped at my consciousness vainly, aware that HK was moaning, the krogan was laughing, and my own screams sounded like death rattles in my ears.

The krogan loomed over me, a small needle in his hand. I felt the cool metal syringe pierce the skin around my shoulders, and abruptly all the pain went away. I breathed in and out deeply, fatigue making it hard to keep my eyes open.

I lost.


	20. Thane Krios

**(Sarah)**

I was in a very bad mood. There was no denying that.

Why? Because nothing seemed to be going right lately. I don't know if I knocked over a salt shaker in the kitchen or broke a mirror without noticing, or what. Not that I was overly supersticious or anything, but if I didn't know any better, I would say I was having an unlucky day.

First I was trying to help Rupert fix some meals, and I absent-mindedly set the temperature too high so that I burned the food. This didn't make the crewmembers who wanted to eat very happy. I couldn't blame them for not wanting to eat it, or put up with the burning smell.

Then I accidentally spilled boiling hot water all over the floor. Wonderful.

Then it was basically just a lot of little things that kept happening, as if I'd become a complete butter-fingers all of a sudden. I kept dropping things on the floor, and at times it seemed as though I was tripping over my own feet.

Plus it didn't help that I felt a nagging feeling in the pit of my stomach, sort of like a "something bad is going to happen" feeling. Part of me wondered if HK and Abby were okay, but I couldn't exactly worry about that, could I? Besides they were probably fine. They'd come back from every other place they'd gone okay.

"Sarah," EDI's voice suddenly spoke up, startling me a little. "Miss Chambers requests your presence on the bridge."

I scowled at the terminal where the blue hologram had popped up. "I'm right in the middle of something, be there in a few minutes," I snapped. I tried my best not to act this grouchy, really. But today I just didn't care.

"I will inform Miss Chambers, but note that it seems urgent," EDI said, before vanishing.

"Yeah, yeah," I muttered, looking down at my clothes. I swear I'd somehow managed to get pretty much every kind of grease, gunk and/or dirt or whatever all over them today. I was NOT going to the bridge in this condition.

Then I did something I had promised myself I would never do in ear-shot of other people, although lately I had somehow developed the habit of muttering it under my breath. "Fuck this ship and everyone on it." Yeah, normally I didn't say the F-word out-loud. Maybe I'd been spending too much time around Jack... sorta. Or maybe it was just this military crew in general. Heck, even Rupert said it once in a while, I was sure.

I then moved in the direction of the women's rest room. But as I headed down the corridor... I nearly ran smack into Zaeed. I had no idea where he was headed exactly, but I really didn't care.

At any other time, I probably would have apologized and given him a wide berth, and either headed for the nearest elevator or locked myself into the bathroom until I was sure he was gone. But in the mood I was in now, I just didn't care. "Maybe you should watch where you're going," I snapped, surprising myself a little.

"Maybe you should watch your tongue before somebody cuts it out, princess," he snarled, moving past me.

"Oh yeah sure," I muttered as he moved past. "Act like you own the place, like pretty much everybody else does."

Zaeed probably heard me, but he didn't make any comment. He stepped into the elevator and disappeared, draining me of a chance to blow some steam.

Well... okay then. I shrugged and went into the bathroom, then used the sink to try and clean the worst of the dirt off my hands and arms. I ignored my dirty clothes for the most part.

Then I headed for the elevator and rode up toward the bridge. When the elevator stopped, I balled my hands into fists and stepped out, walking straight toward Kelly. I simply stood behind her and scowled, waiting for her to notice me.

She turned around and noticed me. "Good, you're here," she said breathlessly. "Follow me, we need to go to the bridge." And without waiting for me, she began walking. I followed. "Abby and HK are gone," she said. "We think they're in trouble."

I stopped dead in my tracks for a moment. Sometimes, I really did have "gut feelings", or whatever you want to call them, about things that could happen or might be happening. So when she said that about HK and Abby, I just stopped and stared at her. "What?" I finally blurted.

She motioned impatiently for me to follow her to Joker's cockpit and after a moment, I did. Joker was already working, talking in low tones to EDI. "I already _did_ a wide-freq search, you nag," he snapped. "It's turned off."

"Not for their communications, but for the jamming equipment," EDI clarified. A second passed. "My scanners are picking up nothing."

Shepard's sigh could be heard over the comm. "Good try anyway. Is Sarah there yet?"

"I'm here," I said loudly, moving to stand just behind Joker. I absent-mindedly put a hand on the back of his chair, just behind his left shoulder. I leaned toward the console a little. "What the hell is going on down there, may I ask?" I demanded.

"HK and Abby went on a shopping trip and dropped off the grid," said Shepard. "As of now, we don't know any more than that. I'm heading to Liara's to check out the security footage, but I need to know if you can tell me anything."

I blinked. I was still in shock, and still pretty uptight at the same time. What in the world was going on? How could HK and Abby just disappear like that? Nobody disappeared in the game on Illum... but then again, as far as I knew, nobody went off shopping by themselves, either. Maybe this was just an unexplained variable.

I scowled. "You mean you left them alone?" I snapped in disbelief. Somehow, the way I felt right now, I just felt like saying exactly what I was thinking for once. No more meekness, at least for the time-being. "How could you do that?"

"Do you know anything?" Shepard reiterated.

"The tracker's not coming up anywhere, Commander," Joker said. "The last place it was functioning was four levels down of your position. The moved northeast and every wi-fi node in the area stopped responding. Either they dropped the ball and ran, or they're in serious trouble." Joker looked at me.

I shook my head in disbelief. "This was not supposed to happen!" I exclaimed, shoving away from Joker's chair and sort of beginning to pace in the small space right behind him. "I mean... I mean..." I stammered for a moment, then turned to face the console as though it were Shepard herself.

"What the hell happened down there? This wasn't supposed to happen! I mean... there as NOTHING in our 'visions' that even hinted..." I stopped. What was I supposed to say? Of course we knew everything that happened in the Mass Effect GAMES, but... well, maybe we didn't know everything that would happen to the three of us, personally. We weren't normally supposed to be part of the game-universe.

Shepard was silent for such a long time that I began to worry even more. "Of course," she muttered. "It's the Observer, it has to be. Sarah, do you know who the Observer is? The one spying on Liara?"

"Yeah uh... Liara's so-called assistent who hangs around outside her door," I said quickly. I could never remember that person's name. I just hoped Shepard would figure out who I was talking about.

"Nyxeris?" Shepard repeated, shocked. Before I could answer, she connected us with another line. "Liara?"

"Shepard! Do you have something already?"

"The Observer is Nyxeris. Is she still there?"

"Nyxeris-? But... that would make sense. She was the one who passed me along the information. Wait a moment." A few seconds of a pause. "Nyxeris? Can you come in here for a moment, please?"

Silence.

"She's not here," Liara said. "It looks like she left nearly fifteen minutes ago. She must have known we were on to her."

Shepard blew out a deep breath. "Find her. I think she did something to the two teenagers that came into the office with me."

Nyxeris was GONE? And she had done something to HK and Abby? This was definitely not supposed to happen. And what in the WORLD could they have done down there that made her do something to them, anyway?

My mind was racing. If something happened to them, I was leaving the Normandy, end of discussion. Then again if this turned out to be something as stupid as the two of them just getting lost in an area that interfered with communications simply because they decided to sight-seeing... I was going to kill them.

"What can I do?" I demanded. In some ways, that was basically my way of asking, "Can I help in any other way or am I dismissed?" even if I didn't say it aloud.

"We're going to need you out here in the field," Shepard said, panting. She must have been running. "We're going to retrace their steps. Liara, I need some security footage ready. I'll be there soon to sort through it."

"Yes, Shepard. I'm bringing it up now."

"Sarah, I want you and a partner to meet Tali at the best location Joker can figure. Send the coordinates, Joker."

"Sent!" he said.

"Received. Finding the two of them is high priority-"

"Shepard," said Liara, "it can't be. If you need Samara and the assassin, you must get them now, before they leave."

Shepard was silent, then grunted an affirmation. "That would be the best course of action," she agree. "Thank you, Liara."

"It will take some time for me to assemble the data anyways," she said soothingly. "I'll find them."

I frowned, then decided I had better double-check what Shepard wanted me to do. I always tended to do that, especially when the person I was following seemed to change their mind about something in mid-sentence. "So what do you want me to do? Team up with someone, along with Tali, and... go down to Illium somewhere?"

"Yes," said Shepard. "Tali, you're in charge. Shepard out."

Well, that was just ducky.

Without saying a word I turned and left the bridge, ignoring everyone I passed as I headed right back for the elevator. After the door slid shut I banged my fist against the it, trying to decide what exactly I was going to do next.

Then I got a weird idea. Somehow though... after the way this day had been so far, it seemed... strangely appealing. I stabbed a button on the elevator with my finger, then rode in silence as it took me to my selected destination.

When I arrived, I stepped out, marched down the corridor, then I was soon heading down some stairs. And as I went, I was thinking over my weird idea. And somehow... I couldn't seem to talk myself out of it.

My weird idea was this: I was wondering just how easy it might be to piss off Jack.

After all... she did seem to be pretty reserved, most of the time, down in the bottom of the ship. Unless she was mad at Shepard for some reason, or pissed off at Miranda.

I slowly approached the area where Jack always seemed to be hanging out. Sure enough, she was there. I cleared my throat softly as I approached her.

"Hey," Jack said coldly, looking at me. "Back for another lesson on how to have fun with turians?"

"No, I came down here to tell you that I think you look ugly without any hair, and with all those tattoos," I said, folding my arms. I figured that maybe if I got knocked out, I could just get out of having to go anywhere or putting up with anymore shit today. And maybe if I was very lucky, I could just wake up in sickbay with... hopefully minimal injuries, and by then maybe HK and Abby would be back, safe and sound. Sure I'd get a lecture from somebody, probably, but right now I just didn't care.

"Then you should also know that I look like I don't give a shit about what you think."

"I don't think you care about what anybody thinks. Otherwise you'd have more decency than to walk around with nothing on."

"Sorry that I don't walk around looking like the Queen of England," Jack snapped. "So are you just going to stand around and insult me all day? Don't you have something to clean?"

"Yeah, maybe I should try to clean you-I could start by washing your mouth out with soap."

Jack laughed. "Go ahead. Try it right now."

So apparently this wasn't going to be easy. Apparently she didn't get easily provoked by mere words. "Okay," I said, taking a bold step toward her. Then I took another step, and stopped; I was just trying to see if I could get her to act.

Jack stood up, grinning. "I'm waiting," she said impatiently.

Well... would it really hurt too much to do something really bold and stupid for once in my life? Well, besides drinking ryncol and biting Jacob's finger, of course. I took a deep breath and then I simply moved forward, not giving myself a chance to change my mind. I moved forward and slapped her on the cheek.

I saw a huge blast come towards me, and that was the end of my day.

* * *

_I felt... like I was floating. Images and colors seemed to swirl around me, then seemed to focus on something specific._

_I saw myself... in a different place. I was back home. Not on the Normandy, not in the quarters I shared with HK and Abby-that was what I had been forced to adopt as my "new" home. This was back at my real home, where I played Mass Effect, lived with my family, and did the things that normal people did._

_I saw that things were happening. I saw myself worried and stressed, because a family member was in the hospital. But who? I couldn't quite make that out. But it felt... very real._

Then my eyes opened with a start. I looked up, and for a moment all that I really saw was the ceiling. My mind automatically ran through the events of the dream, such as they were. Somehow they seemed to... real to be merely a figment of my imagination.

Then somehow or other... a strange thought crossed my mind. What if, somehow or other... I still had a connection to whatever was going on back home? Or what if I was somehow actually still there, too, even while I was here?

I shoved those thoughts aside. Ridiculous. Still... if I somehow still had a connection-or could still sense-things that were going on back home... well, if things were that hectic, maybe that could explain my bad mood earlier, along with the strange things I did.

I grimaced as I thought about it. Ugh, who in their right mind would slap Jack? I reached up and touched the sore spot on my head. _Where am I, anyway?_

"Good," said Tali dryly. "You're up."

I sat up, blinking hard. "Where... uh, where are we?"

"In a rental car," she answered. "We weren't going to sit around and wait for you to wake up. Mordin is over at the restaraunt across the street asking questions and I am running blanket scans for all jamming equipment."

I squinted for a moment, trying to make sense of what I just heard. I had totally been expecting to wake up in the medical bay, or perhaps back in my bed... or maybe down in engineering, at the worst.

"What... you mean you took me along even though I was knocked out?" I asked, my eyes widening in disbelief.

"We have two missing people, and you know them best. Did you expect us to leave you at the ship?" Tali asked.

I was saved from having to answer when Mordin popped his head in the door. "They went to the sexual apparel store over there," he said, pointing.

I blinked.

I blinked _again._

"Could you repeat that, please?" I finally asked.

"Head hurt?" he asked, concerned. "Tempting Jack is not a very smart thing to do... but guess you know that by now."

"So they went to the store over there... and then they came back out," Tali said, apparently thinking very hard. She was watching the loop of a video on her omni-tool. "And they stood there, looking outwards... and then the electronics went down." Abruptly, she stood. "Come on, Sarah," she said, holding out a hand to help me up.

I stared at her hand for a moment, then I grasped it tightly and let her help me to my feet. I was still trying to absorb what was going on. I could get easily disoriented sometimes, especially if I woke up to find... circumstances I hadn't planned on. I guess it had been my intention to get knocked out, but... I didn't think I would actually be off the ship.

"So uh... what are we doing now?" I asked. Okay, that question sounded stupid even to my own ears, but... I was just trying to find out what the gameplan was.

"When Abby and HK ran into the shop, I'm assuming that it was in response to that crazy nun who's been terrorizing Illium," Tali said. "They heard the screams and came in, and the security cameras show that they left right after Sister Ethea assaulted the clerk and ran off. If we ask anybody in the general vicinity if anything strange happened after the fact."

"Yes. Good idea. Likely kidnappers are gone by now. And if they're not, no matter. Only leads us to where they are keeping them faster," Mordin said, unconcerned.

"Hey hey HEY," I blurted out suddenly, more loudly than I intended. Tali and Mordin looked at me sharply, as though surprised or mildly startled by my outburst. "Did you say... Sister Ethea?" I wanted to know.

"You know her?" Tali asked. "She's some crazy human, a... what do you call it? A religious one. I do not know, it _rhymes_ with 'one.' She carries around a book and hits people who do not comply with her religion. She's been in asari space now for a while, but there are reports of her all over the Milky Way. It's amazing she hasn't been in jail yet."

"Oh my Lord," I muttered, knowing full well the irony of that statement. Well yeah, in truth I did know her. But how in the world did an OC character created by HK end up here?

I finally decided to shove it aside. As long as I didn't have to see that woman myself... I couldn't really care less whether or not she was here. "You know... I still don't really get why I'm here," I finally said. "I mean... you guys know I can't fight, and I wasn't even expecting anything like this. None of us saw this in our 'visions' or anything, so... wouldn't you guys be able to handle this better without me?"

"Do you not wish to find your friends?" Mordin asked incredulously. "Considering the lengths they would go for you, I would have assumed you would do the same for them. That is why I wanted you to come along. You know them better. You would recognize any signs they leave behind."

"You can be very useful, Sarah," Tali said calmingly. "You don't have to be able to fight to earn your place within this crew."

I definitely appreciated Tali's words. Though I felt like I needed to clarify what I meant to Mordin. Especially since I figured that I had probably annoyed him-or at least confused him-during a couple of our last talks in his lab. "Yeah I know," I said to Tali, then I turned my attention to Mordin. "And well... yes I do want to help, it's just that I'm surprised that Shepard let me off the ship after everything that happened. I figured you guys might not trust me enough to... not cause trouble or something, either," I added sheepishly.

"After Jack, we had our doubts," Mordin said honestly. "But in all truth, we need you here. You are extremely valuable to this operation. To finding your friends."

"They stopped here," said Tali, stopping abruptly in front of the sexual apparel store. "And looked around... and then it goes blank. Hmm. I-oh. I'm picking up a reading from Shepard's credit card! The jamming must have been lifted."

She opened a line to the Commander to relay to her that news. Shepard was apparently on her way to recruit Samara, but she was pleased with the news. "If you find anything, Zaeed and Miranda are on their way to you."

"Affirmative, Commander."

I winced. I didn't really want to see Zaeed or Miranda right now.

I glanced around, remembering what Mordin said about the possibility of "spotting clues" left behind by Abby and/or HK, or whatever. I had no idea why they would go into a... well, sexual apparel store, but I would just let that slide for the time-being. It just wasn't important.

I looked around on the ground... and then I saw something. A couple of items, actually. I slowly moved toward them, and stooped down to examine them and pick them up. One item looked like a bracelet of some kind... I had no idea what the heck the other item was.

Mordin noticed my preoccupation and examined the items. "Bracelet of moonrocks, from Luna possibly," he said. He looked at the tag and nodded. "Yes, yes. And the other..." He face fell. "Elcor jockstrap? Would recommend you don't, ah, touch that one. Elcor sweat very much around their lower parts and the secretion leaves germs possibly lethal to humans who don't have the Racheon-III shot. Should have gotten yours as a child, but cautious anyway. Though this looks new. Odd. Why would this be laying in the middle of the street? Sarah?"

I dropped both of the items as if they were contaminated with a deadly plague. Mostly in response to Mordin's words about... germs. But even as I looked at the items... something occurred to me.

What elcor would just leave his... well, underthings out here in the street? And what elcor would be carrying around a bracelet that looked like it was meant for a human? Unless maybe two different beings just happened to drop the items here... though somehow that didn't seem likely.

Call it a "gut instinct" or whatever, but... the wheels were turning in my head. And there were only two people I knew of who would be... weird enough to buy both of these things in one day. Especially if they didn't even know what the... elcor thing was. Or maybe they bought it just for the hell of it, for all I knew.

"Abby," I muttered under my breath, grabbing the items from the ground where I dropped them.

"You think Abby bought those?" Tali asked uncertaintly.

Mordin actually nodded, agreeing with me. "Can actually see point. Bracelet would be an ideal souvenir from Earth, and can see the... comedic value in the other purchase."

Oh, if only Mordin had seen some of the bizzare MSN conversations I'd had with HK and Abby-along with other people-over the years...

I shoved that thought aside. I slid the bracelet onto my wrist for safe-keeping. If Abby wanted it back later, I would give it to her. I then contemplated the... elcor item, holding it loosely between the fingertips on my other hand. I was honestly trying to decide whether or not to simply drop it. Was this thing worthy or useful as evidence, or should I just... leave it? I made a face.

"The signal is coming from that alley," said Tali, drawing her sidearm. She opened up another link. "Do you read?"

"Loud and clear," Miranda said. "Your status?"

"We're picking up a signal from an alley a few blocks down. We'll keep you posted."

"Roger that. ETA for us in five minutes. Hope you find something."

"I do, too." Tali cut the link and gestured for us to move foreword. Mordin drew his pistil from beside me and entered the alley cautiously. "Good place for an ambush," Tali warned. "Keep your guard up."

I simply decided to drop the... elcor thing. If Abby really wanted one, she could buy another one as far as I was concerned. I would hang onto the bracelet, though.

I cautiously followed Tali and Mordin as we entered the alley. I held my breath for a moment, glancing around. There didn't seem to be anywhere there, although I couldn't be certain.

I also had a pressing question I needed to ask, and it was becoming more urgent by the minute. But first... I wanted to find out if we were about to die or not.

"Nobody is here," Tali said, glancing at her omni tool. "Nothing electrical nor biometric." We continued a bit further in, and she stooped down to look at the ground. "Blood here," she said. "Fresh... and human."

Mordin sniffed the air. "Electric discharge. Quite possible they used a tazor to subdue. Dumpster up ahead. May have put their belongings there."

"That's where the signal is coming from," Tali agreed.

I was getting more and more concerned by the minute. What if HK and Abby were hurt? And why in the world would anyone want to capture them, especially that asari assistant of Liara's?

But something else was really starting to press at me more. Something that... well, I kind of needed to... take care of before I could do much else. Or think clearly, for that matter.

"Um..." I began, looking from Mordin to Tali. "I need to know something."

"It would seem we all do," Tali said morosely, heading towards the dumpster. "But what do you have in mind?"

I really didn't want to be a burden, I really didn't. But... you just couldn't help it when nature called. "Where's the nearest restroom? Do you know?"

Tali and Mordin exchanged a glance. "Probably in one of the stores," Tali allowed, "but you're going to have to hold it for a few more minutes."

Mordin climbed to the top of the large dumpster and peered inside. "Found them!"

My heart skipped a beat. Oh no, they couldn't be dead, they couldn't be...

"You found the bags?" Tali asked.

"Yes. Three bags. All new. Obviously haven't been here long. Blood smear on the blue one. If I get a sample, can probably-match-it-up to the one behind us." Mordin had leaned over and grabbed the bags with his long arms and threw them on the ground. He knelt next to the blue one and sampled the blood, then jogged back and placed a blood sample from the sidewalk into the datapad as well.

"A match," he said. "The blood is the male. HK."

"So HK was beaten up... and Abby was tazored?" Tali asked.

"If Abby did not give up fast enough, then yes," Mordin said calmly. "Or if she was making noise. Screaming, for example. With the tazors on Illium, the pain is so overwhelming that the vocal chords constrict and air doesn't pass through as well. Excellant for subduing a target that does not comply."

I groaned in spite of myself. I did NOT need to hear about the details of what my friends had probably endured here, thank you very much. Then again maybe I did, I don't know. "Do you think they're okay?" I asked.

"No," said Mordin. "They are probably in pain, unless they were drugged once they were down. Would make transferring them easier, I would suppose. Have had to do it before."

Tali coughed a warning to Mordin. "Everything will be okay, Sarah," she said crossly.

I was really starting to wish I was still unconscious. Even if I had ended up with a concussion-or hell, even if I'd had my skull cracked open-I would prefer to wake up after all of this was already over. To wake up in the medical bay and see Abby and HK standing over me, safe and sound.

But no, instead I was standing here, worrying my head off and hearing all about what they were probably going through right now.

"I'm going to find a restroom," I stated in a firm tone. If I didn't get to one soon, it would be embarrassing if I sneezed.

Tali and Mordin exchanged another look. As I turned around to leave, Tali caught up with me. I had the vague sense that she was escorting me. Mordin stayed in the alley, gathering clues.

Somehow, part of my mind could imagine Mordin working very well with the people on that CSI TV show. I shoved that thought aside-this simply was not the time to have random thoughts popping in and out. Even though I had a random imagination at times.

I walked around to the front of that... um, sexual apparal store, and I decided that was as good a place as any to check. I ducked inside, sort of ignoring Tali while making sure she was still with me at the same time. I didn't want to lose sight of her; with my luck I would get lost.

"Excuse me," I called out as I approached the nearest clerk, "do you have a restroom here?"

The clerk looked to be a very shaken up young woman, and looked at me suspiciously. "Uhh...oh, yeah, there's one right behind those ailes to the left. Just don't take long...we have to close early after that nun destroyed half of the store earlier."

I glanced around. "Man... she did do a number on this place," I murmured sympathetically to the asari. "I won't be long, I promise." With that I slipped off in the indicated direction, then glanced around my sharply to make sure Tali was still with me.

Finally I reached the entrance to the female restroom. I supposed that any female of any species could go in there. I nodded toward Tali, giving her a "I'll only be a minute" look, then went in.

About five minutes or so later, I came back out. I simply nodded at Tali.

Tali nodded back.

We kind of looked at each other for a moment. I kind of expected her to lead the way, but... whatever. I moved past her, heading toward the door. Once we were outside... I began to head in what I hoped was the right direction back to Mordin and the dumpster.

Miranda and Zaeed were already there in deep discussion with Mordin. They simply looked at me, acknowledging my presence, and I strained to hear what exactly they were saying.

Zaeed and Miranda seemed to be squaring off.

"-Shepard says-"

"Fuck Shepard. There are two kids out there. If we let them go they'll be two _dead_ kids. Does that fact get through that genetically modified head of yours?"

"They can take care of themselves, but Thane and Samara take priority, Massani," Miranda snapped. "Shepard agrees with me. The two of them will keep until Thane and Samara are successfully recruited."

"That's a bullshit order."

"It's still an order, and you're being paid for this."

"What's going on?" Tali asked in a guarded tone.

"Commander Shepard is putting the search for Abby and HK on hold," said Mordin, stroking his chin. "In order to recruit the Justicar and the Assassin. She also wants to take care of Miranda's sister while we're here. Time constraints won't allow us to take care of this situation and the others in a timely manner without losing somebody."

"Maybe I can handle this... somehow or other." I blurted that out without even thinking about what I was saying. I then vividly remembered what happened on that planet were Tali was recruited... and knew that I would probably get killed if I tried something like that. Especially if it meant I had to go up against a biotic.

"And how the hell do you think you can do that?" Zaeed demanded.

I scowled at him. But I wasn't really upset at him or anything. More at this situation in general, and at myself for even opening my mouth. "What's it to you? Not like you care whether I'm on the ship or not," I muttered.

Zaeed laughed. "Attitude like that, maybe you _should_ learn how to fight."

"Not the time for this now," said Mordin. "Abby and HK are gone. Only one left who knows what they did." He stared at me.

It took me a moment to figure out what he meant. For a split-second I thought he was implying that I somehow knew where they were or something, then I realized he meant that I was the only one who knew the future events.

Oh, wonderful. That meant that until we got HK and Abby back... I was going to be their prized psychic.

I returned Mordin's gaze, meeting his eyes. "Yeah well, fat lot of good that did them," I muttered. "We didn't even see this coming."

"So have her stay on the ship, give her orders to Shepard from the cockpit," Miranda suggested.

I really wished Jack had knocked me out better. Maybe I could piss of Zaeed, but... no, this wasn't the time for that.

"I'm so tired," I muttered out loud. Yeah, tired of all of this. I definitely wasn't cut out to be on a military ship, with a bunch of well-trained fighters. For some stupid reason... part of me also began to wish Garrus was here. Maybe I just wanted to hear his voice; somehow that could usually cheer me up.

"And your friends could be dead," said Miranda. She was just wonderful at cheering people up. "Shepard needs me. I have to go. If you see anything or remember anything, call us," she implored, and left.

"Touchy little bitch," Zaeed muttered.

Well, everything seemed to be in a bit of a mess. To put it mildly. "Where's Garrus?" I asked totally in spite of myself.

"With Commander Shepard," Tali said. "Miranda's gone to join them. They're planning to find Samara today and find Miranda's sister tonight. Seryna informed us that Thane would plan his strike tomorrow with the sun begins to sink. We have two days to find whatever we can."

"Not likely we'll find them alive," Mordin said, "but one can always hope."

"So what the hell do you want me to do?" I demanded. I hated how my voice sounded a little pathetic now. At least I was glad that Mordin and Tali were here. As long as I could have two of my other favorite people with me... that was good enough.

Even if Mordin lacked tact when talking about, well... pain and torture.

Mordin handed me a bag and took the remaining two for himself. "We'll bring these back to the ship and go through them. Undoubtedly Shepard would like her credit card back."

"I'll stay here and sort through whatever we might've missed," Tali said, but in a tone that didn't promise success.

"I'll cover you," said Zaeed.

"Good, good," said Mordin. "Take cab back to Normandy. We have car." He adjusted the bags more securely. "That should do it, I suppose. Come on, Sarah."

I stared at him for a moment, then I nodded and followed him to the car. Well... maybe when I got back to the ship... I could see if I could piss off Jack again. Or maybe Grunt. Then maybe I could still follow through with my plan of just waking up after Abby and HK were safe and sound on the Normandy again. I figured I could trust Shepard that much, to still perform a miracle and get them back... somehow.

I just hated everything about this situation. It was like having to operate around a blindspot. This wasn't supposed to happen. But of course... none of us really had any "visions" here, it was simply because we had played the game back in our home universe or whatever.

I got into the car and strapped myself in, looking over at Mordin as he fastened himself in. "You think it's gonna be okay?" I asked him.

He hesitated. "Honestly?" he asked. "No. Many things could be happening now. Nyxeris, the assistent, she works for the Shadow Broker. And we know already that the Shadow Broker works with the Collectors. Implications... very unpleasant."

"Yeah," I muttered. Then I rested my head against the back of my seat, and tried to let my mind go blank as we headed back to the shuttle. After that... I knew we would be going back to the Normandy.

* * *

The first thing I became aware of was... bright light, and pain. I could hear voices speaking, but they sounded muffled and far off. I think someone was telling me not to move.

Then it slowly came back to me what had happened. Going through the stuff Mordin had found in the dumpster had turned out to be pretty much futile, and then Shepard was out of touch for a while, so... I think I went and paid Grunt a visit.

I must have done something or other to piss him off, if my headache was any indication. And where was I NOW? I couldn't even remember what I had done or said that ticked Grunt off... I couldn't even remember if I had done it intentionally or not.

"How am I supposed to believe that you didn't assault her?" an Austrailian-accented voice asked.

"Bitch, you think that just because you found her down on my deck that I hit her? You found her in the cargo hold, where the krogan's going ape-shit, and you think _I_ did it?" another voice snapped.

"Well, you did attack her earlier."

"Because she had the nerve to slap me. And why would I attack her, then move her up to another room? To frame the krogan? I'm not that petty, I don't have that kind of time," Jack groaned. "I should've known that as soon as you took care of whatever shit you had, you'd be right back on everyone's ass. Look out, everybody, the cheerleader's back!"

"So you didn't knock her out again, then?" Miranda asked.

"What have I been saying for the last ten minutes...?"

"Would you two please take this in another room?" Chakwas's familiar voice chimed in. "She's waking up."

At times like this, part of me almost wished they wouldn't notice that I was awake. Well, at least they had stopped arguing-for the moment-but I was a little afraid that I would somehow get dragged into the fight.

"Um," I said aloud, realizing that they were all looking at me now, "last thing I remember was Grunt whacking me or something, but... I don't even remember what I did that pissed him off, I swear." I held up a hand in a defensive gesture, emphasizing my words.

"Happy now, bitch?" Jack asked Miranda.

"Ah, so it was Grunt. Chambers did tell Shepard that he had been acting angry while we were gone..." Miranda slowly said, mulling it over.

Angry? Wait a minute... did that mean that Grunt was going through his "becoming an adult" phase? I slumped back against the pillow under my head and let out a small sigh of relief. "Oh good, it wasn't something I did this time," I breathed. Then I glanced at the others. "It's just... krogan adolesence. He... needs to go to the krogan homeworld." I figured there wouldn't be much harm in saying THAT much, as long as I didn't spill everything.

"Turians aren't working out for you? Wanna go see if you can screw some krogan?" Jack asked with a snort.

I made a face and gave her a look. "Okay, that's just gross," I said outloud. After all... krogans had four sets of... well, nevermind.

"On to more important matters," Miranda interrupted, rolling her eyes. "If you're through getting yourself knocked out by the lunatics of our crew, then its time to get to work. Grunt will just have to wait to go to Tuchanka, because we have far more pressing things to attend to. Samara has been recruited, and my crisis has been averted...we just returned. Before we continue the search for your friends, the Commander must recruit Thane."

Damn... I had almost entirely forgotten about Abby and HK. I guess getting whacked on the head could do that to you.

I shoved myself up into a sitting position and swung my legs over the side of the bed, ignoring the throbbing in my head. "How long has it been since they were captured?" I demanded, wanting to know a rough esitmate. There was no telling what they were going through right now, and I felt partially blind not knowing how long they'd been gone.

"A day," Miranda answered. She looked a bit less on edge, probably because the Oriana debacle was over with, but she still didn't look too relaxed. Not that she ever did. "Every minute that goes by, we have more and more of a chance of losing them, and unfortunately, a lot more time will pass before we are able to go and rescue them. Thane is trying to assassinate Nassana Dantius, and from what we know, he won't be there until a specific time."

"Hey there are a lot of people on this ship, can't Shepard just send a small team to go find HK and Abby while she takes another team to find Thane?" I asked with an impatient scowl. Frankly, I didn't see why everyone had to focus solely on one mission at a time when there were more than enough people onboard.

"First of all, Liara's not done assembling her data, yet, but she should be done soon. Definitely by the time we recruit the assassin, but more importantly," Miranda explained in monotone. "We have no idea what we will find when we find them. The Shadow Broker is very mysterious, and very powerful...he's also working with the Collectors. Sending a small team to find them wouldn't work."

Well, there wasn't really much I could say to that, unfortunately. And I knew that Liara was one of the best when it came to sorting through information. So... what could I say? What could I do?

I sighed, shoving myself off of the bed, ignoring the pain in my head. I absent-mindedly glanced down at my wrist, noticing the bracelet I still had on. It was just another reminder of what had happened.

"I want to be doing something," I muttered aloud. I certainly didn't want to be stuck in the medical bay.

"You are the last person on board that has information about what will happen, and usually, we wouldn't do this, but we need to hurry and get through all of this as fast as possible. When the time comes to find Thane, Shepard wants you up in the cockpit, guiding her," Miranda explained to me.

I stared at her, running everything she'd just said through my brain. So I got to play guide-dog when it was time. Wonderful. I was really starting to miss Abby and HK more than ever. Especially because they were so much better than handling this sort of thing than I was.

They just... had a better memory for details than I did.

* * *

A couple of hours later I found myself in the cockpit, leaning against EDI's console. She didn't seem to mind... too much. But hey, nobody had brought me a chair or anything, so I needed something to support my weight... either that or I could sit on the floor. But I also needed to be as close to the console as I could, so I could talk to Shepard.

"Seryna's dropping us off at the hotel now, Sarah," Shepard announced over the comm.

"Are you really gonna let this screwed up turian-lover guide us?" Jack asked.

"For once, I think I agree with crazy lady," Joker said.

"She's all we have, and I am sure that she can at least do this," Shepard told them both. "So lets just get to the mission, and focus on finding Thane."

Wonderful. So now I had to fill in for Abby and HK, (God I hope they're okay). Not only that, but apparently this was going to be like my big chance to show the crew whether or not I would blow it in the one and final way that I could blow it.

I was already trying to run everything I could remember about the Thane mission through my brain. Frankly... all of the battle scenerios seemed the same to me, in the way I remembered them. I was able to remember dialogue better than battlegrounds or fights.

"Keep an eye out for wounded salarians," I blurted, proud that I could remember that off the top of my head, at least.

"Alright, we will. We're approaching the entrance no-crap, there's the mechs. Everybody take cover!" Shepard yelled, and within seconds, shattering glass was heard, as a huge firefight erupted between the mechs and her team.

After a moment, everything was quiet, and Shepard spoke again. "We're heading inside now."

I nodded, even though I knew she couldn't see me. I then tried to recall just what they would find next... well, they would probably find the injured salarian very soon.

Sure enough, they did. Shepard spoke to him, and he explained all about how Nassana had randomly gone nuts and released the dogs, mercs, and mechs on them. Grunt and Jack, her two party members for this trip, complained about her saving his life, before they all went on their way.

"Okay, I just spoke to the salarian. What next?" Shepard asked me.

"Uh..." I wracked my brain. "Let's see... are you at an elevator, or a door?" I was trying to get a visual in my head... plus I was stalling just a little to give me more time to think and remember.

"A door...we're walking through an empty hallway, there's a room up ahead...and more mechs and mercs," Shepard said, and I heard alot of running, before a large battle erupted. It was obvious that guns were blazing all over the place in the Dantius Towers.

"Watch out!" I shouted so loudly that Joker winced. "And expect heavy resistence especially when you get to the bridge! They're gonna have missile launchers up there. And biotics all along the way!" I hope that that made sense, and I hoped Shepard would understand my meaning.

"Bridge! What the hell is she on about?" Grunt shouted.

"We'll ask once everyone else is dead!" Shepard replied.

The fight continued, and we heard Shepard running around from time to time, as well as some shouts from Grunt and Jack as they happily slaughtered mercs. It was obvious that they were in an area with a _ton _of fighting...for ten minutes, all that we could hear were gunshots and battle cries.

"Okay, Sarah, we just ran up a ramp that led upstairs," Shepard finally said, sounding breathless. "We hear some mercs talking..."

"Careful... you should be able to take them down so long as you don't do anything stupid." Yeah, like that was great advice. She already knew that. But... I didn't know what else to say. I didn't have a photographic memory of the layout of the tower.

The team of three slowly walked around, while the mercs spoke, but a mech suddenly shouted something about hostile forces. More shots were fired, and yet another battle with the Eclipse mercs had begun.

"Watch your landing!" Jack screamed with a laugh.

A second later, screams were heard, likely while several mercs went plummetting down the hotel.

Everything stopped for a moment, but it was mere seconds before the fight started up again. More gunshots were easily hard, as more mechs shouted random things, and mercs screamed, either that the team was going to die or screams as _they _died.

This continued on and on, and Joker looked at me, while the insanity continued.

"Do they _ever_ stop?"

"When they all die, yeah," I muttered, knowing that probably wasn't what he wanted to hear. I swallowed and pressed my lips together.

"Obviously. I meant, do the mercs ever stop pouring out? It sounds like some unlimited defense party in there."

"They'll stop eventually... there's a lot of mechs and mercs down there. Nassana released them on her own workers," I said, fiddling a little with the bracelet on my wrist. It gave me something to focus on... sorta. "When Shepard and her team get to Nassana's room, they'll be home free."

Joker just shook his head, and we listened while the battle _finally_ winded down. All three of them were panting by the time that everything was silent, but Shepard said nothing to me, or anyone else. Until, a few minutes later, I heard her talking with the salarians that were locked inside that one room.

After that was done, Shepard addressed me again. "Okay, we're at the elevator now. Anything you can tell me?"

"Yeah, when you open the elevator, run for cover. There's gonna be a krogan along with a couple of heavily shielded women," I said. I couldn't remember if they were humans or asari, so I figured "women" would be close enough. "Also... when you get up the elevator you're gonna find a lone merc talking into his radio... he'll be able to tell you a little, like where Thane went I think, but nothing else. I think you'll reach the bridge soon after that... just be careful. There's a lot more fighting to come."

"Get back, you two," Shepard ordered. Nothing happened for a few seconds, and I assumed that she was waiting for Jack and Grunt to get into cover. Finally, I heard her dart off, and several seconds later, the fighting started all over again.

"Krogan charging!" Jack yelled.

Gunshots were fired faster and faster, one going out a mere millisecond after the other. The female mercs could be heard fighting as well, and it wasn't long before they started screaming in pain.

It was no doubt a brutal battle.

Another minute passed, and Shepard exhaled a breath. "Okay, they're down. Lets keep going."

The crew went up the elevator, and soon after, Shepard was heard speaking to the merc. She asked him about Thane, got him to talk, and he went on his way...she and the other two proceeded to enter another room, where you could barely hear that merc speaking to Nassana about Thane being all over the place.

Shepard or someone fired at a merc, taking it out instantly, and the merc said something in surprise, like he always did. Another fight began, but this one was more brief...it didn't take them long to finish them off.

Then, Shepard spoke to that last crew of salarians locked inside a room, and overall, their conversation wasn't too long. They left, and Shepard headed over to the console, where even we could hear Nassana's complaining.

"Now we wait for Thane to snap her neck," I commented outloud. I didn't really care if Shepard heard that or not. I simply hoped that this mission would end as soon as possible, and I hoped Liara was putting together good information about HK and Abby, and her crazy assistant.

Shepard was silent, listening to Nassana's rage. Finally, she activated the comm terminal.

"Its about time. Whats going on down there?" Nassana asked.

"I'm afraid your men aren't able to respond, Nassana," Shepard answered simply.

"Damn it!" Nassana shouted.

"Come on, we're running low on time. Thane's going to get to her any minute," Shepard told Jack and Grunt. I could hear them walk, and assumed they were walking up the ramp.

Sure enough, they were. Not much time later, another fight began, with asari commandos, judging by the kind of screams they let out while Jack, Shepard, and Grunt pounded them with biotics.

The battle didn't take too long. "Okay, we're heading outside now. Anything to expect?" Shepard wondered.

"Yeah, probably a pair of missile launchers way at the other end of the bridge and heavy fire power from more mercs," I said.

Shepard didn't reply either way, and not too long after that, I heard an absolute _barrage_ of firepower erupt. It sounded like guns were going off all over the place, biotics were being thrown, people were screaming...everything. Shepard and co. continued their approach to the bridge, and it only increased.

I could tell that they were on the end of the bridge when I heard missiles hitting various things. The sounds of missiles were much louder than the sound of gunshots...Shepard shouted out orders to Jack and Grunt, and it wasn't long before I could hear the wind during the all-out fight.

I held my breath as everything went silent. I was also thinking that there was no WAY that the three of them could possibly go through all that without getting injured. "Everybody okay?" I finally asked.

A few more explosions, coupled with all the firing, was heard, before Shepard responded. "We're all fine, thankfully...everybody's down, and we're across the bridge. We're about to go see Nassana, so I'm shutting the comm down. I can handle it from here."

Immediately, the channel went silent.

I looked at Joker. "Now Thane's gonna snap her neck," I commented. I then leaned heavily against EDI's terminal again, feeling wary in spite of myself. But I had done more worrying over the past couple of hours than anything else. Worrying about HK and Abby, and about Shepard and her team.

But hey, at least I could say that I was doing the best I could here and now.

Joker sighed. "I wish we could have some specialists that weren't crazy alien psychos."

"Keeps things from getting boring," I murmured in spite of myself with a shrug.

And of course... later on I would be told-and remember-that Thane did not snap Nassana's neck... he shot her while looking her in the eyes. But hey, I think I did do pretty well overall in what I remembered.

An hour and a half or so passed. By that point I had moved out of the cockpit and over into the corridor that lead to the airlock, sort of pacing. I had nothing else better to do at the moment-at least nothing I really wanted to do-so I simply waited for Shepard and company to come back.

I knew that there was always something to do, but... I figured that Rupert understood.

I felt my heart skip a beat when the airlock door shifted and opened, partly because I had been anticipating it and partly because... well, it happened so suddenly that it startled me a little. Then as soon as it opened fully, I saw Shepard come through, followed by Jack, Grunt and Thane.

I smiled at them as the entered, though I said nothing.

"It is very cool in here," Thane noted, his gravelly voice shocking me. He adjusted his collar, looking around. He focused on me first, then tilted his head this way and that, analyzing the bridge. "You are very well-funded, Commander."

"Follow me to the meeting room, Thane," said the Commander. "We'll figure out everything there. Sarah, you're with us."

I blinked. Well, I can't say I was unhappy about being included, it just surprised me a bit. Then again... HK and Abby weren't here. Why did that fact have to keep haunting me? Of course I knew the answer to that: It was because there wasn't a damn thing I could do to get them back.

"Okay," I said with a nod and casually stepped up beside Shepard. I then glanced at Thane, taking in the sight of him. I swear... those eyes of his looked like deep, black marbles. Somehow they seemed devoid of emotion and yet full of expression at the same time. "Hi," I said simply to him.

"Greetings," he said, nodding to me. We fell into step behind Shepard as she led us to the conference room. Jacob slid in behind us.

"I thank you once again for your help distracting Nassana's guards," Thane said peacably.

"Don't worry about it," Shepard said. "You're one of the bests; that's why we need you watching our backs."

"Not sure I'd feel comfortable having an assassin looking over my shoulder," Jacob said, coming to stand behind Shepard in a show of solidarity.

Shepard shot him a cross look. "Stand down, Mister Taylor."

"Yes, ma'am. I only came in because there's no new leads on Nyxeris. Liara promised to call later on to give you a status update."

He walked out, and Thane watched him with cool counterance. "Mister Taylor objects to my presence. I trust this will not become a problem?"

Shepard looked at me, raising one eyebrow. "No," she said. "Allow me to introduce you to Sarah. Sarah, this is Thane."

In spite of myself I grinned a little. "Nice to meet you," I said, looking him over. "And nice outfit." Hey, I always thought he wore a very nice suit.

"A pleasure," he said, taking the compliment in his stride. "Were you by chance the one giving the Commander detailed information of Nassana's complex over the communications network?"

"Yep," I said. I still felt a little pleased with myself for handling that well, all things considered. It was probably the first thing I'd done on this ship that had gone right-well, besides most of my cleaning and cooking, of course. With a few exceptions.

"And," I added quickly, simply wanting to prove to him that my knowledge was accurate, "I know some stuff about almost everybody. I know you met your 'siha' when she blocked one of your shots, years ago, and you both had a son." I stopped, not wanting to say too much.

Shepard cut in before Thane could respond. "They're okay," she implored. "I don't know much about them, honestly, but they've proved themselves over and over. I'll explain soon."

"Them?" Thane repeated, staring at me in shock. "How do they know this? I have no profile anywhere. I leave no trace."

"Um... we have dreams and visions," I stated simply, glancing down at the floor. "You know, um... we know the future."

Thane stared at me, uncomprehending, then at Shepard. I had never before thought a drell could look confused, but this took the cake. "The future?" he asked curiously. "How many are you?"

"Three," Shepard clarified. "But for now Sarah is the only one left."

"They were killed?" Thane repeated in shock.

"Kidnapped, by the Shadow Broker," said Shepard. "Abby and HK are two valuable members of our crew. They've been missing since yesterday afternoon." And she quickly explained the circumstances of their disappearance.

Thane turned to me, an inquisitive look in his eyes. "Explain these visions you have to me," he said. "I may understand better."

"Uh..." I hesitated. What exactly was it he wanted to know? And how was I supposed to explain? "I don't really know what to say," I finally said with a shrug. "What exactly do you want to know?"

"I don't wish to know the specifics of what you saw, but how does it happen? How did you end up here? Are you yourself in these visions?"

"I can't really explain," I answered quickly. "Maybe when we get Abby back she could explain better." Hopefully that would get me off the hook of having to offer a better explanation. Plus I knew that if I tried to come up with a more creative explanation, I'd probably end up sounding like an idiot... or saying something that Abby would kill me over.

"Try," he pressed. "Start with how you got here."

I made a face and glanced at Shepard, almost silently pleading for help. But actually... I just didn't want to talk about something so... complicated with two people-or three, if you counted EDI-staring at me. It just made me all the more nervous.

I shrugged in annoyance. "Maybe if we go somewhere private I could," I finally said. I did like Thane a lot, and if he insisted... I supposed that I could try explaining better. I just didn't want to do it in front of an audience, especially in a place where more people could walk in at any moment.

"This is private," he said.

"She wants me out," Shepard said. "We'll set you up with some quarters and you two can... converse."

"Certainly. I would like somewhere more arid than the rest of the ship, if there is such a place."

"The life support room on Deck Three is slightly warmer than the rest of the ship," EDI spoke, materializing in front of us.

"Ah. An AI?" Thane appraised her with calculating eyes. "My thanks." He bowed to Shepard and walked out of the room. Shepard motioned for me to follow him, and as I left I noticed Jacob sliding back into the room behind me. The door closed.

Well, I didn't really want to talk to Jacob anyway. I had nothing against him or anything, but... I still felt awkward after the... well, sparring incident, as I liked to call it.

A few minutes later I was actually helping Thane get set up in the life-support room, at least somewhat. He was very self-sufficient, although he asked me to get a chair and bring it in. I assumed that it was because he needed a place to sit at his make-shift desk, so I said that there were a few spares in the mess hall. To my surprise he actually came with me and carried a chair in even as I brought one in. Then I quickly realized what he was doing; he wanted both of us to be able to sit and talk.

Moments after that, I found myself seated across from him at the table, discreetly inching my chair back a little. Okay, so I was a little shy around Thane. What could I say?

"Now," he said, clasping his hands together, "explain to me the parts you feel you are able."

I made a noise that was something like a cough or an "ahem". Straight and to the point, wasn't he? "Uh," I swallowed. Somehow I hadn't expected us to be... diving right into this discussion.

Maybe it was out of sheer nervousness, or because he was gazing at me intently with those dark eyes of his, but I found myself spitting out something stupid. But of course, this wasn't the first time I've done that.

"So... is Shepard really your new siha now, because she challenged you down there?"

Somebody shoot me.

Thane stared at me, blinking rapidly. "Pardon?"

Now I choked a little. Then I cleared my throat, finding my voice. "Sorry... maybe I should go," I said, shoving my chair back farther from the table-until I smacked into the wall. It kind of prevented me from rising.

Thane took a few steadying breaths, then twitched his head impatiently, like shaking off a fly. "If that is what you wish," he said finally. "Are we to rescue the two others?"

I froze, staring at him in astonishment. He was simply willing to let it drop, just like that? After the weird thing I just said? "Uh... I hope so." I blinked, making no other movement.

"But you do not know for certain? There is trouble with getting the information?"

"Uh well..." In spite of myself, I found myself answering. "It's just... we didn't see this coming. We knew about everything else before this but we didn't see THIS coming." I made a motion of my hand, emphasizing my meaning when I said "THIS", then dropped it onto my lap.

"You do not see situations involving yourself," Thane said.

I bobbed my head in a nod. "Yeah that pretty much sums it up," I answered honestly. HK, Abby, and myself were pretty much clueless about anything that involved us. We just knew what was going to happen to everybody else.

"I see. I will help you find them. I believe your story. You cannot lie to me."

"What do you mean, I can't lie to you?" I asked in puzzlement. I was very pleased to hear he would help me find my friends. At least somebody sounded like he wanted to make an effort-and Thane hadn't even MET them yet. He didn't even know me at all, really. But... what did he mean by that last sentence?

"Your posture. Your stance. You are nervous-I smell it. If you lied, you would act different. You have not realized this?"

I shrugged. "Never really thought about it," I answered simply. Was I really that transparent? If that was the case, I would never make it as a Vulcan. I smiled at the random thought.

"You may leave now, if I make you uncomfortable. I have presumed upon your tolerance. I apologize."

"Yeah well... maybe I'll stay a little longer, if it's okay," I found myself saying. "You just really took me by surprise." In all honesty, I decided that I would rather spend some time in here than simply go back to my cleaning duties, worrying my head off about Abby and HK and whatever else might go wrong.

"How are your lungs?" I found myself asking, trying to find a safe, impersonal subject to touch upon.

"They are fine, for now," Thane said calmly. "The doctors estimate that the breakdown will occur over a period of several months. I will be handicapped in seven. I can still fight, however. My services will not be affected by this disease."

"Yeah I know," I murmured with a small nod. "And you'll do great, just like everybody else." Just so long as we saved Kolyat, of course... but I wasn't gonna say that outloud.

"My thanks," said Thane. "It is good to hear such reassurance. As long as the crew performs to their expected duties, the mission may very well be a success. Shepard has promised to come down later and explain more about we are up against. She is a very able Commander, don't you think?"

"Yeah she is," I agreed, giving another nod. "And... I just hope we'll all make it through this alive." I pressed my lips together. "Then again I don't even know if HK and Abby are gonna come out of their prediciment okay." Now that was a scary thought, being alone on the Normandy for the rest of the mission without them being around.

"We will find them," Thane said. "Tell me about them."

Once again I was slightly taken aback. Why did he seem to care so much about people he didn't even know?

"Well," I murmured, leaning back a little in my chair. I realized that I still had it scooted up against the wall, so I cleared my throat and shuffled it forward a little. That way I could sit at the table more comfortably... though not too close. "What do you want to know, exactly?"

"About them," he answered. "You are friends, aren't you?"

"Oh yeah, we're friends," I acknowledged with another bob of my head. I was starting to feel like I was a rooster or something from all this nodding. "We've known each other for about four or five years, or so."

"And your common interests?"

"Writing and hanging out," I answered quickly. "At least, that's how we first met... we all liked this game series called Knights of the Old Republic, and we joined up as part of this... writing thing, known as forum role-playing. And things just kind of went from there, I guess you could say."

"So you are writers. That's very interesting." He seemed to be waiting for more information.

"Yeah um... we also did some really crazy things back then," I added a tad sheepishly.

"Such as?"

I grinned impishly, though I couldn't look at him anymore. I simply stared down at the table. "Well... I created this character named Lenora who was basically, um... well, she kept losing her temper, she died and came back to life countless times, aes, and uh... she couldn't seem to decide if she was good or evil sometimes." I figured Thane had probably never heard of Star Wars, so I was trying to explain the "dark side" and "light side" in simplistic terms. That way I wouldn't have to waste more time explaining.

"Oh? And did she make it to the end of your story alive?"

"I'm not sure how to answer that... especially since the story was never really finished." I shook my head a little. "I mean... it just got so crazy we weren't even sure what was going on anymore. That and... let's just say some problems happened between some us during the course of the role-play."

He was simply silent. Waiting.

So I slowly continued. "Some of us were pretty immature back then, myself included. And well... basically we just did anything and everything we felt like doing, on the spur of the moment. Time-travel, characters falling in love and having kids... oh and speaking of kids..."

I paused for breath, then went on. "Um..." I suddenly waved a dismissive hand. "Never mind you probably don't want to know. That and... I'm sure HK and Abby would kill me."

"If you say so," he said affably. "If you don't want to tell me about your writing, tell me about them as individuals."

I was never very good at summing up people in a handful of words. Abby and HK were... well, Abby and HK. "Well..." I tried to focus on relevent facts.

I decided to talk about them one at a time; that would be easier. "Abby's always been into... athletic kind of stuff, and she knows karate and aikido. And also... she's always been fun to be around, especially in MSN conversations." It dawned on me that he might not know what MSN is, but I quickly pressed on anyway. "And she's got a great imagination. I think sometimes she was a little short-tempered, but hey so was I."

"And HK? That is an unusual name for a human."

"Actually his name is DJ," I told him. "HK is just a nickname he's always had. And well... he seems kind of like the counsellor type sometimes, if that makes sense. Always willing to listen to people, and he's got a good heart. Though he was kind of weird when I first met him."

"They sound like good friends to have," he said. "I myself have not been so fortunate."

"I think you could be great friends with Shepard if you try," I told him. I knew it was true. Then again... part of me also didn't want her to get TOO close to Garrus.

"Possibly," Thane allowed. "She is very formidable. I would love to work alongside her longer. Working alone for so many years can only get so tiresome." He chuckled.

"Heh yeah, I can imagine... sorta," I said. I could definitely understand that doing what he'd done all his life would get lonely. Though I didn't know what it would be like from personal experience, because I hadn't lived his life. "And nobody has caught your eye like that since you met your wife... right?"

Okay maybe I was being selfish... trying to encourage Thane so that Shepard would steer clear of Garrus.

Thane, however, seemed to guess where I was heading. "I would never pursue any... intimate relationship with a woman I hardly know," he said, deathly calm.

"Well, maybe if you got to know her..." I trailed off.

Thane gave me a flat stare. "In drell culture, it's typically considered very rude for one to imply any romantic entanglements with one who ranks higher than another."

My cheeks flushed and I glanced off to the right, to stare at the wall. "Sorry," I said, sincere and embarrassed. I should have known better than to... push that particular issue.

He nodded. "I will meditate on what we have discussed, and get some rest. I have not slept for two days. Nassana's walls were very well-guarded. It took a very long time to exploit the holes in her defenses."

"Yeah," I acknowledged dully, rising from my chair. I didn't quite look at him. "I really hope I haven't weirded you out," I said. I know that I had pissed off-or at least annoyed-nearly everyone else. Well, maybe with the exception of Rupert... although he still hadn't forgotten the time I dropped a frying pan on his foot.

"Being taken off balence is a pleasant occurance. It offers the chance to learn more. How could I pass up such an oppertunity?"

I shrugged. "Guess it goes to show that um... nobody knows everything." I smiled a little.

He inclined his head and stood. Without turning his back from me, he began to empty the small rucksack he carried with him. One of the items within was a small sleeping bag. He spread it over his makeshift desk and began to sort out a few more items. I was clearly dismissed.

"Bye," I said, slowly moving toward the door. "Maybe we'll talk again."

"I would like that," he answered.

I left so quickly that the doors almost didn't have enough time to open for me. Well... that had to be one of the weirdest-and most interesting-conversations I've had so far.


	21. Escape

**(Sarah)**

After I left Thane's quarters, I slowly headed toward the elevator... yet for some reason I found myself walking right past it. I walked down the corridor and found myself pausing just outside of the observation lounge.

Well... since I had met Thane... part of me did want to meet Samara as well. At least just long enough to say hi. I hesitated, feeling a little unsure about it. I knew she was now under Shepard's command, but... I knew she was dangerous.

Yeah, well... so was Thane. I shrugged to myself and pressed the release mechanism to open the door.

That's when I saw her, sitting on the floor in the dimly lit room, in a meditative position. She was facing the large window, and there was an aura around her that made her seem more like a mystical being than an asari. I found myself staring at her for a moment before I finally forced myself to enter the room. I jumped slightly when the door automatically shut just behind me.

Then I turned my attention back to the asari. Her back was still turned to me, and she was still glowing. I had no idea if she knew I was here or not. Though maybe she had heard the door shut, I couldn't be sure.

Samara still didn't turn to me, but finally spoke. "Hello," she said kindly.

I started a little. I also noticed that her glow faded as she spoke. "Um, hi," I said, then grinned like an idiot. I really hoped the rest of this visit wasn't going to be this awkward.

"I hope I am not in your way," Samara simply said, still in a very gentle tone.

Well, once again I was taken aback. Then again... I knew from the Mass Effect game that some of these people had the most... unique way of looking at things. And somehow... it did make me feel good in a way. At least I knew for certain now that I wasn't the only weird person on this ship.

"Um actually I hope I'm not bothering you," I told her. "I just... wanted to meet you."

"Well, that is kind of you. You are not bothering me in the least," Samara told me, turning around to face me. She had a light smile on her face. "May I ask for your name?"

"Sarah." I smiled again. That was what I always did when I wanted to be friendly-and when I was nervous. "And you're Samara."

"Yes, yes I am. I assume that the Commander has told you about me, then."

"Yeah, well... I knew you were onboard, and I just... know things." Maybe I should just shut up and leave it at that. I had already caused a lot of awkward situations by saying too much. But then again... for some reason, I found it thrilling and interesting to tell these people a bit about their personal lives, just to prove that my "visions" were real. Maybe I just loved to see their reactions.

"Know things? How is that?" Samara asked, curiously.

"I just... know the future," I clarified simply, trying to be vague at the same time. Then again, part of me hoped she would press. I wanted to see if... maybe she would be impressed by what I knew.

"And how is that?" Samara repeated.

"I just have... visions, I can't really explain it," I said simply, emphasizing my words with a small shrug. "Like... I know your daughter is an ardat-yakshi."

Samara's face actually looked like she was stunned. "What? Thats...impossible. In all my years of living, I've never seen something like this..."

I coughed. "Yeah well... I know something about everybody," I said.

"Just by having visions? I have never stepped out of asari space until recently, but I know other cultures. I have never heard of this, but it is obvious that you know things...it just does not seem logical," Samara said, still looking surprised.

I wasn't really sure what to say to that. I hadn't really meant to stun her socks off, that's for sure. But I guess I couldn't really expect her to react the same way Thane did. After all... she was not Thane. I simply stood there with my hands folded behind my back, waiting to see if she would say something else.

"However, on the other hand, things aren't always logical," Samara remarked with a chuckle. "But this is surprising, nonetheless. Are your visions able to help the crew on our mission?"

"Yep," I replied. "Me and my friends have been doing our best to help Shepard and whatnot." Ugh. I REALLY hoped Liara would get back to us soon with information. What was taking her so long, anyway?

"There are many questions I am tempted to ask you...but I refuse to pry, and it is not my place," Samara commented, seeming a little uncertain but overall, peaceful.

That was when I realized why I enjoyed spilling some of what I knew. I never did enough to tell too much of anything, but just enough so that these people would know I wasn't "ordinary". I think in some ways... I just enjoyed the thrill of showing off that I knew things, without saying too much. Maybe it was my own little ego trip, I don't know.

"Probably for the best," I said simply, trying to keep a straight face.

Samara nodded. "It was nice meeting you, but I really should get back to my meditations," she said, smiling again as she turned back around.

"Sarah," EDI's voice chimed in. "Shepard would like to see you on Deck Two."

My head snapped up. "Be right there," I said, heading out the door without even bothering to say goodbye to Samara. I hoped that this meant Shepard had finally gotten some news.

It actually took me a little while to figure out where the heck Shepard was, but I managed to find her with EDI's help. I guess it paid to have "eyes" all over the ship, so to speak.

"You wanted to see me?" I asked her as I stepped up to her. She was standing near a console, as though she was in the middle of talking to someone-or had perhaps finished talking to someone, I couldn't tell which.

Shepard aknowledged me with a nod, still leaning over the console. "Thanks," she spoke into it. "Shepard out." She cut the communication. "You follow me. Liara's located Nyxeris. Hopefully Abby and HK are there with her."

She walked abruptly to the bridge and went to stand at the galaxy map. I hastened to follow. "They've been taken to a planet called Helyme," said Shepard, her fingers moving over the holographic map with ease. She zoomed out of the Tasale system and highlighted another, Zelene, with her pinky. "We'll be there in twelve hours," she said, glancing at the time estimate on the terminal next to her. Kelly watched, concerned. "Do you know anything about this planet?"

"No," I responded immediately, almost blankly. Now, especially after discreetly bragging my "knowledge" to Thane and Samara, I was starting to feel a little stupid and useless.

"Post-garden world," Shepard said. "It used to have an Earth-like atmosphere. Something happened down there a long time ago, and specialists are still being pissy with each other about it. It's pretty desolate, except for a few cities that still stand. They're over three-hundred thousand years old by now. Landing is prhibitied by the Council and there are satellites looking to pick us up courtesy of the Shadow Broker. Hopefully, thanks to the Normandy's stealth systems we'll be able to make a quiet landing."

Shepard took one last look at the map and crossed over to her private computer, scrolling through some emails. "Liara sent out a bolo via Illium security that there are a group of renegade biotics sailing through this nebula. It should keep Nyxeris off balence, though she'll probably realize it's a trick sooner or later. I want you to stay in the cockpit with Joker throughout the entire mission. Do you understand?"

"Yeah, okay," I said somewhat dully. I was glad that I would be able to hear all about what was going on, at least hopefully I would. But at the same time... well, I was afraid of what I might hear. What if they were... in bad shape? What if we were already too late?

"Joker is going to take remote control of the Hammerhead from up there," she continued, "but EDI is arranging a section of the cockpit for yourself to see what's going on. We'll interface our helmets into the Normandy's command channel to give you a first-person perspective. If you notice anything that seems familiar, you must tell us immediately."

I narrowed my eyes, taking a step back from her. "What does that mean, exactly?" I asked warily. "It's gonna be like... I'm there but not there?"

Shepard gave me an annoyed look. "You're going to have to get over whatever feelings towards fighting you have," she said, not angrily but almost. "Each helmet has a wi-fi node that records data and transmits it back to Alliance Command. We've tweaked it to transmitback to the Normandy. You'll sit in a seat and watch the action. You won't say anything or break communication silence unless it's vitally important. So use the bathroom before we depart."

I couldn't really understand what she was saying. Then again it often took me a little time to process what I was being told, especially when I was under stress. Plus some of these things she was talking about... I swear I had never seen such things in the game. About the only part I understood was "use the bathroom before we depart".

So I simply said, "Mind if I go real quick?" If nothing else, it would give me a few minutes to gather my thoughts, hopefully.

Shepard blinked. "We're getting there in twelve hours. You're fine."

"Oh, okay."

Shepard pursed her lips. "Come on. Let me show you how to use the terminals."

She took me to the head of the bridge (Joker was conspiciously absent, but I guessed pilots had to sleep, too) and sat me down in a corner. She brought up her own helmet on screen, which showed me the inside of her room. She began to walk me through the instructions step by patient step, teaching me what I would need to know-how to communicate on an all-squad frequency or just to certain people. That was all. It was already encrypted, and she told me that I should send short messages only, because longer ones took a few seconds more to get through the encrypt nodes.

"Joker will be behind you piloting the Hammerhead," she said for the umpteenth time. "He won't be able to answer any of your questions. And knowing him, he'll also be loud, especially when he kills something. Don't pay attention to it and concentrate on your job."

"Yeah... okay," I said, squinting as I tried my best to remember everything I was being shown and told. "So uh... now I just have one really stupid question to ask."

"...yes?"

I ALMOST hung my head. "Where am I going to be during all of this again?"

Her eyes, if possible, went a few degrees cooler. "Where do you think?"

"Um... right here?"

"That would be the point of everything I just showed you."

"Okay then," I said, grinning. "Got it!" I bobbed my head at her.

Shepard turned away and walked off. "She's going to get us all killed," I heard her mutter as she went away. Before she left, though, she'd made it a point to disconnect her helmet interface from the terminal, and I was locked out again.

Well... since it was still twelve hours until we got to our destination... I figured I was probably more or less dismissed. Still... I figured I should stay put for a little longer and mentally go through everything I had been shown again.

...Part of me was really starting to hope I wouldn't need to send any messages. Especially since... I was the kind of person who needed to practice something complicated a few times before I really got it.

It was official. I was definitely not cut out to serve on a military ship, in a military situation. Not unless I simply stuck to cleaning and cooking.

"So uh," I muttered out loud, "are the messages automatically encrypted?"

"Yes," EDI answered. "I have reset the default algorithms to suit you."

"Oh okay... thanks!" I replied. "Also... you're gonna be right here, right? To make sure I don't screw anything up?" I hated to admit it, but... for once I wanted somebody-or something-to be looking over my shoulder. That way... hopefully everybody would stay alive. At the very least, I could ask questions.

"Yes," EDI answered. "And I shall be watching Mister Moreau, also. If something comes up where he must take control of the ship, I will notify him."

"Okay, and I have another question," I said, licking my lips a little.

"Yes?" EDI asked when I wouldn't go on.

"What exactly is the Hammerhead?"

"A tank."

"Oh... so then it doesn't fly?"

"Of course it does," said EDI.

"Wait... it does? I thought it was something like the Mako," I said with a puzzled frown.

EDI then explained about the Hammerhead and it's abilities.

I listened intently, then when she finished I said, "Wow... sounds impressive." Then I slowly stood and stretched my arms over my head. I felt tired, although I didn't really feel like sleeping. However... I wanted to try, at least. Just so I would be more alert when this mission actually started.

"I'm gonna go get a quick nap... okay?" I asked, yawning a little.

"I suggest you nap in your room. This is the bridge of a warship, and Mr. Moreau wouldn't hesitate to point that out in a quite undigified manner on his return if he caught you."

"Yeah, okay." With that, I got up and left the bridge.

I had... weird dreams while I was asleep. But they were the kind of dreams that tended to blur together and seemed like vague, distant memories upon waking. So I couldn't remember them very well... or the ones I did remember seemed like nothing more than a merge of pure randomness.

I heard something calling to me, and it sounded insistent. But I was in a deep sleep and part of me just wanted to stay there, as though I had found a strange sense of comfort in this odd mental state located in the subsconscious, outside of normal reality.

The voice, whoever it was, persisted. I tried to tune it out, even moving to burrow deeper under my blankets... and then I fell out of bed.

THAT woke me up.

Gabriella Daniels from Engineering was at the door, one foot over the threshold like she was torn between waking me up and running back to her station. "Finally, you're up! You sleep like the dead. Shepard needs you on the bridge, we're here. Bye!" She took off.

It took me a second to absorb that information. Then I scrambled to my feet-only to fall flat on my face. Somehow my blanket was tangled up around my ankles. I growled under my breath as I wrestled with the blanket and, not wanting to waste time trying to figure out what to do with it, I simply carried it with me out the door.

I rode the elevator up to the bridge level and dashed toward the cockpit, throwing the blanket around my shoulders almost like a cape or a shawl. I thought I saw a few people staring at me out of the corner of my eye but I really did not care.

Shepard didn't even spare me a look as she talked in urgent tones to Joker under her breath. She was already armored and ready, her helmet under her arm. "Steady, Joker."

"Relax," he soothed. "They can't even see our taillights."

"Keep it that way. I'm heading downstairs. Thane, Jacob, and Jack are with me. Sarah, you take that seat and stay there. We're going to recon. Radio silence from here on out."

If Shepard wanted complete radio silence... why was I here, exactly? I shrugged a little, feeling bewildered. I was still a little fuzzy about what I was supposed to do, partly because I was not experienced in this sort of thing, and partly because I had just woken up and I still had fuzzballs in my brain. I simply plopped down in the chair and leaned back in it, glancing toward Shepard.

On the terminal in front of me, a feed from Shepard's helmet could be seen. For now I could only see the floor, because she was carrying it, but I could also hear what was going on around her. Three minutes later she was in the dropship.

Jack and Thane appeared to be having a... discussion about us. "-and Sarah doesn't know what the hell she's doing."

"I disagree," said the assassin. "I think she's trying."

"And failing," Jack said. "The others are just as weird, but they're not as... so damn annoying as she is."

"Cool it, people," Shepard said sternely. "Thane, here are pictures of what the two of them look like. I just realized I never told you what to look for."

She handed him a datapad, which he looked at intently, memorizing every detail. "What are they doing in this picture?" he asked.

"These are just stills from EDI's surveillance footage," Shepard explained. "That was when they first appeared on the ship. You can't see it in the picture, but an entire security crew is pointing guns at them."

"It looks like Abby is laughing. She is certainly smiling. Did you tell a joke?"

Shepard actually laughed. "She was pretty bouncy their first day here," she said.

"Interesting," Jack said, bored.

"And HK?"

"He was in shock."

I was assuming that, judging by that conversation, I wasn't in that picture. Or if I was they simply hadn't chosen to comment about me. Part of my brain tried to think back to that day. I tried to recall if there could have been a moment where I was standing kind of far from them... but well, that really didn't matter. I dismissed the pondering.

I folded my hands in my lap and continued to gaze silently at the terminal in front of me. After a moment I reached out and touched the panel, just to make certain I remembered it correctly. "Testing, one, two, three..." I immediately withdrew my hand from the terminal.

On the screen, everybody suddenly looked alert. Then Jack scowled. "Get off the fucking-"

"Sarah, radio silence," Shepard said sternly.

"Haven't even left the ship yet," Jack muttered.

I was half-tempted to press the button on the terminal again, to let them know that I was only testing my memory and making sure it still worked the way I remembered it. But I decided it was best to shut up and stay quiet. If nothing else, I didn't feel like hearing Jack's mouth anymore than I had to-at least, not directed at me.

So I simply sat back and folded my arms. I pressed my lips together, mentally envisioning them "sealing" shut.

The shuttle took off, and the view didn't change much until Shepard put the helmet on her head. "Picking up an energy signature forty klicks east of your current position, Shepard," Joker said.

"I read it. That's probably their base of operations. There's a smaller reading up ahead..."

"Liara's data indicates that it's a transport area," EDI said.

My thumb lingered over the terminal key for a few seconds, then I stabbed it. "What am I looking for again?" I quickly released it. Well, Shepard did say that I could say something if I kept it short and simple, right? I was actually wondering what the point of me being up here at all was, since I knew nothing about the planet. I was glad to know what was going on, but at the same time I hated feeling helpless. I felt like I was doing NOTHING. Those two feelings conflicted with each other and it was making me irritated.

"Nothing yet," Shepard said. "Be patient."

"Commander, I suggest we land behind the transport hub, under cover," said Thane. "Allow me to go out and look around."

"Sounds good."

* * *

**(Abby)**

Owwwwwwww. Ow. Ow. Ow-friggin'-ow.

I felt tired and lethargic, like... like I wasn't even real. I must have been dreaming, or maybe my body was somewhere else... Stuck between realities, my mind, muddied and confused, tried to seperate them both.

I was at home, alone once again, typing on my laptop while my dogs dozed around me. My throat ached for some odd reason, and my leg didn't feel so fine and dandy either. I _could_ have been her, listening to music, typing up some odd thing with fingers that flew on the keyboard, or I could have been the other girl. I could've been the girl whose entire body ached, who could hear a hum of energy in the air, who was laying flat on some cold surface, eyes closed.

I was drawn towards the latter, more uncomfortable body. My real life faded away, but I was aware, at least, of what was going on in the background. I could hear the music playing over the hum of the engines, over the buzz of slight conversation a few feet away.

Memory slowly came back. It felt as though I were fighting through the fog of my own body.

Everything hurt...

I didn't dare open my eyes to see my surroundings, relying more on other senses. The air smelled of krogan and batarians, mixed with unfamiliar oils and scents; I was on a cold, hard metal floor. Something metal was wrapped tightly around my wrists, which were secure behind me, and my hands had already gone numb from the lack of circulation. I could hear people talking up front, and I strained to listen.

"-paid enough for this, Ragnot." There was a laugh. The low timbre of the voice sounded batarian.

"Better... 've had..." This voice was further away, more indistinct. "...bout you, Taul?"

Now this voice was close. Very close. "I think you both need to shut the fuck up," the krogan snarled. Ah, I remembered him. It was slowly beginning to sink in now. "We're nearly there."

"Relax," the first batarian said. "They're just two kids. Afraid you wouldn't be able to handle them if they woke up?"

Taul grunted. "I'd be more worried about you making it through this trip alive, Torr."

There was another laugh, but the voices gradually faded. They weren't about to test Taul's patience.

I wondered if they knew I was awake now. Maybe that was why Taul didn't want anybody saying things possibly incriminating. I was becoming more lucid by the second.

The ground buckled suddenly beneath me and I was lifted about an inch off of the floor. Taul cursed. "Turbulence," Torr said, coming closer. I could hear his footsteps now. "Are they going to hold?"

"Looks like that one's waking up."

I heard a moan of pain, and there was no doubt that it was HK. It wasn't loud, but you could definitely tell that he was feeling the hurt. I couldn't forget him being slammed right into the wall by the krogan.

"That's the little bastard I beat up," Taul remarked. "He's going to need more drugs."

"Wha-" HK started groggily, but it was followed by a small grunt of pain, probably due to them injecting him with some kind of sedative.

"And the girl? Should we give her another dose?"

A pause. "Normally, yes, but we're almost there. Let's see if she squirms a bit before then."

I heard footsteps approaching from behind me. Heavy, krogan footsteps. Something hard connected with the small of my back, but I stayed determinedly limp, concentrating on my other life, the one on Earth. The krogan laughed and stepped over me. "She's still out."

In my other life, I was tracing lines on a piece of paper, struggling to finish a coloring book I'd been conscripted by my Sensei to do. I was going to take a picture soon to Photoshop it, but I kept getting the eyes lopsided. Damn it...

It was a strange thing, flitting in and out of both lives like that. I was never really in my Earth life, but I knew exactly what she was doing, what she was feeling, what she was thinking. As long as I concentrated on those feelings above all else, I would be able to resist whatever they threw at me... hopefully.

We hit some more turbulance and Taul growled something indistinct in his throat. He lumbered off to berate the pilot, probably the other batarian I'd heard, and Torr went behind him. I risked opening my eyes a crack to see what was going on.

HK was in front of me and to my far left, dead to the world. The room was nothing more than a small cargo bay. When turbulence hit again I used the momentum to turn myself around and get a good, squinted view of the door the others had vacated from. Above it, a small camera watched my every movements.

I closed my eyes again, debating with myself. They didn't know I was awake, and there was a slim, slim chance that if I played my cards right I could possibly escape. Maybe. But there was no way I would be able to bring HK with me. No doubt they would have others, some reinforcements of some type. If I could get past the krogan, it would be a miracle.

Zaeed's knife was on a table to my left, where Taul had apparently been sitting and cleaning his weapons. Apparently that idiot liked to keep it as a souvenir. Ass. Zaeed would helicopter me again if I lost his knife to a damn krogan.

Taul returned. I heard his heavy, signature footsteps long before his shadow stood over me. He waited for a long while, sniffing the air with great gusto, before he was finally satisfied and went back to the table to check on his precious weapons.

One of the batarians came in after him. "Did she move?" he asked quietly.

"Must've been when we hit the headwind," Taul said, unconcerned. "I don't smell fear yet. She's not awake."

"I suppose you would know these things," said the batarian sourly. He sounded miffed at something, though I couldn't guess at what. He may have been the pilot who brought us into the first round of turbulence, or another batarian all together. It was nigh-impossible to tell individuals apart by voice alone. "Nyxeris is being a bitch about their security arrangements. Seems to think whoever we took these two from is going to come after us."

"Fools. We'll kill them." Taul was unconcerned.

"They won't be able to find us here, anyway," the batarian continued, almost to himself. "Keep telling her that, but no. She thinks just because the Shadow Broker trusts her that she can boss us around. She's nothing but an asari slut."

"Go sober up before you meet her, then," said Taul. "You know she doesn't like it when you're high. Or don't, and die. I don't care."

The batarian walked away, leaving Taul and I alone to spend some quality companion time.

Twenty minutes later I still hadn't figured out a plan (and I had been thinking, believe me) and we were beginning our descent. When we hit the ground, I knew immediately I would have to do something fast or risk becoming a martyr.

Something that would get both HK and I safely out... that would be tough. Extremely tough. I didn't know how to fly, and these things probably had trackers in them anyways. Taul was a giant lump of anger management issues, and there were an unkown amount of batarians travelling with us.

I didn't allow myself to feel afraid yet. Whenever the fear would strike I would force myself to mimic the feelings of my Earth self-bored and tactical. I normally think better that way.

Leave HK to certain torture... or stay and hope for a rescue.

_Would you be mad if I left? _I asked inwardly.

I took a few deep breaths... and knew what the answer had to be.

I would escape if I could. I would escape with him if I could. If I couldn't, then I'd just get Shepard and her band of alien misfits and find him. How hard could that be?

You don't just _leave_ people, though...

I didn't want to do it. I couldn't leave a friend here.

But if he were in my place, and he asked me... I'd tell him to get the hell out and leave me. Save yourself.

The seconds were ticking down... and I'd just made the worst, most horrible descision of my life.

Taul coughed a little bit from his place at the small table. He got up, cracking his neck, and his strong hands twined themselves in my hair. Before I even knew what he was doing, he began to walk, dragging me along with him. He dumped me in the middle of a hallway and I heard somebody else approach-the high batarian.

He uncuffed my hands, brought them around to the front, and secured me once again. He stooped over me and lifted me over his shoulder. Grunting a bit with the weight, he began to walk foreword. I was as dead weight as you could imagine dead weight to be. At the moment, all one-hundred and twenty pounds of me was leaning on his shoulder. My head dangled near his rear, a place I really didn't want to be at all, and my hair offered enough of a screen for me to open my eyes halfway and observe what was on his belt and figure out how to use it.

He had a pistil on his hip, some ammo clips, and some food packs. They were probably just the batarian equivalent of granola bars, but I would need those. On his other side was a communicator... I would definitely need that.

There was a thump behind me, and I supposed Taul had dumped HK in the hall, too.

The batarian took me down a ramp and fresh, frigid air hit my face. It was very cold, though there was no snow. Clouds were building up in the distance, and I could see lightning from even here.

The batarian was humming a song underneath his breath as he continued to walk. As soon as he was out of sight of the ship, I struck.

I curled myself up into a ball on his shoulder, crushing his neck between my arms and my knees. He made only the tiniest of gurgles before stumbling and falling to the ground. Rocks scraped and punctured my arms where I fell, but I paid no attention. I squeezed tighter, and tighter, until his muscles finally relaxed. I kept the hold an extra three seconds in case he was like me and, therefor, untruthful, but he was dead, dead, dead.

At least he died high. I tried to find a redeeming quality in that type of demise. I rummaged through his pockets until I found what I was looking for. I unlocked my handcuffs and threw them to the side-I wouldn't need them anymore. I grabbed his supply belt and put it on over my waist, adjusting the straps as tight as they would go and, keeping his pistil in my hand, I dragged him through the rough stone and hid him in a collapsed home. Looking around me, heart beating fast, I began to run.

I had no idea what planet we were on or if there were more people around here (and there probably were, waiting to torture and kill us!) but I knew I'd have to find out fast. We had landed in what looked to be a ruinous city, abandoned of life. Some small grass poked up here and there-it looked as though it were recovering from a large ground fire of something, because most of the buildings looked charred.

Breathing made me lightheaded, but in this situation it was good. Better than good. It must have meant there was a high oxygen content, because I wasn't tiring out as much as I normally would have.

I was conscious of every step I took, keeping low to the ground and making no more noise than neseccary as I ran. I took a left on a whim and followed a small passage upwards to a higher elevation. Looking behind me I couldn't see the ship, nor anything else moving. Hopefully they hadn't discovered their buddy yet.

The path took me up the side of a mountain, which, like the town below, looked as though a fire had raveged it. Realizing that I was following a path, a _path, _I ducked off immediately to the right and began to find my way upwards from a steeper, narrower angle that the krogan would never be able navigate. And if the batarians did, well, I had a pistil and I was not afraid to whack anybody.

I was running out of breath, though, and I took some cover in what looked like a hollowed out, fossilized hole in the side. A large boulder in front of it offered some camoflague from any air-time guys taking a look for me. I slipped inside and, before collapsing to my knees, took a look around my immediate area to see if there were any small animals I'd have to worry about.

There was nothing, not even a skeleton. The entire place felt old, older than humans themselves. There was no doubt that nobody had come in here for a long, long time.

I lay down on the ground, blinking stupidly at the sky, and tried to clam myself down. I'd just brutally ambushed and killed a man, left my best friend with Taul, and I didn't like it that much. I rubbed my temples, trying to rest up before continuing on again.

It was so _cold _here. When I glanced outside, I noticed the clouds were getting even closer and the wind was blowing my way. Abruptly, I made a small calculation. The air here was full, too full. A small breath compensated for three large ones, it seemed, and too much breathing only made me dizzy. If a storm came here, then there was sure to be lightning...

I pursed my lips and crawled out of the small opening, taking a better look at the terrain below me. I hadn't gotten too far up yet, and the krogan was sure to be looking... and it was cold, cold, cold out, which meant they would be able to follow my body heat impressions in the air...

I took out the comlink I pilfered and, careful to set it on Mute so they wouldn't hear me, I opened it. There was no radio chatter at all, but that didn't mean anything. I played around with the settings for a little while, making sure that it was, really, nothing more than a simple comlink. There was no tracking device embedded within it, and it didn't look like they would be able to eavesdrop on me without my consent.

I shut my eyes tight, shivering violently as a gust of wind penetrated my shelter, and tried to remember the code Mordin had me memorize...

Remembering was no use. Every time the number came close to the surface it shut back down again. Knowing I would remember it sooner or later, I took another look outside and began a debate in my head.

To leave or not to leave?

I had valuable protection here, but if a tracker saw the marks I left when I deviated from the path then I would be leading him straight here. I decided to leave, just to explore a bit more. I fI found nothing as good as this cover, then I would head back.

I paused, listening for any noises, and began to climb upwards. My palms were bloody and painful to grip with, and the cuts from falling into the ground earlier stung profusely. I continued on, trying not to notice them. The storm, meanwhile, kept getting closer.

"IT'S NO USE, TAUL." I nearly let go of my grip and fell to my death right then. I muttered a profanity and went to a safe zone to turn down the communicator. It seemed as though they had split into teams to find me. "The storm's coming. We need to get under cover."

"Fool, don't use the radio!" Taul snapped. He clicked off and a few seconds later the other guy did, as well.

Well, wasn't that just lovely?

The storm was building up to be a good one, too. Purple thunderheads rolled across the sky, and thunder sounded in the distance. I leaned against the rock face, watching the storm approach, gathering my strength. Then, I continued to climb.

I'd managed to find some semblance of a safe shelter before the rain began to fall down. It wasn't a cave, though. It was some kind of small hollowed-out area of rock that acted as a small hallway. I sat down right in the smack middle of it and took out the food I'd picked off of the guy. I read the packaging with a wry set to my mouth and put it back in my belt. I'd save it for when I was hungrier. Until I found some source of food, the five little bars on my belt were all I had.

The rain fell in heavy droughts, freezing cold and chilling me to the bone when puddles began to seep under me. I braved going outside for a few seconds to grab the biggest rock I could carry and place it on the ground as a seat. I took a load off, then, leaning against the wall and looking at the one in front of me.

And the rain slowly but surely lulled me to sleep.

Nine hours later, an insistant beeping woke me. Having not slept too soundly being as cold and uncomfortable as I was, I was awake in an instant. I turned off my watch alarm (it was 6:45 in Earth time... nice to know) and got up, stretching. The rain had stopped sometime during the day and it was edging towards night. I wondered for a moment how long a day was on this planet. If I was here any longer, I might just have to time it on my watch.

But it was night, now, and that was going to be an issue. Possibly a big issue. Depending on how long night was, it was very possible that it would get even colder. After the rain it felt a little bit warmer, but not quite, and I was still freezing.

I sat for a long time, my eyes closed, before I realized something very vital:

I had to use the bathroom.

Normally, this would not be a problem. Just, er, drop the pants down in any location-your choice, of course-and get your business done. Nobody to watch you, no strange animals to attack while your butt's in the air... but it was pitch-black outside. And I was on a cliff. And there was no way in hell I wanted to pee in my own little kingdom here.

I stomped around for a little bit. "This is so unfair!" I growled at the still night. I crossed my arms and stared at the wall. Every small shiver made me have to go even more.

I got on all fours and crawled cautiously out of my abode the way I came, since I still knew some of the way. The puddles hadn't dried yet, and they were freezing, so of course that just made my damn day... or, er, night. I found a place far enough away from the ledge... and just did my business... in a dignified Abby manner.

Hey, at least I didn't get anything on my clothes.

I went back to my small shelter and curled up on a rock, struggling vainly to get some warmth. On a whim I took out a food bar and ate a corner. I wrapped it up and saved the rest for later, then got a drink from a puddle.

I ached all over, and the cuts I'd sustained during my escape were throbbing. Resigned to the discomfort, I closed my eyes again and tried to think things through.

If I kept this up, I'd die here. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. I had to either make contact with the Normandy or somehow get to wherever they were going to take me, kill them all, and eat their food, THEN contact the Normandy. I fingered the radio in my hands as I thought, trying to remember that one frequency...

Somewhere around there I must have fallen asleep. I jerked awake when I heard the voices.

The weren't loud or distinct, but they were close. Too close. My heart beating wildly, I grabbed for the pistil and took cover at the end of the natural hallway. The voices went silent, but I could still hear their footsteps in this unnatural silence that seemed predominant on this planet.

A yellow beam was shined in the interior. The one holding it tilted it up to expose my face, and I reacted faster than I could've thought possible.

I double-tapped her, an asari, in her chest and took off. I'd never gone this way or explored this way before, it was in the dead of night, and it was slippery. All in all, probably not one of my better ideas.

I tripped and automatically slapped out-bad idea. I slapped empty air, and the momentum from my flailing arms rolled me off of the side of the cliff. Air rushed past my face-I didn't even have time to scream-

"Oof!" I landed in somebody's arms. I struggled for a moment, biting down on the hands that covered my mouth, but whoever it was held me securely to their body. "Shh," the voice said in my ear. "Relax, it's me."

Shepard. Relief flooded through my body at the words, and I went limp. Instead of struggling against her, I was hugging her.

We stayed quiet as the search party above us completed their rounds. "Somebody get a rappel line set up," one of them said. "She hit behind those rocks."

"Dead, you think?"

"Probably, but I want to check."

They activated spotlights on their helmets and I could see them, a group of three, setting up a line. Shepard released me and I finally noticed that she was wearing a helmet. She held one finger to where her lips would be and motioned for me to lay down.

I did, with difficulty. My body was finally rebelling against me, and I knew that if I lay down I might possibly not get up again for a while. Shepard retreated into the darkness.

I closed my eyes when I heard one of the enemies hit the ground behind me. I could see the bright light of the spotlight from behind my closed lids. I concentrated on staying limp, calming myself. On Earth, I was sleeping. I tried to draw from the calm state of my mind there to slow down my pulse, in case he checked.

Just as he disappeared from the others' line of sight, somebody struck. I heard the distinctive pop of a broken neck, and the man was slowly lowered to the ground. An unfamiliar-or very familiar-person knelt beside me and turned me over. I could see the reflection of his eyes in the light that still shined from the enemy's helmet.

Thane Krios.

No wonder Shepard took so long. "Thank you," I breathed.

"Shush." He began to tend to the lacerations on my head, palms, and arms.

"Jeff?" somebody called. "Jeff, what's up? Dead or not?"

"And over you go!" Jack yelled, laughing. The air was rent by the screams of her victims, and I heard their bodies rushing through the air before they finally landed several feet below us.

Shepard sighed. "I said be discreet, Jack." But she didn't sound as though she were angry. In fact, she sounded relieved. She came out of the shadows and knelt next to me. "How are you?"

I blinked, and reality finally set in. "HK-HK's still there, Commander, they still have him-we have to go get him-"

"I know," Shepard said soothingly, stroking my hair. "I know. We're going to get him. Stay still for a while and rest. Can you tell me what happened?"

I blinked tears out of my eyes. Now that people were here, and things might turn out okay, I felt a bit overemotional. "W-We were shopping, and this boy came up to us. Said his mom wasn't waking up. We followed him into an alley, and this giant krogan, Taul, he-he snapped the kid's neck. He drugged us and put us on a ship with some batarians..."

Shepard was nodding, and Thane looked intent. Jack landed next to me. I saw somebody behind Shepard's shoulder, looking on concernedly, and started until I realized it was-"Jacob!" I said softly. "I thought only two people were allowed to come out with Shepard at a time."

"We changed it up a bit," Jacob said jokingly, but his tone was still tense.

"Keep talking," Shepard urged me. "How did you escape?"

Jacob handed me a few bars of food from his own pack and I ate them happily as I told them the story. When I finished, Thane handed me his water. "Nice," Jack said appreciativly when I got to the part about breaking the high batarian's neck. "I would've liked to see that."

"You did well under pressure," Thane said, nodding.

"How did you find me?" I asked wonderingly.

Jacob held something up in front of me. "I think," he said, "that this belongs to you." He placed it in my hand and I finally saw it for what it was. I felt around my neck, surprised when the familiar weight of my necklace wasn't there. I examined the clasp and groaned. It was broken. "We found it about an hour ago. We were just in front of the search party the entire time."

"W-We have to go get HK," I said. "We can't leave him there!"

"And we will, but there is a lot we must figure out before-hand," Shepard replied. "First of all, we need to make sure that you are alright, though it seems you are. Second of all, we can't go in there with guns blazing. We've learned the hard way that Nyxeris and the Shadow Broker are very clever...their base is likely highly protected, and they probably have several escape plans."

"Thane," I said, looking up at him, "can't you case the place? You got into Dantius Towers."

"Perhaps, but this isn't something as simple as Nassana Dantius and a battalion of Eclipse Mercs," Thane responded, shaking his head. "This could be much, much more. Especially if the Broker is affiliated with the Collectors."

"Tell us what you saw when you escaped," Jacob said. "Did anything stand out?"

"Nothing lives here. There are cities but no people. No animals. Everything's-oh, you mean-ah, yeah. I didn't see anybody or a place that stood out. Sorry."

"I noticed something on the way in...it looked like what a compound would, and it was very large. I only got a passing glance, but I could tell that it was secure," Shepard said, sighing slightly. "Its not going to be easy to get HK out of there. And if I had to take a stab in the dark, I'd say that they've got him in the deepest part of the base they can find, with every sort of security system and guard you can think of."

"Get real," Jack snapped. "He's probably dead."

"Think it through," I implored. "If they wanted us dead they would have killed us on Illium. They took the trouble to bring us here, so obviously it's for something else. We need to find out what it is. If we know, we'll know how long he has... right?"

"Astute," said Thane.

"Yeah, but how we gonna find that out?"

We were silent for a long time. Finally, it was Jack with the answer. "Send her back in there. Get 'em to drop their guard."

"You want me to go back there?" I squealed. "Uh-Shepard? Would that work?"

They all exchanged a look. Shepard took off her helmet, exposing her pale face. "Yes," she said heavily. "But only if we had no other choice."

"But it will work, right?" I asked.

"I don't like this idea, Shepard," Jacob said quietly.

Shepard turned her head slightly to look at him. "Neither do I, but its the only way to do it. Unfortunately, if we want to get HK back and stop Nyxeris, then this has to be the way to go," she told him. She looked back at me. "But, you're going to have to face the facts. There's going to be some brutal torture performed in there on you...can you handle it?"

"Oh please," I said dismissively. "As long as I get a chance to whack Nyxeris."

Shepard looked at Jacob again. "Does she always act like this?"

"You should spend more time with them, Commander," Jacob said. "Abby... you sure you can do it? We can't have you backing out at the last-"

"Jacob. I swear if you keep asking me that question-"

"She is resolved to go foreword," Thane said. He gave me an odd look, almost... reverant. "I trust her judgement."

Jack clapped my shoulder. That was probably as much positive reinforcement I would get from her.

"Well, we don't have much time. I'm going to call the entire crew, and tell them about this. We're going to need the entire ground team," Shepard said, taking out her comm and proceeding to contact the Normandy.

I sat up, interested. Shepard turned away to talk to somebody on the other line, and I motioned to Jacob. He leaned over me. "If HK and I die," I said, "Sarah's the last one."

"You won't die," Jacob said. "Don't worry. We'll have you out soon as possible."

"I know," I said, "but just saying. If we do, tell her bye for us, 'kay?"

He pursed his lips and nodded. "Are you religious?" Thane asked. His back was to me as he sorted through the medical bag they'd brought with them.

"Somewhat."

"Pray. Maybe your gods will answer your calls."

It was times like these that I wasn't able to tell if he was joking or not. He would sure be an interesting person to get to know. "Thanks for the advice," I mumbled.

Jack sat down next to me, apparently tired of standing. "Hey," she said softly, "you'll do good. Got it? You're motivated."

I blinked. I sure wasn't expecting that. "Thanks, Jack," I said. "Means a ton. Seriously."

"Yeah. If I find Nyxeris, I'll keep her alive for you."

"Thanks," I said, touched.

A short time later, after Shepard had devised an elaborate plan with the entire crew, they landed back where she did... and they hiked up the trail right to where we had been staying ever since she found me.

One by one, they started to become visible.

"About time, I was getting sick of waiting around," Jack muttered.

I nodded at Zaeed and Miranda as they became visible. Mordin placed a hand on my shoulder, smiling comfortingly at me. Garrus took the pistil I'd stolen and checked it over for any defects. Tali's small, lithe frame was overshadowed by Grunt, who looked at though he'd grown quite a bit in the past few days. "Give me somebody to fight, Shepard," he rumbled.

"You'll get it," Shepard promised. Grunt began to start pacing around the small space, and Miranda eyed him distrustfully.

"So go through the plan again, Shepard," Zaeed said. "So we're all on the same page here."

"Tali will follow Abby in and give us any relevant details," Shepard said. "After that, we'll organize into teams and get them out."

"Fun fun," I muttered. "I suppose I should go soon, right?" I was kind of dreading that part, the leaving of this tight, protected circle.

"We'll get you out," Shepard said.

"'course," Zaeed said.

"Haven't seen Shepard fail yet," Mordin said cheerfully, "but then again... she has had help from you three. This will be interesting."

"Love you too, Mordin," I said wryly.

"Have your purchases from Illium on the ship. Must explain that one item soon. Looking foreword to it."

I just ducked my head, a small grin on my face.

Shepard held up one finger, motioning for us to be silent. She slipped on her helmet. "Sarah? You awake up there?"

However, it was not Sarah's voice that replied, but EDI. "Commander, Sarah is not currently at her post."

"What do you mean she is not at her post?" Shepard all but growled.

If an AI could sigh, EDI certainly would have. "After she saw Abby on her terminal, she assumed that you all were out of danger, or at the very least that she could... take a quick break." She paused.

"Fine," Shepard snapped, "when she gets back tell her we don't need her help." She cut off the link. "Abby, let's go."

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I nearly tripped over my own shoes as I hurried back to the cockpit. I sat down heavily in my seat.

"Sarah," EDI said dryly, "Commander Shepard informed me to tell you that you will no longer be needed."

I blinked. "What? But I was only gone for ten minutes, tops."

"You should not have left your post."

I scowled. "I needed to use the bathroom and I had a nosebleed! I assumed you could cover for me for just a few minutes!" I didn't have nosebleeds often, but I swear something about the air on this ship irritated-or perhaps dried out-my nose sometimes. I don't know.

I stabbed the console with a finger. "Shepard?" I said earnestly.

No answer. She seemed to be determindly ignoring me... until, a few seconds late, I received a reply: "Something important?"

"Sorry," I blurted. "I was only gone for a few minutes, and I thought EDI could cover for me for just that long. I um... had a nosebleed." That sounded like a totally stupid reason to leave my post even as I heard myself say it. Nosebleed? Seriously? Shepard was out there risking serious injury, even death, and I was complaining about a nosebleed.

"Understood. We've located Abby. She managed to escape, but HK's still in the base. Abby's heading back in and Tali is going to shadow her in."

There was a sound of a scuffle from the other end, and then I heard a new voice: "Hi, Sarah!" Abby said cheerfully. "I whacked a batarian with handcuffs on. I feel totally awesome now."

"Give me that!" Shepard's voice said faintly. She put her helmet back on. "You three are going to be the death of me."

Abby must have said something, because Shepard replied, "Sometimes, maybe. But I don't love you all of the time."

I realized that I still had my thumb pressed on the key on the terminal. Maybe it was just due to stress, or because of all this crazyness. But for some reason, I muttered the stupidest thing ever into the terminal. "I wonder if Collectors like eggs... do you think so, Abby?" Inside joke. Shepard wouldn't get it. Nor would anyone else.

Another scuffle, and then Abby's voice, loud and clear: "Course they like eggs... And milkshakes. They have an awesome milkshake machine up at their base."

"Ewwww," I said loudly, remembering one of the conversations we had had in our quarters. "I'll pass on the meaty milkshakes. And I hope not to go there myself."

"Yeah... let's just get through this thingy first. It's freezing down here. I'm actually looking foreword to being recaptured. At least they'll have some heating... Shepard's giving me a dirty look. Bye!"

Shepard didn't even say a word about it as she put the helmet back on. "Tali, Abby, get going. Quickly."

Out of the blue, I had the sudden mental image of everyone eating eggs with red milkshakes in the mess hall. I shoved the image aside. "Where is HK?" I then asked Shepard. "Any idea how he's doing?"

"He's at their base, as far as Thane's been able to find out," Shepard said grimly. "We're mounting the rescue attempt now. Abby's heading back. Once she's discovered and taken, Tali will go in behind her to exploit their security and give us a good layout. We'll get it done."

I made a sighing noise through my nose. Great, now I got to be worried and stressed again for the next few minutes... or however long this was going to take.

"Anything I can do?" I asked, even though I already knew there was probably nothing.

"You can leave if you want," Shepard said.

"...You sure?"

Shepard just sighed and disconnected.

"I guess you're sure," I said into the silence.


	22. You're so full of crap

**(HK)**

I was lying on some kind of metal slab...I still wasn't sure where I was, or what was going on. There were some things I did know: Nyxeris was _alive_, and was sure not at Liara's office. She was here, in this depressing room, interrogating me constantly.

I lost track of time so long ago...between all the drug injections and the brutal interrogations, I didn't know when I was conscious and when I wasn't. I didn't know if Abby was still around, or what happened. I remembered getting beaten up by the krogan, and that was about it.

I was blindfolded, and gagged, like I always was when Nyxeris wasn't in here trying to get information out of me. Somehow, she knew that Abby and I "knew" about her affiliation with the Shadow Broker, and she was not going to stop until she found out where we got that information.

And what was I supposed to say? Either "Oh, we have visions about the future" or "You were actually a fictional character up until about a month or so ago when this entire universe became reality"? Both would sound absolutely outrageous.

So, I had simply told her every time I had no clue what she was talking about. She didn't take that for an answer, so I had gotten beaten, shocked, and anything else you could think of. They had constantly pumped me full of drugs...sedatives and truth serum, probably.

Suddenly, out of the blue, the blind fold got ripped off again, and I winced as light shined into my eyes. The room was very bright, and it was almost painful whenever, after seeing darkness for hours at a time, a sudden burst of light would come in.

Nyxeris stood over me, and I looked at myself. I was still in that outfit I had gone out in on Illium...a standard Cerberus outfit, since that was all that I had that wasn't armor. My hands were no longer handcuffed behind me, but instead, both of my arms were stretched out in opposite directions and cuffed on side slabs.

In my brief times awake, I had tried to figure out some kind of escape route, but it was to no avail. There was no way to get off of this table...I couldn't attack Nyxeris, because both my arms and legs were strapped down. She'd likely get the better of me, anyways.

She took the gag off of me, and smiled politely. "Maybe we should try this _again_. Its getting really tiresome, so I suggest that you finally tell me why you and your friend know what you do," she said sweetly.

I let out a groan of pain, because thats what I was feeling: Pain. There was definitely enough of it inside me to go around, right now.

"I don't know anything. Why won't you just let me go?" I pleaded weakly.

"I heard your conversation at the bottom of the staircase. You knew that I was the Observer, and knew exactly what would happen if I got discovered...stop playing dumb," Nyxeris told me, a bit more sternly. "Who hired you?"

"Why would someone hire two teenagers to do anything? That'd be an important job, and they wouldn't send two minors to do it," I shot back.

"Somtimes, people can be unexpected," Nyxeris argued.

"Still, I really can't tell you anything. There's nothing to tell," I explained.

"Maybe its time for more drugs, then..."

"No!" I exclaimed sharply. "Please, please...no more drugs."

"Then tell me how in the hell you know what you do," Nyxeris growled.

"My response is the same as before," I said.

"And so is mine," Nyxeris snapped, grabbing a syringe and filling it with whatever most likely illegal drug she was using on me. I closed my eyes, and groaned out again when she stabbed it into me.

It was almost funny...my reaction to these situations were so much different than what I thought they'd be. Normally, I might assume that I'd be dead by now after being reduced to some blubbery mess of tears, but no...I hadn't been either of those. However, the pain itself was also much different, and much more worse, than I imagined. I didn't know someone could _do_ this.

"Wh-what are these drugs supposed to do, anyway?" I asked slowly.

"I'm giving you small doses, either to reduce your pain, or get you to finally confess," Nyxeris coldly replied.

Nyxeris walked over to a control console, and I knew that I was about to get a large jolt of shock, and likely shriek out in horror. I shuddered slightly, knowing that it was going to happen any second, but before it could, the door swung open.

I leaned my head up as best I could, and was mortified at who I saw there.

Harbinger, possesing a Collector.

"The plans have changed. We are taking this in a new direction," he told Nyxeris, in his typical Harbinger tone. He didn't even give me a second glance.

"What? I'm in the middle of another ses-" Nyxeris started.

"Do not question me," Harbinger simply told her.

"Yes, yes of course," Nyxeris said obediently, glaring at me as she turned and followed him out. She shut the door behind her.

What was going on now? What next act of torment were they planning now?

A minute or two later, I saw another Collector come in the room...I shuddered, as best I could anyway, after seeing the bug-like creature. They were alot more terrifying when strapped down to a metal slab.

He grabbed the blindfold, and I sighed warily...like I knew he would, he tied it back onto my head, preventing me from seeing anything once more.

I expected the Collector to leave, but I could still hear him making those weird Collector-noises that they made. He seemed to be just standing in the room, not doing anything...Nyxeris didn't usually have people stay and guard me while she was away.

I heard footsteps approach, as well, likely mercs walking through the halls.

"...hear about that other patient? Just got her back..." one said.

Because of the blindfold, it was slightly harder to hear, as it covered half of my ear, but I could make some words out.

"Yeah, fiesty little bitch...Nyxeris's dealing with her now... can't believe she's only fourteen..." another replied.

I felt a cold shiver go down my spine. _Abby...they're torturing her, too. I knew it._

However, she could probably hold up a lot better than I would in this situation, and I was doing...okay, or at least I'd like to make myself think that.

There was a sudden noise from beside me, loud and unnatural. The Collector stumbled, breathing heavily, and I heard the distinctive cracks of Harbinger's essence consuming the body in one swift, grand takeover. Breathing heavily, I could only listen in terror as Harbinger possessed the Collector, grunting deep from within his thorax as he assumed control. Heat emitted from his being in waves; it was like standing close to a hot stove.

He walked away, and for a moment I felt a staggering wave of relief-then I heard the door close. His footsteps took him to the left of the room, to the console Nyxeris normally used, and I heard him press a command right before I felt the pain hit.

Harbinger never talked, never made a single noise as he continued to run his experiments. My body was beginning to fail under the brutal torture, but he didn't care-he just didn't care. There were moments when I felt insanely happy, my senses alert, giggling madly with joy-and then there were times where I felt irrationally angry and yelled and screamed profanities I must have picked up from a trucker somewhere.

It went on for the longest time. I would fade out of consciousness repetitively, but as soon as my brainwaves began to hint I was heading that way I would suddenly hear and feel everything with complete clarity, as though I'd just been woken up with an intraveinous shot of pure sugar.

Only once did he say something, but, caught in whatever high or low I was experiencing, I heard nothing.

"Wha...what are you doing to me?" I finally asked, breathless, but he didn't reply. Everything was a complete blur, even if I was blindfolded, and it felt like the room was spinning. I was starting to feel a slight headache come on, but I tried to ignore the pain.

Things were feeling very, very strange...for a time, I'd forget where I was. I'd think I was back home, my home on Earth, for some reason, and it was like none of this had ever happened. I was just in bed, resting peacefully...but then it all came back, and I felt like I wanted to get out of here as fast as I could and run for my life.

The mind-frame swings were getting more and more intense, and just when I wasn't sure how much I could take, I heard Nyxeris's voice...was it Nyxeris? Or Liara? Wait, why would Liara be here in the first place?

Questions were popping out of nowhere, and I hoped that was a sign that I was starting to come out of whatever this was...but somehow, I doubted it. Where was Abby? Was she alright? Was Abby the one captured with me? Or was it Sarah? Maybe all three of us?

"Sh-shepard needs...o-ne...of us..." I muttered, though I didn't intend on muttering that.

"What was that?" Nyxeris asked. I thought that was what she said, anyway; it sounded gurgled and distorted.

"Uhh...I..." I replied, not sure what to even say.

"Harbinger, you yourself said that you don't want to break him. Not yet, anyway...I need to give him a stimulant, because his sanity is going to be gone if this continues much longer. Go deal with the girl, I'll stay with him," Nyxeris said sternly.

"Agreed," Harbinger said.

He must have left, because soon after, when my head began to feel slightly better (foggy and mushed, but better than it had been) I could hear Nyxeris typing away on the console. "Better?" she asked. I made no reply. A few quick footsteps, and suddenly she was in front of me. Her fingers tickled my ears as they removed the blindfold. I closed my eyes, grunting in discomfort as the blinding lights aggravated my headache.

She simply dropped the cloth on the floor and took my chin in her hands, tilting my face upwards to look at hers. I kept my eyes closed. She chuckled. "We don't really _want _to know anything," she said softly in her windchime voice. "The Collectors have a fascination with anything to do with Commander Shepard, and we already know about your supposed 'powers.'"

From the tone of her voice, it was obvious she didn't very much believe those rumors. "He's very curious, and he won't break you until you are of no more value. But know this-nobody will rescue you. Nobody will save you. Best you comply now and save yourself whatever pain you can. The only thing I can promise you now is death. An end to the pain, sooner or later. We all have to die sometime."

She sighed in an amused way. "And if you won't comply for yourself," she said, almost as an afterthought, "comply for your friend. She's been a very bad girl lately, running off like that. She came back to rescue you... a losing proposition." Nyxeris laughed like a mother talking about her own child. "Perhaps I'll allow you to see each other if you both behave. Before you both die. Do you know why you're being subjugated to this much torture? Not because of anything you did. You're just associated with the wrong people, which I can understand. Abby did this to you, by escaping. I made her watch the entire thing as a punishment. And now... I'll allow you to see the rest of it. Would you like to see her... HK?"

I looked at her, knowing that fear probably consumed my eyes...if they weren't bloodshot from all the drugs Harbinger had just given me. I wasn't sure if what I was hearing was correct, or if it was an illusion...but Abby had escaped? And she had came back to rescue _me_?

And now, she was getting tortured, because of me...

_Wait, no, its not like that. Maybe it is...yes...no, I...I don't know what to think..._

Finally, I nodded, or tried to. "Y-Yes...I'd like to see Abby. I'd like to see my friend," I replied.

"Good, you can talk," Nyxeris said sweetly. She went back to her terminal, and for a brief, horrifying second I thought she was about to pump more drugs into me... but then the light faded, turning the room dark. I was able to open my eyes a bit more. A holographic projection took up the entire wall in front of me, showing, in crystal clear clarity, the room Abby was in.

She was on a table, tied down with heavy metal restraints. She was no longer dressed in Kelly's clothes, but instead in a white hospital gown. Her hair had been tied above her head into an intricate braid around what looked to be a string attached to the table. Her eyes were closed and her breath came in and out slowly, as if she were asleep.

I heard the door open and close on her end, and Harbinger entered. She bit her lip, her face screwing up in expected pain. "You're evil!" she whispered. "You're... so... I can't wait until you die. You're gonna die."

"Irrelevant," said Harbinger. He pressed a button, and Abby's piercing screams filled the room. "We will endure," he said, but I doubted she could hear him over her own pain.

I cringed once I heard her screams, and I was hoping that this was all just in my mind, that Abby wasn't actually here, getting tortured...but I knew that it was real. I hated it, but it was. My vision still came and went, but it was there long enough for me to see Abby scream.

I felt my stomach churn, either from the drugs or watching this. Probably both. It passed quickly, like all of my sensations, but it didn't make these feelings any easier.

"H-How..." I started, though I felt myself start to drift away again. Quickly, I came back. I glanced at Nyxeris. "How could you do this to us? We're just...we're just two kids."

Nyxeris wasn't smiling anymore. Her eyes were halfway closed, and her mouth was set in a line. "I would kill you now to spare this, but I can't," she said softly. "Harbinger needed you. Your number was up as soon as you stepped into Shepard's life."

On the screen, Abby was breathing in deep, labored gasps. "Shepard-" she whispered. "Where-Shepard, please-"

"Nobody will save you," Nyxeris said.

"Shepard can't save you," Harbinger said.

"You're powerless," she said.

"Worthless girl," Harbinger said. "We are the harbinger of your perfection."

Abby began to sob. "Where are you?" she screamed. "_GET UP HERE_! _DAD! _Help... h-help me-"

I frowned, watching one of my best friends go through the worst pain she had ever experienced. Slowly, my eyes closed, but I snapped them open again as fast as I could. I couldn't let myself fall unconscious again...I had to stay awake...

"Nyxeris..." I choked out, starting to feel a gagging sensation come onto me. After several seconds, it went away. "P-please..."

I went silent for a moment, but I knew what I had to do. I had to do the honorable thing that none of these people would.

"L-let her go...you don't need both of us..." I told her, forcing myself to relax my head on the back of the slab again. It took too much energy to lift it right now. "Just...let Abby...let her be safe...do whatever...you want to me."

"She said that, too," Nyxeris said. "When she came back under the foolish notion that she could rescue you. She got about as far as a mile away before our scanners picked her up, and she tried to run. Not before Taul got a piece of her. She kept mumbling that over and over. 'Let him go, do what you want to me!' That's why you were tortured. She saw every second of it. A punishment for not complying. She'll learn, in time... you both will."

"You rotten bitch!" I shouted. Suddenly, the urge to cuss was coming back, and anger was coming back as well. It was a mix of my true emotions, influenced strongly by the drugs Harbinger had pumped into me. I was also more alert. "What do you think you get out of hurting us like this? Do you really think you'll live after this is all said and done? Do you think the Shadow Broker will let you escape with so much information? Do you think that Harbinger will let you go on about your business? Of course not! Once we're dead, you'll just be next in line!"

"Torturing you both is Harbinger's way of punishing you for your lack of compliance," said Nyxeris. "After this session, I doubt you will be awake for many of the others that follow. He's going to examine you both. He's looking for genetic similarities that would explain your dreams... or visions."

"He'll find nothing," I blurted.

Then, the bluntness began to fade, and I felt dizzy again. I had to escape...both Abby and I had to get back to the Normandy, wherever it was. Was Shepard looking for us? What planet were we on? Would anyone be able to find us? Was Nyxeris right?

Both Abby and I learned many ways of fighting from Jacob, Garrus, and Zaeed...but none of that really came into play when trying to make a plan to escape from a slab. Maybe it was impossible, after all.

I glanced back at Abby, ignoring Nyxeris. "A-Abby...can you hear me?" I asked.

"She could hear you when Harbinger was in the room," Nyxeris explained. "But she can't hear you now. Or see you."

I didn't respond, and looked away...I felt weak again, and my entire life was flashing through my eyes, like many said it did when you were in great danger. I didn't think I was about to die, but all the memories were flooding in...my sixteen years of living, of being free, had felt so long, but in retrospect, were so short. I remembered my family...all the places I lived...all the pets I had...the numerous friends I had, in real life and online. My school, any crazy times I had. All the fun, all the drama. All the writing, all the characters I'd created.

_I'm not ready to die yet._

I began to clench my hands, digging my nails into the metal that was beneath them...a screeching sound was heard, and I gritted my teeth.

_I'm not going to die yet. I'm not going to be taken down._

I turned back to Nyxeris. "Do what you want to me," I snapped, bravery and courage coming over me. "You may hurt me, you may cause me pain...but you _won't_ break me."

"That's not our intention," she said, glancing back at Abby. She was silent now, her eyes darting this way and that, and as we both watched her muscles relaxed. Her eyes rolled up in her head and her breathing slowed.

Nyxeris crossed her arms, watching and frowning. Harbinger looked up from the terminal, then back down. He looked almost confused, if a Collector could look confused. Nyxeris quickly cut off the video feed and blindfolded me yet again before leaving the room without a word.

Worry was the next emotion to consume me. What was happening? Was Abby starting to die? No, no...she couldn't. Not now...we couldn't lose Abby. She was stronger than this, she wouldn't die, she just had to hold on.

I wanted to do something, I wanted to do something so badly, but I couldn't. I was here, chained up and blindfolded.

I tried to move my arms, banging my wrists up against the cuffs, but that did absolutely nothing. I was helpless.

_Come on, come on...someone has to help us._

I waited there, in the dark, for a very long time before I had another visitor. The door opened, but the footsteps didn't sound like Nyxeris or Harbinger. These were lighter, more business-like. I tried to peer under my blindfold to see who it was, but I may as well have tried to move a wall by blinking at it.

I heard the press of a button... and the table flipped over. I thought I was going to drop to the floor, but my wrists and ankles were securely fasted. I heard the opening of a zippered bag behind me and wondered what they were going to do _now._

Something sharp jab into my lower back-apparently there was an opening on the table I'd never noticed-and stayed there for the longest time. I could feel it pulling something out, and a gradual lightening of my bladder.

The object was taken out. The footsteps took it behind my table where I hadn't gotten to see yet and emptied the contents-which I was sure by now was pee-into what sounded like a metal basin. Water ran. The footsteps zipped the bag up again and left.

My mind flashed back to my stay at the hospital for emergency appendix surgery many months ago, and for the first time, I was thankful for the people here...the other way to do that was something that would've made me scream bloody murder for several seconds.

However, despite my gratitude for what just happened, my mind still wandered to Abby, and what was happening to her. Even Harbinger seemed concerned, and that wasn't a good sign.

A Collector walked in nearly a half an hour later. I could tell from the walk that it wasn't Harbinger-not yet. And as I made this conclusion, I heard the Reaper take over the Collector's body. He pressed a button on the terminal...

...and I fell right to sleep.

My eyes snapped open...everything was a blur once again, and all I could hear was a group of very muffled voices. It sounded like something was going on, but I couldn't be sure what...the drugs were still in my system, most likely, so that helped the confusion. I closed my eyes for a moment, again, only to open them. Someone was doing something out of the ordinary...maybe.

Or perhaps it was a dream, a mirage, another one of Nyxeris's crazed torture schemes.

"What are you going to do with me now?" I said, barely able to get it out due to a dry throat, and with my eyes only half-open.

"Easy," said a familiar voice. "We're getting you out of here. Mordin-"

"Yes, yes, working on it. Going through their history." His voice abruptly turned sour. "Horrible things. Absolutely horrible. Would stabilize his condition, but I doubt his body will be able to accept the shock."

"No, no...don't shock me again, please...no more drugs...no..." I mumbled, extremely confused right now. I wasn't even sure who was here, but they did seem familiar. I couldn't be sure.

"Nyxeris will pay for what she has done here," said another, softer voice that quivered with indignation. "Look at him."

"He's not looking so good," said another, deeper voice. Jacob.

"We can't wait here for him to wake up," said the first voice. "Does Tali have that door open yet? Yes? Good."

The restraints popped off of me, a peculiar feeling, and the blindfold was whisked off. "Jacob," Shepard said, "take him. Samara and Mordin will guard the rear. HK, do you understand? We're here to save you."

My vision was getting just a bit clearer, and I saw their faces for a split second, but everything faded out again. "I..." I began, trying to recall all the voices and who they were. One I hadn't heard in reality before, but I had heard it previously. "Samara..uh...Shepard, is that...wait. No, it can't be...wait, you said Jacob. Jacob...Abby's good friend. Abby. You need to...you need to find her, she's getting...tortured, something happened..."

"Do you know where she's being kept?" Shepard asked urgently.

Did I? "No, uh...I don't think so...they showed her to me on this screen...Harbinger was torturing her...I don't know where she is..." I replied slowly. "I'm sorry..."

"You're fine. You'll be fine. We'll get her."

Somebody lifted me up and placed me over their shoulder. I groaned. "One moment," Mordin said. "I need to copy this data. Might give insight into Collector interest in humans... done. Let's leave. Quickly."

There was a rumble far off in the distance. "Joker's having fun," Shepard muttered.

"It was smart to cut the fuel lines to the gunships," Samara said. "He would have been overwhelmed otherwise."

Jacob adjusted me on his shoulder and we began to walk. "You're going to be fine, kid," he said. "No worries."

I didn't realize how much pain I was in until I was off that slab. It wasn't horrible, my body just ached. "Thanks..." I muttered. Things were starting to make a bit more sense. "They wouldn't stop interrogating me, tormenting me...all these drugs. So many different methods...they did other stuff to Abby, and before they knocked me out...something happened to her. You've got to find her...even Nyxeris and the Collectors looked nervous. She can't die, she can't."

"We'll find her," Jacob promised.

* * *

**(Abby)**

I kept my eyes closed, savoring the absence of authority as I attempted to recuperate after the harsh punishment Harbinger had inflicted on my body. My muscles, fueled by whatever he had pumped into my system hours ago, had finally stopped twitching and lay still and quiet underneath my skin. I slipped in and out of sleep, watching events take place in my real life with detached amusement.

It was a strange thing. I hadn't noticed it when Zaeed knocked me out, but whenever I faded from consciousness my mind would zero in back on my real life. Throughout the entirety of Harbinger's torturous sessions I'd tried to find that balance where I could, with difficulty, accept the feelings of my real life, leaving my cold, drug-filled body behind.

Oh, I could feel very acutely the punishment he'd inflicted on me. But at the height of the torture session I'd begun to break through the mental wall that kept me from the life back on Earth. I could feel the stimulants he was pumping into my system, could see his sudden, confused stance whenever I opened my eyes, but he was only in the background, a minor detail.

For two entire hours I experianced my first Aikido class in a while, learning with my _real_ body and my _real _mind. Harbinger and Nyxeris hovered around the edges with faces I didn't recognized, talking in terms I didn't understand, but neither did I care. I was in my happy place, back where I started. Even when they shocked my body and filled me with a neural stimulant I was as limp as a dead fish.

They couldn't bother me. I was in my happy place. I could only wish that HK had figured out this technique.

I was talking to him now, of course, on Instant Messenger, but I wasn't paying too close attention to that. I could feel my mind returning back to the broken body on the table, the pain beginning to manifest again, and I knew I was beginning to wake up at long last.

But for what?

When I opened my eyes, nobody was there. The camera that kept watch on me during this entire time no longer had a glowing power button on the side. Either it was turned off or they decided that red dots were too strange for my 'mushed' mind to handle.

I sighed a little bit, appreciating the strange feelings that were coursing through my body at this instant. I felt drained and out of breath, but not cold. No, I was hot, my skin flushed, and I was sweating.

They'd left me to die. There was no other explanation. Why else wouldn't they put the blindfold back on?

I could hear a far-off rumble in the distance alongside a high-pitched whine that sounded so far off I could have been just delusional in my fevered state. The rumble was probably thunder. Perhaps another storm was coming. It would have been the perfect time to escape, except that I doubted I would be able to make it to the door in front of me even if I weren't tied to this weird table.

The table looked different than HK's. His was just a rectangular slab with handcuffs, but mine was bigger, yet lighter. My hair was braided above my head into a steel cord tied into what looked like another computer terminal. I shifted my head around experimentally, pulling on it in hopes that it would release somehow, but it was tied in there tightly. Obviously Nyxeris wasn't worried about damaging my hair at all.

I closed my eyes again, filled with the strongest desire to sleep... until I heard the door open in front of me. I stayed limp, hoping they would think there was no more change, but it was obvious from their hushed talk and hurried footsteps that something had gone wrong. Badly.

Nyxeris crossed over to her terminal, accompanied by an assistant and a Collector. I peered out of half-closed eyes to see what they were doing.

Nyxeris took one look at the monitor and made a sort of growling noise deep in her throat, then came to stand next to me. Breathing heavily, she only stared at me for one second (and I was sure that my eyes were closed _now_) and, so fast I didn't have time to guess what was coming, she punched me. I gasped despite myself, my eyes opening.

"Who did you contact?" she asked in a low, threatening tone. "How did you get a message to them?"

Oh, great, Shepard was here! I grinned. "For such a pretty lady, you're so full of crap," I said. My voice came out as a hoarse whisper. My throat was hurting.

"This plan has failed," Harbinger said. He stepped foreword, and four Collectors materialized from the doorway to stand behind him. "We will take her and continue to search, but you have become a liability."

Nyxeris gasped. "You can't get out of here!" she said shrilly. "There's only one ship-"

"We plan to take it. Stand aside."

The Collectors began to unplug me from the various machines with robot-like efficientcy. And then, Harbinger looked directly at _me_. I could feel my heart beginning to beat faster with fear, and I realized, suddenly, that the Collectors were going to get away-and they were taking me with them!

Oh, no. No. No, no, nopity, no, no. No. I wasn't going to be the template for a new Human-Reaper.

Nyxeris spoke, then, but it wasn't to us. "Bravo Team, form up in B-Wing to provide escort detail to the ship." She clicked to another frequency. "Are they dead yet?" she asked, harassed.

The volume was just loud enough for me to make out the words. "Somebody cut the power to the gunships, we're sitting ducks out here! They've knocked out the foreword AA Turrets and the tank's out of range for the others to kick in."

"Have you managed to kill _anybody_?" Nyxeris asked, outraged.

"Every time we get close their damn sniper picks us off! We've lost eighteen men so far. We need to fall back. I'm going to give the order."

Nyxeris cursed and switched frequencies. "What's the situation?"

Nobody answered. "The men we stationed in the security room are dead," she muttered. "And the boy is gone. There must be two teams."

She pitched foreword and hit the ground. The Collector beside her stuttered and fell, a gaping hole in it's head. The assistant onlyhad time to utter out a squak of fear before he fell, too.

Harbinger reacted quickly, sealing the door with a strong biotic barrier that pulseated with an eery light. The Collectors worked even more quickly, taking me off of the machines while their leader held the door.

There was a rumble of displaced energy and suddenly the entire barrier was gone, ripped open from the center. A wave of pure, inescapable power pushed Harbinger back against the wall and squeezed. The Collector disintegrated.

Shots rang out, but me, reeling from the sudden attack, couldn't see where they came from. The enemies around me dropped to the ground, dead.

Thane appeared in the doorway, training his sniper rifle on the bodies before coming to see me. Samara had her back to me, covering the doorway alongside Commander Shepard. "We must hurry," Thane said, disconnecting me from the wires with quick pulls of his dexterious hands. "Can you walk?"

"Dunno. Nice save. Who did the biotics, Samara?"

"It was a group effort," Thane said, and sure enough he did look slightly drained. "The Collector General is very well-trained."

Tali jogged in, her omni-tool already activated. "The others are in the storage room," she said breathlessly. "Mordin said to administer this if she was awake." She pressed a small syringe to my neck and injected me with something. There was no effect that I could tell, but Tali, who was only following orders, didn't seem to care. She threw the syringe on the ground, where it fell and stuck into the nearest Collector.

Quickly, Tali overrode the locking mechanisms keeping me attached to the table, but paused before undoing my hair. "Oh, Keelah, that's not good," she muttered.

"What is it?" asked Thane.

Tali scrolled through some functions on her omni-tool. "If we had removed her, something would have happened," she explained. "It's conencted to the terminal in HK's room... so I suppose it would have killed him, or otherwise incapacitated him. It is good we got him first."

"Is he okay?" I asked, my voice cracking. I was really, really thirsty.

"No, and neither are you," Tali said, "but you will be."

There was another rumble in the distance, but this one sounded closer. "Tali, hurry it up," Shepard ordered harshly, firing off a round. "Looks like Nyxeris called in some help."

Tali reached down to her leg as if to itch it and grabbed the knife she never used in-game. With one quick motion she brought it to bear and began to saw off the hair still tangled. I opened my mouth, about to say some harsh words, but the entire table suddenly buckled and turned completely over. I fell on my face, groaning.

Thane took me by the arm and pulled me out. They set me on my feet-I fell right back down. "She can't walk," Thane said, calling out to Shepard.

"Doesn't matter. Get her a gun and we'll retreat back to where the others are."

Tali handed me a pistil after checking the ammo capacity. I held it in weak fingers. She put an arm underneath my shoulder and helped me to my feet. I found I was leaning heavily on her for support, which irked me, but there was no time to be the masochistic idiot I normally was. "Keep your head down," she cautioned in her accented voice.

"'kay."

Shepard popped off a few more rounds and turned around to look at me, taking in my appearance. Then she glanced back down the hallway. "Time to go. Move it."

"When we get back to the Normandy," I huffed, "we need to play... a game of... checkers."

She wasn't even listening. "Tali, open that door!"

We disappeared into an adjoining hallway and a blastdoor behind us closed down, cutting our pursuers off. We met up with Mordin, Jacob, and HK in what looked like the mess hall. Apparently they had moved from the nearby storage room to the kitchens. HK was laying on the ground being tended to byMordin. They all looked up when we entered.

Tali set me down next to HK, and I struggled to sit up, my back against the salad cart. "You good?" I asked. The exertion of moving from my room to here made it difficult to breath or think. My words came out as a whisper.

HK smiled lightly at me, still lying down, though it looked like he was still slightly out of it. "Yes, I'm alright, glad to be out of that room..." he replied. "I'm sorry you had to go through that...you shouldn't have come back to rescue me."

"Yeah, I'm starting to... regret that," I joked. "Leaving you here would've been better in the long run, methinks."

"Probably," HK agreed. "But nonetheless, thank you. That was torment. The Collectors and Nyxeris know more methods than I originally thought they did."

"Sorry... for that..." I coughed and slid an inch lower, closing my eyes. I was able to concentrate better. "My fault you were tortured. M'sorry."

HK gave me a confused look. "It wasn't your fault. They were gonna do it either way, whether you stayed or went. I'm just glad to be out of there now...I hope we can leave and get back to the Normandy soon."

"Mmmhmm."

Mordin began to check me over, doing a once-over with his omni-tool but saying nothing to me. He asked Tali if she'd administered the drug but was otherwise silent. "Joker, where are you?" Shepard was saying.

I couldn't hear his reply, but it seemed to please Shepard. "Commander," Samara said in her soft voice, "I don't know how long we can hide here. Even though Tali has killed the security systems, I worry that that they'll find us before Joker does. Is there perhaps another way out of here?"

"Joker will get here in time," Shepard assured her. "I trust him."

"Yeah, he seems like a good man," Jacob said.

"But will the two of them last long enough for our return to the Normandy?" Samara asked.

"Yes," said Mordin after a moment. "But perhaps not too long. Their livers will shut down soon if we can't get them proper medical care. Hoping to avoid that."

HK's eyes widened. "Uhh, Joker better get here soon, then." he simply said.

The fact that my organs would probably start shutting down soon didn't really concern me. I was too tired to care. I had my eyes closed, hoping for some rest, but I couldn't go to sleep. Not yet.

There was the loudest noise from across the room. The floor shook and rumbled beneath us and a light fell out of the salad cart. Tali helped me up and I opened my eyes to see that the mess hall wasn't exactly the way we left it.

Rather, there was a giant hole in the seiling and the Hammerhead was floating leisurely below it. The ramp lowered and the door opened, revealing Miranda, dressed in a black, form-fitting suit I recognized as her loyalty get-up, standing there waiting for us. Tali hurried us over, me stumbling half of the way, and suddenly I was flying through the air. I landed softly on the middle of the ramp and Miranda ushered me inside.

HK flew in behind me, apparently kicked from behind via a powerful biotic push. Jack pulled him into a seat and put his seatbelt on for him. There was also Zaeed, Grunt, and Garrus in there already, Garrus with his sniper rifle out. Now I saw what Nyxeris meant about the biotics and the snipers...

I was put in a seat and my belts were strapped by somebody I couldn't make out. I blinked a few times and my head nodded foreword against my chest. I struggled to keep my eyes open.

Something else took my attention. "Why're my legs all wet?" I asked, trying to get back into the moment.

"The entire mess hall is flooded with a few inches water," Zaeed said, peering out. He whistled. "Looks like it's rising." He, Jack, and Grunt shared a laugh.

The ramp closed. "Hit it, Joker." Shepard sat down next to HK and looked on, concerned, as Mordin did another check-up.

"So what's with the water?" I asked.

"Blew upen the septic tank," Grunt rumbled, rumbling a laugh. "They'll be swimming in their own shit soon enough."

"Okay." I closed my eyes again. "Lemme know if we get captured again."

And with that, I went right to sleep. Or perhaps I just passed out. Either way, the end result is the same, right?

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I just... pretty much sat silently in my chair in the cockpit. I figured it was probably best if I stayed right where I was, because... well, that way, I would know right away if there was any news, and I would be right near the airlock when the others came back.

That and... maybe if I more or less stayed at my designated "post" (even though it was a temporary one for me) well... maybe it would mean I wouldn't tick of Shepard any more than I already had. Then again, I've probably done all I can to tick her off today, although... you never know.

"Hey, the Hammerhead's docking down on Deck Five with your friends onboard, if you want to go down and see 'em," Joker announced.

"Thanks," I muttered as I quickly got up and headed toward the elevator, walking past everyone on the bridge without really looking at them.

I rode the elevator in silence and then walked briskly down the hallway until I reached the docking bay on Deck Five. I was anxious to see everybody, but at the same time... I didn't want to get in the way. Plus with my luck, I might open the door too quickly and let the vaccuum of space in before the outer doors were sealed. So I simply waited... as patiently as I could.

If "patiently" meant standing with your ear pressed to the door and your heart pounding in your chest.

After a moment, I moved to the side to an enormous window and peered into the docking bay, to see what was going on.

The _entire_ ground team piled out of the Hammerhead, and soon, I saw Abby and HK being carried out...Mordin was right beside them, looking like he was overseeing their health, and Shepard watched as well.

"We need to get them to the Medical Bay now," Shepard said. "Chakwas can watch over them and make sure they're alright."

"Agreed," Mordin said. "Must hurry."

The door opened and I saw them beginning to come out into the hallway. "Are they okay?" I shouted, a bit more loudly than I intended to. But I was trying to get their attention-and it worked.

"They're alive, but if they don't get immediate medical attention, they may not be. Dr. Solus says that their livers could shut down," Tali explained, looking at me. "They got badly tortured inside that base."

I sucked in a breath, and glanced over at HK and Abby. Jacob was carrying HK, slumped over his shoulder, but holding him securely. I could definitely see that Jacob was a strong man, no doubt due to years in the military service, and I actually felt a twinge of guilt for biting his finger. Then again, I highly doubted I would ever be able to forget that, or get over it entirely.

Garrus was carrying Abby. Since he was built differently than a human-and because Abby was a bit smaller and had a slimmer build-he was simply carrying her out in front of him, across his arms. When I looked back on this scene later, I would sort of think of it as a classic "rescued a damsel in distress" kind of look. You know, the kind where a girl fainted or had to be rescued, and so the hero just carries her out like a limp doll.

Then again... if this weren't so serious, that might have almost been cute, and MIGHT have made me feel slightly jealous in a weird way. Garrus carrying Abby... ugh, shove that thought off.

"You sure they're gonna be okay?" I asked, taking a few steps back. I then glanced from Shepard, to Garrus, to Mordin, and looked at HK and Abby again. They were out cold, but I could tell they were alive.

"Dr. Chakwas is an experienced doctor," Tali answered. "I am sure that they'll be alright. Don't get too worried."

I took a few steps back, partly because I didn't want to get in the way, and partly because... well, with nearly a dozen people going down the corridor-with two more being carried-it was kind of hard to keep up, plus Mordin, Garrus and Jacob were rushing ahead of everyone else anyway in their efforts to get to the medical bay quickly.

I strained my eyes-and craned my neck-to try and watch them for as long as they could, until they vanished in the elevator. Somehow or other I found myself near Tali. Wordlessly, I simply stared off in the direction my friends had gone... and reached out and grabbed the quarian's hand, absent-mindedly.

"Are you alright, Sarah?" Tali asked, sounding more concerned, turning to look at me again.

"Yeah," I responded automatically. "Will be." My tone was a bit clipped, but I didn't care.


	23. It's a trap!

**(Sarah)**

I knew that HK and Abby were going to be okay, although they were going to be in the medical bay for a while. I didn't want to bother them too much while they were recovering, so I chose to simply tend to my usual duties. It had been a while since I'd gotten around to them anyway. It simply felt good to know that I wouldn't be the only "psychic" aboard anymore, and it was even better to know that my friends were going to be okay. Even if it would take a while for them to get back on their feet.

Plus I knew that Rupert was starting to feel the burden of responsibilities building up since I hadn't been helping as much. So we made a deal; I would handle most of the cleaning that needed to be done, and he would handle the cooking.

Besides, that would also help quench some of the rumors going around that he rarely washed his hands before cooking. Apparently sometimes, when he used some of the ship's rations, there was an odd, unexplainable taste. I assumed it was just something to do with the food itself, but... apparently some people wondered if it was something on his hands.

Right at the moment, I was currently waiting outside of the men's restroom in order to clean it. Someone was apparently in there, and I had to wait until they came out before I could do any cleaning.

After about ten minutes of waiting, I finally decided I would just go somewhere else and come back later. I didn't feel like waiting around forever just for someone to come out of the bathroom. With my luck, it was probably Zaeed hogging it anyway. And I had no desire to see him or talk to him.

As I headed in the general direction of the kitchen with the intention of cleaning the mess hall while it was scarcely occupied, I noticed Garrus walking toward me. I smiled at him, half-expecting him to just get something to eat or walk on by me. But to my mild surprise, he actually walked straight toward me.

"Ah, Sarah," Garrus greeted. He sounded glad to see me, but at the same time, a bit...nervous, perhaps. Or something like that. "We need to talk. I've been looking for you."

I looked at him carefully for a moment, then set down my mop and bucket, being careful not to spill it. I also made sure it was out of the way so no one else would trip over it or knock it over. "Okay," I said hesitently. "Wanna talk in the gunnery?"

Garrus nodded. "Sure, that'd probably be the best place," he said, turning around and motioning for me to follow. We walked down the path to the gunnery, and once inside, he turned around with a sigh. "Its about Sidonis. I think we need to change our plan."

I blinked, then I slowly moved to sit down on the edge of one of the crates against the wall. "What do you mean?" I asked. As far as I knew, we didn't really have a plan yet, except that he'd promised to take me with him. I didn't think we'd really had time to discuss a plan in details yet.

"Well, I really hate to say this after what we agreed on, but I've been doing some thinking...when I've actually had time, that is. After what happened on Haestrom, I...I don't think you should come with me. It may be too dangerous, and I'm not going to get another person killed," Garrus explained, looking away for a moment.

I stared at him. I felt... conflicting feelings springing up inside me. On the one hand I knew he had a point, and I knew it probably would not be a good idea for me to go into the heart of danger. I'd probably allow Harkin's goons to harm us, or allow him to get away somehow. Either that I would get killed, or someone who was trying to protect me might get killed-perhaps Garrus.

At the same time I felt... disappointed. In my own way I had been looking forward to seeing the outcome of what happened between him and Sidonis, and maybe even helping it to go the best way possible.

I glanced away from him, staring at the weapons' systems as I tried to process everything I'd gone through since coming here, and everything he had just said.

"I know you probably don't want to hear this, but if we encounter a lot of danger, then you're a risk. You are lucky you survived Haestrom at all, and I just feel it'd be safer if I go after him with Shepard, or even Abby and HK after they recover," Garrus continued.

I simply nodded a little by way of acknowledgement, glancing at him briefly. I felt my heart sink because... well, in a way it was like he was saying that the others-my friends, and especially Shepard-were better than I am. Then again... in a way, they were. At least in certain... fields.

I resumed staring intently at the weapons systems, still absorbing the news. Well, one thing was for sure... I didn't want to get killed out there. Garrus was doing me favor in that way.

"Uh, are you alright?" Garrus asked.

"Yeah," I said simply, rising. I turned to face him. "And yeah, probably for the best," I shrugged dismissively. "Now, I need to get back to my cleaning." I turned to move toward the door.

"Listen, I don't like it either, and you've been a big help to me by telling me all of this, but I can't have more blood on my hands. I was an idiot for telling Shepard that you could go out on Haestrom, and I'm not going to do something like that again. It's just how it has to be," Garrus told me.

I half-turned to face him as he spoke. When he finished I said, "Yeah I know. And just so you know, I'm not going to bother anyone anymore; I'm just going to stick to my cleaning duties and to my quarters. If anyone wants to talk, they can come to me." I turned my back on him and walked out.

I kept walking, even as I heard the doors hiss shut behind me. I knew I was being a bit huffy, at the very least. But at the same time...

Well, seriously, who was I kidding? I highly doubted Garrus would ever really be interested in me romantically, and well... I'd also done a pretty good job of pissing off a few of ground team members, including Shepard.

I figured... maybe it was time to just get over turians, stop making a nuisance of myself, and just... focus on my duties. And try to survive the Collectors. If that meant keeping to myself and not talking to anyone much, I could live with that.

I continued walking, but I hadn't gotten far when I heard someone call out for me. "Sarah! Its about time I found you," Miranda said coldly. "We have an emergency situation going on here, and the Commander needs to see you immediately."

I sighed. "Yeah, okay," I said simply with a wave of my hand. "Where is she?" I asked evenly.

"Deck Two. She just finished speaking to the Illusive Man," Miranda replied, walking towards the elevator. "Follow me."

I nodded dully and followed her without a word. I wasn't going to say anything; nothing at all. But you know, in some ways... I was getting tired of all of this. But perhaps this was merely my response to all the stress I'd been under lately. And being disappointed by my favorite turian was just icing on the cake-even though I had to agree he did have good reasons.

Maybe the commander was just gonna give me a stern talking to about leaving my post during a battle. Perhaps after that was done, I could just go to my quarters and sleep for a while.

It didn't take long for us to stop at Deck Two, and Miranda led me right into the briefing room, where Shepard was standing. She looked like she had been in deep thought. However, she snapped out of it once I walked in.

"Sarah, I'm glad Miranda found you," Shepard said. "I've just gotten some...interesting information from the Illusive Man. He's found a disabled Collector ship."

I looked at her for a moment. Ah yeah, the Collector ship... wonderful.

Would this perhaps be a good time to run down to the medical bay and scream "ABBY WAKE UP, WE NEED YOU"? No, not really. But she was a lot better at handling these situations when they came up, I had to admit.

I really didn't want to. But in a way, I was still the only "psychic" left at the moment. So... the responsibility rested on my shoulders right now, right? Even though I was not exactly in the best frame of mind.

"Yeah, okay," I said quietly, giving a nod of acknowledgement. I propped my elbows on the edge of the table, leaning forward a little. I suppressed a yawn and tried to stay focused.

"Don't just stand there, tell us what you know about it," Miranda snapped.

Oh yeah, that's right. They wanted me to pick my brain and tell them all about it. "Well," I said, shoving away from the table and stuffing my hands into my pockets, "ummm..." Okay, what exactly was I going to say? Should I just make everybody around me happy and satisfied once and spill everything I knew about it, or should I try to be more reserved like Abby would? And what exactly would Abby-or even HK-say in this situation?

I didn't want to think about it. I just wanted to go listen to some music for a few hours, or even sleep for a while.

Have I mentioned that I'm not really cut out for life on a military ship? It's a good thing I never went into the military back home. They'd reject me within ten minutes of seeing me.

"It's... big," I finally said, quite simply. It was my way of stalling for time while I could gather my thoughts while my brain was full of cobwebs.

"Thats all you have to say?" Miranda said, scowling. She looked at Shepard. "Shepard, she's useless."

Shepard ignored her second-in-command. "Any other details?"

"Yeah, a few," I said, leaning forward against the tabletop by crossing my arms in front of me and leaning on them. I stared down at the table's surface, not looking at either of them. "They're gonna hit Earth, for one. I mean, that was/is their original plan." Hey, they were gonna figure that out soon enough anyway.

Miranda and Shepard looked at each other for a moment. It seems they were slightly surprised, but it didn't come as a huge bomb to them.

Shepard looked at me again. "And what about the actual ship?"

"Well... you're gonna encounter..." I stopped, biting my tongue. I knew that the Illusive Man was keeping Shepard in the dark about this whole thing being a trap. Would it effect things much if I told Shepard about it? Would it throw off the Collectors? Ugh I really wish Abby was handling this instead of me.

Miranda and Shepard stared at me, waiting for me to finish.

Ah screw it. Abby and HK aren't here right now, I wanted to try and get on Shepard's good side again, and well... for once I just really didn't care about the consequences of giving out too much info.

"I'll tell you," I said, looking straight at Shepard. "But..." I indicated Miranda with a slight tip of my head. "I'd rather tell you... in private."

"What is wrong with me being here? I'm Shepard's second-in-command, I-" Miranda started.

"Miranda!" Shepard snapped. She shook her head. "It is not going to take long for us to get there. We don't have time for all of this arguing...just step out for awhile."

Miranda sighed. "Fine," she said. Glaring at me, she exited the room.

Yeah, like I was gonna risk saying anything bad abotut the Illusive Man while his top operative was present. Even though she would probably be hearing about it later.

"Thanks," I muttered, leaning forward against the table again. Man I really wished there were chairs in here.

"Like I said: We can't waste time. So I need to know _now_," Shepard told me firmly.

"Watch your back, because it's a trap," I said bluntly, with the slightest shrug of my shoulders.

Shepard raised an eyebrow. "What kind of trap?"

I sighed tiredly. "Everything will seem fine and hunky-dory for a while when you step onboard, but when you get to the terminal where EDI can begin the download, you'll get ambushed, big time. And after that you'll have to fight your way back. Also... you may want know that the Illusive Man knows it's a trap. He just kept his mouth shut because he doesn't want to risk tipping the Collectors off, because he knows that we NEED the information from that ship. But... since we DO need the information, you may not want to tell anyone. You really don't want to risk tipping them off... do you?" I looked at her curiously.

Once I mentioned that tidbit about the Illusive Man, Shepard's eyes lit up in what looked like possible anger, or at least irritation. "Okay...I'll keep quiet," she said slowly, like she was mulling it over. "Just until we investigae this. Anything else?"

"Yeah. Remember that... big huge thing that you encountered on Horizon, that was extremely difficult to kill? The thing near the defense tower?" I knew that Abby knew what it was called, but I could never remember it or even say it right.

Shepard nodded, and just stared at me, waiting for me to continue.

"Yeah, there's another one on the Collector ship, so watch out."

Shepard didn't say anything, and just looked like she was heavily thinking that over, probably recalling what it took to kill it last time. "We'll have to be prepared, then. What else?"

I thought for a moment. "Oh yeah!" I blurted, nearly smacking myself in the forehead. How could I forget one of the more interesting things they found out on the Collector ship? "There IS something else!" I sorta grinned in spite of myself. Nothing like a big juicy secret to reveal.

Shepard just stared at me. It was like a glare of death.

I glanced downward, feeling a little sheepish. "You're gonna find out that the Collectors were once Protheans," I blurted. I coughed a little.

For the first time, out of all the big things I had told her within the last five or ten minutes, I saw a look of shock briefly cross her face. "Al...right. I am guessing we'll find out the details of that onboard?"

"Yep... you'll know the right time to have EDI run a cross-genetic check," I said simply.

Shepard nodded. "Is that all?"

I was silent for a moment, thinking. "I think so," I finally said.

Shepard looked away for a moment, and she was probably trying to come up with a battle plan for all of this. "Thanks for the information. I need to go figure out how to handle all of this, because we'll be there soon," she finally said, heading towards the exit.

"Want me to do anything?" I asked before she could head out the door. I had a feeling the answer was probably no. At least, well... part of me still wanted to just go retreat to my quarters. But if she had something in mind for me to do... I would rather know about it now, so I could mentally prepare myself.

She shook her head. "No, you've done all you can for now. If we ever need you, I'll contact you," she said, proceeding to leave.

I watched her go. Well... maybe she wouldn't need me anymore.

I glanced around the briefing room one final time, then I headed out. I then headed to the elevator and quietly rode it down to the level where my quarters were.

Once I was there, I simply plopped myself down on my bunk and grabbed my headphones. "Angel of Darkness" began to blare loudly in my ears, and I grinned.

* * *

**(Abby)**

I groaned, sitting up in my bed. Doctor Chakwas looked up immediately and stood, hurrying over. "How are you feeling, Abby?" she asked, examining the readouts on the monitors attached to me. Her steel-gray hair formed a curtain over her face.

I didn't answer, rubbing my temples. My skin still felt very warm to the touch, and I felt sick-really, really sick. I'd had swine flu last year when it was kicking up all over the place, but this felt even worse.

"You're lucky you made it back at all," Chakwas said conversationally. "Don't worry, we're going to take care of you. You'll be well on your way to recovery soon."

I groaned. That was all the answer the kind doctor was going to get. The bright light of the medical bay hurt my eyes and I could only squint as I looked at the neighboring beds. Finally, my eyes rested on HK, who was unconscious two beds down.

"He'll be fine," Chakwas said. "You both had an interesting adventure on Illium. Now, try to go back to sleep."

"Water," I croaked.

She went to the dispenser by the door and filled up a small plastic cup. She brought it to my lips, but I insisted-nonverbally-on carrying out the act myself. I would have dropped the cup if Chakwas hadn't been holding it at the bottom, tilting it into my mouth like some weird, overgrown baby. I drank it with gusto, though, loving it.

My vision began to fade, and I slid back, my eyes closing.

The next time I woke up, HK had beaten me to the punch. I felt slightly better and didn't groan when I sat up this time. "How're you?" I asked, pleased that my voice sounded slightly more normal.

"Ugh, I feel...okay, I guess. A little sick and beaten up, maybe, but overall I'm fine. Just glad to not be strapped to that table," HK said, sitting up slightly and rubbing his face as well. "How are you?"

"I think I need to get the plate number of whatever bus ran me over," I joked lightly, leaning back against my pillows. "How long have we been here?"

"Just over fourteen hours," Chakwas said from her seat at the desk. She was typing away on the computer, but she looked tense, like something was wrong. "If you both had any doubts about surviving before, they should be gone. What they injected you with was a... menegerie of illegal liquids and brain enhancers. They did it quite carefully, hovering just an inch from destroying your bodies in the process. It'll take a while for them to clear your systems... you should begin to feel like you're recovering within a week."

"A _week_?" HK repeated in shock. "Will we have to stay here the whole time?"

I groaned. "We're staying here longer than that, aren't we?" I asked in a horrified voice.

Chakwas nodded, confirming my worst fears. I'd kind of hoped she was joking, just pulling the legs of the sickly patients, but nope. "If there are any... adverse reactions to the drugs they were giving you, we'll know within that timeframe," she said. "You already had visitors while you were asleep."

"Who?" I asked, interested.

She picked up a small plastic bag and began to sort through the contents. "Apparently when Commander Shepard made her stop on Illium, the rest of the crew did their shopping, too." She pulled out a novel-a real, paper one I hadn't seen in this universe before at all-and a datachip. She crossed over and handed the book to HK, the datachip to me. "Courtesy of Ken and Gabby, from Engineering," she said, smiling. "Apparently you... did something to Grunt down there?"

I looked at HK guiltily. "We, er... taught him how to play Go Fish."

Chakwas looked at us with a mixture of strained amusement. "You taught a krogan how to play a children's card game?"

"He thought there was fish involved," I said, grinning despite myself. I felt weak, weaker than I ever had before, but this memory brought back some energy into my limbs. "Ken and Gabby came by to play because they could hear us laughing, and then they taught us how to play Skillian Five Poker. But don't worry, they said we didn't have to take our clothes off like they do in the real matches."

Chakwas was blinking rapidly. "Oh... my. That's almost too unbelievable to be true. And how did Grunt react to that, exactly?"

"He doesn't like the rules of Go Fish. He kept trying to make a krantt and spy on our cards," HK said, reminiscing.

"Poker was more fun. He and Ken played against us and Gabby... but I'll admit, I don't think that he enjoys card games too much."

"I was going to win," I said, "but I had a feeling that Grunt might... rip my arms off or something." I laughed. "When we left, he was talking about getting Jack to come out of her hole and play. That is so a match I didn't want to stay for."

"Ken and Gabby ran off, too," HK said, chuckling.

I held up the datachit. "So what's this?"

"Gabby said it was a collection of art and comments from various multi-species artists in the galaxy," Chakwas said. "Kenneth picked up the book for HK. He didn't say much about it, except that he seemed to enjoy 'old' things like that."

We looked at each other and quickly looked away. "Nice!" I said. "Can you hand me a datapad, ma'am?"

We spent about an hour or so looking through our gifts when I saw Garrus exit the gunnery station from the windows overlooking the mess hall and angle straight for the medical bay. He opened the door. "Good to see you're up," he said.

"Hey, dude!" I said.

"Garrus, it's good to see you," HK said kindly.

"I'm just glad to see that you two are alive and conscious. We've all been worried. How are you feeling?" Garrus asked, taking a seat beside me.

"Uh, we're doing okay...more importantly, how are you? How is the crew?" HK inquired curiously.

"Well, we just got out of one crazy mission. The Illusive Man found a Collector ship, and...ah, you probably know about this already, don't you?"

"Oh NO!" I said, shocked. "I promised Shepard I would tell her about the Praetorian-is everybody okay?"

"Calm down," Chakwas said sternly. "Don't overexcite yourself."

"Sarah told her all the major stuff," Garrus replied, probably trying to get me to not worry about it. "Including that. Everybody's okay, but it sounds like it was one hell of a fight. Samara and Miranda are great fighters, though I think Miranda's a little angry about the Illusive Man tricking us."

"She shouldn't be," I said, frowning. "In our dreams, she was trying to justify it-or maybe she was angry about it while she was trying to rationalize it? Yeah, I think it's that. Miranda's a great woman and a good person, but she's still Tim's top agent. Not being in the loop isn't something she's used to. It's too far out of her comfort zone... and I'm guessing Shepard didn't tell her what Sarah said about it, either. She probably feels betrayed and hurt, but she'll understand. She does understand, and she knows why it had to be done. You can't really live on a ship with us three idiots and not... well, not get used to not being in the loop."

My long monologue had exhausted me, and I was nearly panting by the time I was done. I sunk deeper into my pillows and Chakwas went and got both HK and I some water.

"Thats all it is. I think not knowing about it surprised her, and the whole situation was very tense, but she'd never betray the Illusive Man. Jack's weird and blunt about things, but some of what she says is true: Miranda is Cerberus's biggest cheerleader," Garrus explained. "Everyone made it out with little to no injuries, though. It was a narrow escape, but it was still an escape."

"Thank goodness. In the g-in the visions, the ship was one of the things that annoyed me the most, because it was so...weird and hard," HK said, shuddering slightly. "But at least its over now. That's the last you'll see of the Praetorians."

"What do you think about the Protheans, though?" I asked, grimacing.

"Protheans?" Chakwas echoed.

Oh yeah, she wouldn't know yet. "The Protheans aren't extinct, ma'am," I said softly. "A large gorup of them were harvested by the Reapers a long time ago. A lot of genetic mutations later, well... They aren't Protheans anymore, Doctor. There is no thinking, no mind, no... individualness. There's only the hive. And the Reaper in charge of this entire operation, Harbinger? He controls the Collector General from dark space, and through him he can control individual Collectors." I looked at Garrus, who seemed stunned by this new information. "We're not completing the genocide of the Protheans. The Reapers already killed them all and just happened to make a new species out of it."

"That's horrible!" Doctor Chakwas exclaimed, covering her mouth. "That's... repugnant. Unethical!"

"But it's true," Garrus said. "The Commander told us when she came back... but there was nothing on the ship about Harbinger or how the Reapers control the glowing Collectors."

"I know," I said. "_Somehow_ you guys found out-in our dreams. It's pretty obvious, with the words Harbinger yells during fighting, I guess... but that's his name."

I thought about the ending scene of Mass Effect 2, and that army of Reapers, and grimaced.

"There's no way to stop it. Unfortunately, Harbinger is something you're just doing to have to deal with along the way, but his Collectors aren't too hard to stop," HK explained. "And you won't see them again for awhile."

"We have to go get an IFF in order to pass through the Omega 4 Relay," Garrus remarked. "But I think the Commander wants to do a lot before then. We have one more person left to get, and there's more and more...unfinished business popping up to deal with."

"Believe me, it is best for everyone to get their last issues sorted out before we get the IFF. We can't tell you why, but trust us. A lot of people don't even know yet, but everybody on the ground team is going to have something come up one way or another," HK agreed.

"Who has stuff cropping up now?" I asked. "Grunt looked like he was about to go into his, and you and Sarah talked about yours... Miranda's is done, and Jacob's is in waiting."

"Mordin heard that a friend of his had been captured on Tuchanka. Whenever we go there to help Grunt, we'll help him, too," Garrus answered. "That's about it, I think."

"Ahh, yes, we remember that," HK said, glancing at me.

"Wrex!" I said happily.

"Wrex?" Garrus repeated.

"Wrex." I grinned.

"To explain," HK said with a laugh. "Wrex reigns supreme over clan Urdnot, which reigns supreme over all the other clans. He's not that merc that doesn't know what to do about his people anymore."

"Wow, thats a change," Garrus commented, a little surprised.

"So, where are we going next, now that the ship is out of the way? Do you know?" HK asked.

"The, uh, Citadel," Garrus said, looking away for a moment. "We've got a lot to do there."

"Ahh, I see," HK simply said, knowing that Garrus would finally face Sidonis there, and that was probably why he wouldn't say much on the matter.

"Ah, Abby, HK!" a voice yelled, and we both looked up to see Mordin enter the MedBay. "Wonderful to see you alive and well. Knew that you'd make it out alive. Glad that situation is over...oh, and don't worry, I retrieved your items from Illium!"

I blinked. Oh dear. "Oh good!"

Garrus actually chuckled, which was saying something since his mind was just on his mortal enemy. "That story has been making the rounds," he commented.

"Oh...oh boy," HK said with a gulp.

"Am curious, though. Why buy an elcor jockstrap?" Mordin asked bluntly.

HK and I exchanged a glance... I wasn't even sure if WE knew. "Figured Grunt could use one?" I said.

"Elcor and krogan shaped differently, it would no-"

"Mordin, too much information!" HK exclaimed.

"You ever have a moment where you look at something and just know you have to get it?" I asked him, giggling. "We had a moment with it."

"_She_ had a moment with it," HK corrected. "I was the one to think it, but she was very avid about buying it."

"But the look on the clerk's face was priceless!"

"Okay, thats true," HK said, chuckling.

"Would you like me to deliver it to your quarters?" Mordin wondered.

"Uhhhhhhhhhhh..." I was giggling madly now. "Up to HK!"

"Well it sure as heck isn't mine," HK snapped. "Uhh, but...I guess if you want to put it there, you can?"

"Actually, we bought it on Shepard's card, so it's technically her's," I pointed out.

"You bought an elcor jockstrap with the Commander's card?" Chakwas asked, her mouth opening in a comical 'o.' "Does she even know yet?"

"Ummm...depends on if someone told her," HK replied, looking to Mordin and Garrus.

"There hasn't exactly been time, and its not been on our minds too much," Garrus said with a shrug.

"Oh, I would pay to see her reaction," Chakwas said in an eager, out-of-character voice for her. She began to laugh.

"And now the evil doctor is laughing. I'm afraid now," I muttered.

* * *

**(HK)**

The week had been a rather slow one. Abby and I had been in the Medical Bay that entire time, recovering, and every day we had gotten closer and closer to being back to normal...finally, now, we were about back to what we were, and Dr. Chakwas was even letting us go a little early.

It had also taken a week to travel to the Citadel; we were about to dock there now, and I was ready to get _off_ the ship. I'd been stuck inside of it for way too long.

Pretty much everyone had come to visit us at one point or another in the MedBay, but you could tell that some of them were on edge. Grunt was still having anger problems, and Jacob was still tense over his father...luckily, though, I heard that we were heading for Aeia right after the Citadel.

Garrus was also getting more and more intense, too. He knew that the time to face Sidonis was coming up, and that had to be alarming. Strangely, though, it sounded like the plan to have Sarah go with him was off...in fact, Sarah had visited us, but she'd been rather reclusive lately. There were no more stories about her crazy incidents, she just went on about her duties and that was it.

We were also going to get Kasumi here, which I was really excited about. When I entered the Mass Effect universe, I didn't know much about her...but in real life, I had this feeling that I had gotten some DLC awhile back, and knew her and Zaeed as well as any of the other crew members.

Shepard was going to see Anderson and the Council, which was good, even if they wouldn't listen to a word she's going to say.

However, there was one pressing issue on our minds: Thane. Thane's loyalty mission had not popped up yet, and it happened on the Citadel. Now, since we were operating in a much more real world now, in real time, Shepard wouldn't want to go back to the Citadel for a second trip, and we were on a schedule, so we really couldn't.

And that meant it was probably time for Abby and I to do what we had discussed a few times before: Initiate it ourselves. Maybe we were meant to do that? Hopefully, we were, and Kolyat would be there and about to kill the turian politician.

If he wasn't...then I had no clue what to do. But hopefully he was.

Abby and I walked up to the entrance of Life Support. I turned to her. "Okay, ready to do this?" I asked her.

She nodded. Thane was one of the guys who had come to visit us in the medical bay, but he hadn't stayed long. Partly because I thought he was just unused to keeping humans-or anybody in general, really-company for a long period of time, and partly because I thought, somehow, that we scared him. Abby and I had talked about it a little bit and agreed it was fishy, but there was really nothing you could do about that.

He'd asked us multiple questions about our visions, how they worked and whatnot, and only when he was satisfied with the answers he received did he leave. I wondered if we were about to go through a repeat of that again.

Abby was still pale and had purple bags underneath her eyes, but otherwise she was as healthy as a horse. She looked apprehensive as we neared the door. "Ready, Freddy."

I snorted, and turned back to the door. We opened it, and stepped inside...like always, Thane was sitting at his table, with his hands folded.

"Thane, hey," I said slowly, trying to sound as kind and gentle as possible. "We're out of the Medical Bay."

"Congratulations, I am glad to see that you two have recovered from that traumatic incident," Thane said, not looking at us. "Do you need something?"

Abby looked at me and gave me a reassuring look. She stepped in front of me... and went to sit down right in front of Thane. "Your son is on the Citadel, Thane," she said gently. I winced at the bluntness of it. "His... body is disconnected from his mind. He's an assassin for hire now."

Thane turned to look at us. "What?" he asked in surprise.

"Its difficult to explain, but its another one of our visions," I replied, trying to figure out how to explain this. Drell still confused me, slightly. "He's taken up a job as an assassin, and he's going to kill someone. We can't say too much, but you have to stop him."

"This is...surprising news," Thane said, reeling. "And moreso, disturbing."

"The last time you saw your son was when you avenged Irikah's death," Abby said, "and then you disappeared from his life. That was very traumatic for a boy. He's angry, Thane, just like you were. Don't let him spend the rest of his life in bitterness. We'll help you find him. We have to stop him from killing his target and you have to talk to him."

I nodded. "Yes, we will help, I promise."

"How much time do we have?" Thane asked.

"Uhh, that...I'm not sure of, but if he's there already like we suspect, then we really don't have much time," I answered, looking at Abby.

"This is very short-notice, but if you are correct, then we must hurry," Thane said, standing up.

"Wait, we going now?" Abby asked, alarmed. "No, Thane. Not yet. Talk to Shepard about it. You'll need her help."

"When I say we don't have much time, I mean that we probably don't have days or anything...again, we're not sure, but I don't think its all going to happen right now. There is still a bit of time...but yes, talk to Shepard," I said.

"This is about my son. One who I have not seen for many years. I can't wait for long, but I will trust your judgement. I will speak to Shepard before we leave the ship," Thane said, starting to walk past Abby and myself.

The door opened before Thane could reach it, revealing Commander Shepard. She took in the situation with suspiscious brown eyes. "EDI said it was an emergency," she said. "What did you two say to Thane?"

"They have informed me that my son is here, on the Citadel, planning to kill someone. I wish to stop him," Thane replied calmly.

"They said what?" Shepard repeated, her jaw dropping.

Abby sighed, annoyed. "Okay! I'm only going to say this one more time, because repeating these things over and over for people just... ain't doing it for me! Okay? Thane's son is on the Citadel because he was contracted to kill somebody. Thane hasn't seen his son since he avenged Irikah's death, and Kolyat is slightly pissed and he's not exactly doing the right thing. So we have to stop Kolyat from killing somebody who's a bad person and probably should be sent to jail so his soul will be saved!"

"Thane, I have been talking to you about some drell things lately, but I think all of that was a little too much to take in," Shepard said, looking to him.

"I understand what she's saying. I can explain it more later," Thane told her.

I just sighed. "Okay, basically, we just need to stop Kolyat from killing a guy sometime soon. When are we going to be docking?" I asked.

"Soon," Shepard said. "Why don't you two go and get ready? I'll stay here and talk with Thane."

"Awesome idea!" Abby said. She pulled me out of the room, and the door shut behind us. "Thanks for the save, EDI," she said to nobody in particular.

I exhaled a breath. "Okay, that was interesting...maybe Thane can explain it better than us," I said with a sigh, walking away from the room. "So I guess we just head up and get our armor on while we wait for them to finish?"

"I can't wait to wear my new clothes," Abby said excitedly. "Maybe we can get some more things on the Citadel... or just look in stores. This sci-fi stuff is REALLY cool to look at."

I nodded in agreement. "Yes, that'd be a good idea...as long as we don't buy anymore elcor jockstraps," he said, walking towards our quarters.

"We might have to," she muttered, grinning.

Somebody had stolen it from our quarters, apparently, and framed it in a piece of heat-resistant glass. The jockstrap now hung in the male crew quarters for some odd reason. When Jacob had visited a few days ago he said that some of the men were having a drawing contest to see who could make the best alien in lingerie picture. As far as we knew, it was still going on.

And I had no interest in finding out the results, whenever they came in. I could always participate if I wanted, but I sure as heck didn't want to.

"So, I wonder how we're going to handle all of this," I pondered aloud. "We have Thane, Garrus, and the Council to deal with...plus shopping and anything else that we want to do on the Citadel."

"I vote sticking close to Shepard," she said. "I don't want some crazy krogan and asari kidnap me again."

"Thats true...I never want to go through that again. It'll teach us to run off to places that BioWare didn't design," I said, half-seriously. "You know, its weird...aside from Tuchanka and the Migrant Fleet, if they even count, this is pretty much the last civilized place with shops and homes and all that that we'll be visiting."

Abby pulled at her hair with a grumpy expression on her face. When Tali had saved her, she'd chopped off nearly half of it with the knife she carried in her boot. It now hung just above her shoulders. Originally it had looked choppy and uneven, but Kelly had come to the rescue with a pair of scissors. Now it looked prim and proper, but Abby still hated the new look. "True," she said, flipping the hair out of her face with an annoyed flick. "Though I wouldn't call Tuchanka civilized."

I nodded in agreement. "I know, and thats my point. The Citadel is the last place thats going to be like this...and it makes me start to feel the pressure. We have a heap of loyalty quests to do, sure, so it'll be awhile, but its getting down to the wire, you know?"

"It'll be fine," she said. "Erm... hopefully. Have you thought more about the... thing we were talking about earlier?"

I sighed. Earlier Abby had brought up the fact that if something happens to the three of us, the story may still go on. Though we didn't know that for certain, Abby was insisting that we leave behind some kind of instruction manual or something for Commander Shepard to peruse when she needed to.

"I think we need to do it. That little adventure with Nyxeris, which we know does not happen in our visions, taught us that anything can happen now. We could very well die, so we need to be prepared," I explained.

She nodded. "Yup... and that's why I've already started!" I gave her a Look, which she ignored. "I'm writing down everything I can remember about everybody's quests on my datapad, plus the IFF mission, some side-quests, and the suicide mission. The only one I have done so far is Jacob's mission."

"Which Shepard pretty much already knows about, thanks to us," I said with a smirk. "But yes, good. Overall, there's not too much left to do. Just the stuff here, some loyalty quests, then the final missions. So it shouldn't take too long, and I'll help, too."

"Good!" she said. "You can take half, and I'll take the other half."

Abby and I had changed clothes, and after awhile, we left the Normandy. We boarded a speeder and headed for the Zakera Ward, like always. Garrus, Grunt, and Thane were with Shepard and the two of us, and I wasn't sure exactly what we were going to do first.

Then it hit me: Meet Kasumi.

The speeder landed, and I had barely gotten time to examine the place in person before I heard her voice calling out for Shepard.

"Enter your password, Commander Shepard, and receive a free gift!" Kasumi smiled on the ad.

Shepard went to talk to it, but Abby held her arm. "What? A trap?" Shepard asked.

"No... I wanna hear everything she says."

Kasumi reappeared. "Have problems with collectors? Try Kasumi's credit services!" "Commander Shepard, we have the finest of companions waiting for you. Perhaps something petite, smart, and Japanese would be your style?" "Just enter your password for a fabulous prize package worth millions of credits!" "Okay, really? How many times can you walk by without stopping?" "Shepard... you do have the password, right?"

Abby leaned forword, but Shepard beat her. "Silence is golden."

"Congratulations, Commander Shepard! Kasumi Goto; I'm a fan."

"Wow, its even more strange in real life," I commented, almost laughing.

"What's with the password and all the secrecy?" Shepard asked. "Are you in trouble or something?"

"I'm the best thief in the business, not the most famous. Have to watch my step to keep it that way," Kasumi said smugly. "I also had to make sure this one was legit. But I have no doubts, now. You're Commander Shepard."

"What makes you so sure?" she replied, crossing her arms.

"There's a certain... aura about you. Like you've seen things that no one else has. Even without knowing what you look like, I knew it was you."

Abby and I exchanged a happy look.

"Has Cerberus filled you in on the mission?" Shepard asked, cutting right to the chase.

"Honestly I'm shocked that they didn't come to see me sooner. My fault for being hard to find, I guess."

"So what brought you to Cerberus?"

"Now there's a long story. Short version: they were looking for me, so I trailed them to find out why. Turns out they were looking for somebody to join you on a big mission... and were offering a serious signing bonus." The corner of her mouth quirked in a half-smile. "I had a thing I needed help with, so I made them a deal... and here we are."

"I suppose this deal is something I should know about?" Shepard asked.

"Yeah, I guess it slipped their minds," she said wryly. "I'm looking for my partner's greybox. A man named Donovan Hock took it, and I'm planning to get it back."

"What do you know about Donovan Hock?"

"Mister Hock is a well-respected businessman. Arms dealer, murderor-generally not a great guy. His mansion's famous for being hard to crack, but I have a way in. And I think you're gonna love it."

"Hock's not going to take kindly to people sneaking in his house," Shepard said.

"I always expect trouble. That's why you're here."

"And I assume the greybox is valuable?"

"It nables a neural implant." Kasumi's image flickered, and the blue headband beneath her hood flickered to life. "Illegal in most places. It stores memories, deals, illicit information, you name it. This one in particular belonged to my partner, Keiji Okuda. We worked together for a long time, before Hock killed him." She turned off the neural implant.

"Tell us about your partner," Shepard said.

"He was the best hacker on the extranet I'd ever known. Unfortunately... he slipped up and made himself infamous. He stole something he shouldn't have, something that was bad. He warned me it could spark an interstellar war if it got into the wrong hands. That information... got him killed. He didn't say what it was, and only that if it got out, humanity would be in trouble. He encrypted it in his own memories. To get to it, you have to sift through all the times we've spent together. Now those memories are the only thing I have left of him."

"I can see why you'd want to get it back," Shepard said, and I heard a small note of understanding in her voice.

"Getting it back will be easier with your help, Shepard," Kasumi reminded her.

"Tell me more about the plans for the heist."

"Not here, Shepard. You'll get a briefing, trust me. I just need some more time to nail down the details, anyway. I've taken the liberty of getting you some evening wear, though. You'll want to look presentable."

Shepard cracked a smile. "Well, if that's what Cerberus promised you to help me, we'll get it done."

"Don't worry; it'll be fun! And if we're lucky, you won't even have to draw your gun." The ad terminal with Kasumi's face suddenly lowered, and a voice spoke from behind us. "We should probably wrap this up." Kasumi stood on the top walkway, looking down at us with an amused smile on her face. "You look pretty silly standing there talking to an advertisement. See you on the ship, Shepard." She raised a hand to her forehead and disappeared down a back hallway.

Silence. Then: "Did I mention she's my favorite person on the ship?" Abby asked wryly.

Shepard didn't bother to acknowledge that little remark, and for that I was glad. "So..." I asked. "Where are we going now?"

"I need to meet David Anderson on the Presidium," Shepard said, "but you probably know that already. I'll get you through security, but then you're going to stay put until Sarah arrives."

I nodded. We had invited her to go shopping with us in the Wards, but she hadn't been able to get away from her duties on the ship until now. She was taking a seperate transport in, and Grunt was going to be accompanying us as an escort-a stipulation from Commander Shepard.

"Nothing like shopping with a krogan in puberty," Abby muttered as we walked off, out of earshot. I smirked.

**

* * *

**

(Sarah)

I had to admit... when you were given half a million credits, it could really begin to burn a hold in your pocket after a while. So to speak. So when I heard that Abby and HK were going shopping, and when they asked me if I wanted to come along, I was all for it.

Besides, I figured it would be a prime opportunity to get off the ship for a while. I knew for a fact that Shepard was never going to let me go anywhere again, not unless it was somewhere really safe.

I also felt a little... nervous about the idea of going shopping, considering what happened to HK and Abby when they tried to go shopping back on Illium. So I was a little relieved when I heard that Shepard was going to send someone with us as an escort-

Until I learned that it was Grunt. Seriously, why the krogan? The back of my head throbbed slightly upon remembering what happened the last time I saw much of him. He was still going through his... coming of age thing, or whatever.

Then again, who knows? Maybe the sight of an unruly krogan would keep everyone away from us. Heh well... if nothing else, I suppose that maybe it would help us get through longer lines more quickly. People would tend to give a krogan a wide berth... right?

A crewmember who's name I did not know gave me a ride to the Citadel's docking ring in a shuttle. Apparently she had some purpose for coming to the Citadel as well, although I wasn't sure what that was. She didn't seem too talkative, and I wasn't going to pry. Perhaps she had some sort of personal business to take care of or something.

Anyway once we docked, I thanked her and we parted ways, and I began to scan the area with my eyes, looking around for HK and Abby.

I also knew that Grunt was going to be arriving soon, too.

Within a few minutes, I saw the menacing krogan approach. "Damn, it feels good to be off that ship. I want to crunch something so bad..." he commented, slamming his fists together.

I take three large steps back and pressed myself against the nearest wall, staring at him with widened eyes. Okay, I realized after a moment, maybe moving myself against the wall really wasn't such a good idea. I was more or less allowing myself to be cornered.

"Just stay over there, and we'll be fine," I murmured aloud, never taking my eyes off him.

"Sarah!" a voice called, and both Grunt and I turned to see Abby and HK approaching, both of them looking pretty happy and content overall.

"About damn time," Grunt muttered. "I can't stand around forever."

"Shepard just got Kasumi, and she's going to go talk to Anderson now," HK continued. "And so she sent us to meet you two."

Ah, Anderson. I felt a twinge of regret about the fact that I wasn't going on that trip. Then again... when you get right down to it, THIS is more along my lines of a good time, and how I wanted to spend my day. Let me go shopping with my friends any day.

I cast a wary glance toward Grunt. Well... this should still be fun, regardless.

"Hey, Grunt," Abby said cheerfully, "we'll make it up to you. Do you like fish? There's a place on this Ward that sells them."

Grunt chuckled. "It'd sound good to devour something," he replied.

"Okay..." HK said slowly, blinking at the krogan. "So what are we doing first?"

I glanced at my companions, looking them each briefly in the eyes-and glancing away from Grunt quickly. "Well... shall we just wander around a little, and see if we see any interesting stores to go in?" I had a tendancy to follow whoever I was with on a shopping trip. I did find some stores boring, but at the same time I wasn't a picky person.

"Wherever you guys wanna go," Abby said, shrugging.

"Well, let's just wander," I said again, shrugging myself. I just wanted to get going somewhere. Plus Grunt was starting to look restless again.

"Alright then," HK said, turning around. We all began to walk, heading out into the Zakera Ward. It was a very crowded place; people were coming and going out of shops and corridors constantly.

I glanced toward a large section in the middle of the large hall, where a salarian was standing behind a counter. He was speaking in a loud, clear voice to several potential customers, about the kinds of games he had available. He mentioned something about role-playing games, and I found myself peering more intently in his direction. Ah, the irony. If only he knew.

I glanced briefly toward my friends-and Grunt-to make sure I hadn't lost sight of them. And while my head was turned, I caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of my eye. I saw the salarian raise his hand, holding up some sort of game. My head turned sharply in the salesman's direction and my eyes widened-did I see what I THOUGHT I saw?

There was no way to tell, now. His hands were below the counter and he was talking intently with a small crowd. But for a moment-just a moment-I could have sworn I saw him holding up a game that said "Mass Effect" on it.

No way. It had to be my imagination. I shook my head as the four of us pressed onward.

Meanwhile, as we were walking, Abby was striking up a conversation with Grunt. "So that Claymore is really your favorite weapon, isn't it?" she asked, pointing at the weapon slung across Grunt's back.

"Hell yeah. Kills the best," Grunt replied.

"Don't you talk about killing in GOD'S UNIVERSE!" a woman shouted, hopping forward and whacking Grunt himself on the head.

All of our jaws nearly hit the floor.

"Hey, what the hell, you bi-" Grunt started, his rage growing, before we heard more voices.

"After that crazy nun!" a C-Sec officer shouted, darting towards us.

"You won't bring down a servant of the Lord!" Sister Ethea yelled, running off.

The officers shoved their way past us, charging after the crazy woman.

"What in the world?" HK asked in shock. "We're seeing her everywhere..."

"She's lucky, I nearly smashed her head. Would've been fun, too," Grunt growled.

Abby had a mysterious look in her eye as she followed Ethea's progress. "Go get her, Grunt!" she said suddenly. "Let's see if she can get away from _you_."

I blinked several times. Was she serious? Was she REALLY serious? I turned to look at Grunt... and I could see a fire in his eyes.

Grunt cracked his knuckles, starting to laugh. "I think I'd like to," he said, turning to chase after the lunatic and the C-Sec officers.

He was just about to take off, when HK interrupted. "NO!" he shouted. "If we get into anymore trouble, Shepard is going to have our heads on a platter. We'll be mounted in her room in place of those toy ships."

"She kills people all the time. I'm just going to kill one little person, Shepard won't care," Grunt said, still looking blood-hungry.

HK blinked at the krogan. "I know you like...murder and all, especially right now, but she's being chased by the law, so its not just her that you'll be fighting. And not to mention, a fight with Sister Ethea would _not_ be your run of the mill fight."

"He can take her!" Abby said unhelpfully.

I wasn't sure what to do. I knew that Shepard would kill us if we got into trouble. "Hey um... should we try to find something to drink?" I said out loud. I was feeling a bit thirsty. I glanced around, although I couldn't tell if there were any stores nearby that sold beverages.

Then I noticed a trash canister nearby. I peered into it out of sheer curiousity. There was nothing inside of it... well, almost nothing. There was only a single, paper cup inside that had a plastic lid and a plastic straw in it. I also immediately recognized what it was, when I saw the picture of the slushy puppy on the side of it; it was one of those slushy drinks that you could get. I could also tell that it was cherry... my favorite flavor.

I was surprised that they had these on the Citadel. And it still had a little bit inside of it, and the cup was sitting right-side up, in the center of the trash can. I glanced around, making sure that no passers-by were paying me any attention. I then turned back to regard the cup inside the trash can. Well... what were a few germs? I doubted that a turian or a quarian had it; probably a human or a salarian.

I bent over the can and grabbed the cup, and tried to be discreet as I took a quick drink from the cup.

It was delicious.

"Sarah...what are you...how could you..." HK said, horrified and stunned.

"I'm going to go kill her," Grunt announced, not caring about what I just did.

"Everyone stop!" HK exclaimed. We all looked at him, even Grunt. "Can we stop acting like we're mentally incapacitated and just find a store?"

I glanced around sheepishly, then dropped the cup back into the trash where it belonged.

"Mommy... I'm scared," a six-year old human whispered loudly from the bench a few feet away from us.

Grunt looked at her. The parent took the child and, with a frightened look at the krogan, darted away.

Abby started snickering.

"Mean teenagers who laugh at children, with a young adult and a krogan. What a lovely reputation on the Citadel," HK scoffed. "But uhh...lets go before we cause anymore trouble."

I actually found myself leading the way toward the nearest store, just so we could... get out of the open space. If this went on much longer, C-Sec might come after US, after all.

The store I ducked into appeared to be some sort of gift shop. My eyes widened as I noticed an assortment of polished stones and natural rocks inside of a glass showcase. Most of them appeared to be for sale.

"Hey Abby," I called out, assuming that the others had followed me in, "didn't you once tell me you'd love to have a celestite?" I pointed to a particularlly beautiful rock within the glass.

Abby stood behind me, peering over my shoulder. Her eyes went wide. "That's so pretty!"

"I'd love to stomp that into the ground. I doubt any human could..." Grunt remarked with a chuckle.

I gave him a look. "Come on, these are so beautiful and it probably took a long time to polish them!" I stated firmly.

"It takes a long time for parents to make a baby and care for it, but I'll kill it thirty years later anyway," Grunt retorted.

I pressed my lips into a thin line but said nothing. What was I supposed to say to that?

Abby burst out laughing. The owner of the shop, a turian, glanced at us concernedly. "Nice," she said appreciateivly.

I cleared my throat a little and leaned forward. "Could I take one of those?" I asked politely, pointing to a large cut diamond. I was pretty sure that we needed to re-assure the shop owner that we were here to shop, not to wreck the place or stand around talking. Besides... I was pretty sure I could afford it.

Abby wandered away towards the other side of the shop, admiring some stones from the asari homeworld of Thessia.

The turian shopkeeper bent down to reach inside of the display case and took out the cut stone. It was about an inch in diameter, and it glimmered like a shining star in the light of the room. "That will be five-thousand credits," he said. There was something about the way he said that that suggested he was thinking, "I want you to pay up before I'll let you touch it."

I handed over my newly aquired credit chit, so that he could withdraw the correct amount. He took it, studied it for a moment, then nodded. After a moment or two he handed it back to me. He then wrapped the diamond in a small, plastic packaging and slid it into a small bag, then handed it to me. "Pleasure doing business with you," he said, then glanced in the direction of the others.

Abby came back to the counter with a silver ring intricately threaded with shots of blue stone I didn't recognize. She handed it to the turian without a word and passed her credit chit over. The turian, even more thoroughly confused now, swiped it. Instead of handing it back to her, he studied the numbers on the card and manually typed them in, as if double-checking. "Do you have ID?" he asked.

Grunt leaned over the counter, fixing the clerk with a menacing glare.

"On second thought, here you go," he said, wrapping up the ring. He handed her the card and she stuffed it into her pocket, grinning. "Will you be... making any other purchases today?"

I chimed in in spite of myself. "Got any nice stones from the turian homeworld?" Hey, I couldn't resist.

The turian brought me to a special display case, watching closely by the krogan, who seemed to be enjoying it. The clerk was breaking into a metaphorical sweat, torn between protecting his back and making a sale to three high-rollers who obviously felt like spending some money. He pointed out a few larger, nicer looking stones, and gave me a brief history on them and how they were made. None of them had price tags, which I was automatically suspiscious about.

I eyed them carefully for a moment. I was intrigued by the stone in the center that he'd pointed out; it was kind of an odd shade of red, and appeared to be mostly crystal. Curious, I pointed to it and asked, "How much is that one?"

He wrote down a number and showed it to me. I blanched.

"Why the hell is it THAT much?" I couldn't help but blurt out.

"It's a precious stone," said the clerk, "and a rarity."

"Is it really rare?" I asked, feeling somewhere between awed and suspicious. If it really was rare... maybe it would be worth the price and it would be nice to have. Especially since it from the turian homeworld.

Abby appeared behind me and gazed at it. "It's okay-looking," she said nonchalantly.

The clerk's facial expression twitched ever so slightly. "It's a supreme rarity, I assure you. The carats in there alone-"

"Yeah," she said, "but what can you do with it? Are there any special properties?"

"It is extremely hard, having been made deep within Palavan's crust nearly three-hundred thousand years ago."

"Of course." She grinned when the clerk bristled.

"Lower the price on that crap or you die," Grunt threatened.

The clerk definitely twitched this time. "But I can't! And I can have security on you as quickly as you can pull out that shotgun, so you better not be making threats!"

"Grunt," I said, "please be quiet and let me handle this, okay?"

"If you want to be stupid and fall for this shit, then fine," Grunt growled with a shrug.

I just didn't want us to get into trouble. Of course I didn't say that aloud, though.

I turned to look at the stone again. I mulled it over in my mind for a moment, then I finally said, "Maybe I'll come back another time."

"Yeah, let's leave before we get arrested," Abby muttered.

The clerk glared at us with a mixture of fear and anger.

I stuffed my diamond into my pocket and hurried out through the front door, ushering the others to follow me. I figured we had caused enough trouble in that one store for one day. Maybe if we were lucky... that turian would forget about us within a few days or something.

Yeah right... that probably wasn't likely, considering what an odd group we were.

"So Grunt... anywhere you want to shop?" I asked over my shoulder, in spite of myself.

"Uh," HK interrupted before Grunt could say anything. "How about we go eat something first, before we continue our little trip across the Citadel?"

"Yeah, I'm starving," Grunt agreed.

"I wonder if I can get a fresh, puppy slushy," I commented aloud.

"Foooood," Abby agreed.

"So where should we go?" Grunt asked.

"Um...hmm," HK said, thinking for a moment. "There is that ramen place downstairs, in the lower Zakera wards."

"I like ramen noodles," I said positively, with a nod of agreement.

"Raaaamen," Abby agreed.

So it was more or less agreed by all of us. Grunt didn't really comment, although I wasn't sure if he even knew what ramen was.

A few minutes later we arrived at the place, where the Italian sounding human was positioned behind the counter. I noticed that he had a few helpers in the back, a couple of humans and even a turian. In some ways I sorta wondered if the turian felt at all repulsed to be working with human food... then again, for all I knew, maybe they served things that were okay for turians to eat, too.

As we gathered near the counter, I saw Grunt sniffing the air intently. There seemed to be a scowl growing on his face.

"I'll eat _anything_, but that just looks disgusting. Like worms," Grunt scoffed. "And I will eat almost anything, but not worms."

That sort of surprised me, because I thought that krogans might like worms... apparently they didn't mind eating raw fish or whatever. Unless maybe he just had... personal preference or a unique taste.

Or maybe he truly thought this stuff was worms, and it was turning him off of worms. I don't know.

"It's pasta," I told him, trying to clarify that fact.

Grunt just shook his head in complete disgust.

"Would you like it if we ask them to put some meatballs with it?" I asked with a little shrug.

"Hell no. I won't have any of that crap," Grunt answered.

"They have fish," Abby said, pointing to a few items on the menu. "It's raw. Would you like that?"

"Yeah, that'll be something worth tearing apart," Grunt nodded.

"So fish for the krogan, and what will the rest of you have?" the chef asked, approaching.

"I'm fine, just some water," HK answered.

"And you two?" the chef inquired, looking to Abby and I.

"Plain ramen noodles," I said simply, then looked at Abby. "And do you have... a rootbeer float?" I added after a second.

He shook his head. "Uh, no," he replied.

I frowned slightly. "Water then," I shrugged. "Please," I added quickly.

"I'll have the Pad See Ew, with beef, please," Abby said, pushing the menu away. "And some water, please."

I had no idea what she just said. Then again I was hardly an expert on pasta. I glanced over at Grunt, who was simply standing there... but I swear he had the glare of death in his eyes. He still seemed restless.

"You okay?" I asked him quietly. I wanted to know if we were at risk of him going on some sort of rampage through the Citadel halls... or whacking me on the head again. I scooted myself a couple of stools down the row at the counter, just to be on the safe side.

"I want to kill some dumbasses, but yeah, I'm fine," Grunt simply replied.

"You're... not gonna whack anybody on the head, are you?" I muttered aloud.

"If someone pisses me off, then hell yeah, but not for any other reason. I'd like to, but I don't want Shepard to get her panties bunched up if I happen to off some stupid bystander," Grunt answered.

Well, that was re-assuring... I guess.

A few minuntes later our food was served. It smelled delicious. HK sipped his water while Abby and I began to dig into our meals. I glanced toward Grunt... and I was mildly surprised to find that the dish of fish he'd been served was actually kind of... small. Well, I was certain it would fill me up, but for a krogan it would probably only be a small snack.

I glanced around me. "That gonna be enough for Grunt?" I commented out loud, to no one in particular.

"Yeah, lets get out of here," Grunt replied.

I raised my eyebrows, surprised. Then I looked at Abby. "Um... should we take this to go?" I gestured at our half-eaten food. I was really trying my best to simply not piss off Grunt.

Abby held up one finger and hurriedly shoveled a quarter of the meal into her mouth. Sucking in the noodles, she nodded, mouth too full to speak, and gestured for me to talk to the cook.

I blinked at her, then I looked at the cook. "Um... here's my credit chit." I figured I would handle paying for the meal. I probably wasn't going to be able to spend all of these credits during the course of this mission anyway, even if I saw a ton of things I wanted.

Once the meal was paid for, the three of us moved away from the counter. I double-checked to make sure my chit was in my pocket, then I smiled casually at my friends-and Grunt. "So... where to next?" I asked.

Abby was hurriedly eating her meal out of her box with a plastic spoon, so I figured she wouldn't have a real answer. However, she took such a large swallow that I winced just hearing it and said, "We still need to get you some clothes!"

"Clothes?" I said, glancing down at myself. I decided it was more polite to ignore Abby's... present eating habits. "Guess I could use some." I never really stopped to think about it all that much, but... pretty much I just had a few Cerberus outfits, and technically, most of them were borrowed.

The clothes I was wearing right now were the ones that I had been wearing the day we showed up on the Normandy. The others I had borrowed from... well, Kelly. Not that she seemed to mind all that much.

"Yeah, sounds like a good idea," I finally said.

So we got some clothes, but decided to call it an early day when Grunt's temper nearly got the better of him and he pressed a small, human man against the wall of his store when Grunt decided he was too infuriating. Honestly, the man did kind of bring it on himself by pretending Grunt didn't exist while he fluttered around me, trying to sell me stuff I absolutely didn't need. In the end, I ended up with a few bags of clothes (all with a discount, surprisingly) and we were on the way back to the transit terminal when Shepard commed Grunt.

I didn't have a communicator on me, so I didn't hear what was said except that it made Grunt slightly more joyful than before. Thane, Shepard, and Garrus met us there.

"We're heading to find Sidonus," Commander Shepard said with a glance at me. "Grunt's with us, and Thane will escort you back to the ship."

That sounded good to me. I didn't want to spend any more time with Grunt anyway. And I really did like Thane a lot.

"Hey, Garrus?" I said suddenly, my mind taking note of the fact that they were going after Sidonis.

Garrus gave me one slow, unfathomable look. He shook his head. "No."

I scowled at him. "I wasn't going to ask to come," I stated, my tone dripping with irritation.

Garrus didn't seem to be in the mood to play games. He was about to confront the man who nearly cost him his life, and he was tense. "Sorry," he apologized. "Then what were you going to ask?"

I could tell he wasn't in a mood to talk much, and he was in a hurry. So I decided to be totally up front and blunt. "First of all I think you should take either HK or Abby with you. Maybe they can help you find a way to get in and out of there without having to fight too much... or maybe they can warn you what's up ahead, at least. And second..." I glanced down at the ground for a brief moment, feeling a little sheepish. Okay, so I still cared a lot about what happened, sue me. I quickly looked up, meeting his gaze again. "Once it's all done, promise me you'll tell me how it all went." I swallowed. "Please," I added quickly.

Garrus looked slightly taken aback by my request, but he offered one small nod. "Yeah... sure, I'd tell you. You deserve to know the outcome. There will only be one, though: Sidonus is going to die."

I slowly turned to look at Shepard, giving her a meaningful glance. "Maybe, maybe not," I said, still talking to Garrus. In some ways... I was trying to give Shepard as much of a hint as I could.

His facial things twitched in agitation. "Commander," he said, looking at Shepard, "is it possible to bring one of them with us?"

"Yes," Shepard said. She looked at us. "You both have your sidearms on you?"

Abby and HK nodded. I frowned. Where the heck were they hiding those?

"And the shield overlays?"

Again they both nodded. I was confused, now-was Shepard expecting them to get attacked _again_?

"So uh... who's going?" I slowly asked, looking right at Shepard.

"They are both capable," Thane said, enunciating his words slowly, measuring them carefully. "But they aren't fully recovered from their ordeal, neither of them. Their reactions are slower, their walk more shuffled comparing them to the videos you showed me of their training, Commander. I would recommend patience."

"No," Garrus said flatly. "Sidonus is out there now, Commander, and if we wait we're only allowing him to escape." He threw a wild look at Abby and HK. Taking a deep breath and calming himself, Garrus said in a marginally more controlled voice, "We'll cover them, Commander. They won't be in any more danger with us than they would be if they were fit to fight."

Abby threw me an apologetic glance at me, then HK. She took a step foreword. "I'll go," she said, biting her lip. Her jaw was working. "I can do it."

Garrus nodded. He seemed satisfied.

Commander Shepard, though, was not. "I don't like this," she said, frowning deeply. "Your heart is in the right place, but I can't trust you to hold your own yet. I'm sorry, but the answer is-"

"Commander," Garrus said urgently. "Please. For me. Just this once-please."

Shepard exchanged a look with Thane, pursed her lips, and finally said, "Thane... take Sarah and HK back to the Normandy."

"Uh, I'll go, too. We can balance each other out in the fighting department. It'll be like having one of us at full health...I guess?" HK said, sounding not totally sure of what he was saying. "But if you'll have me, I'll come along, too."

Abby frowned-apparently she'd only volunteered so _he _wouldn't. Shepard sighed. "Okay," she said, sounding defeated. "Tactically, this fails," she said. "But if this works... well. Thane, Sarah: see you on the Normandy."

"'bye," Abby said wryly, looking at me with a guilty expression. She hurried after Shepard, who had begun to walk away towards the rental car station.

HK followed them as well.

I watched them go. Part of me still felt bad that I wasn't going, especailly since I'd spent so dang much time talking to Garrus about Sidonis, and... whatever the heck else.

But this also made me think about something else. It was something that I had been contemplating in the back of my mind for a while now... ever since, well, what happened nearly a week ago.

I glanced at Thane, who simply made a "shall we?" gesture toward the shuttle. Either that or it could have been a "ladies' first" gesture for all I knew. Either way, I simply nodded and moved inside the shuttle, taking a seat. He sat down in the seat across from me. I couldn't tell if he wanted to talk or if he simply felt like meditating. But he was looking at me, so I figured that it might be a good opportunity to talk.

"Thane," I said aloud, making certain I had his attention-his gaze locked onto me, although I was pretty sure he had been looking in my general direction anyway. "Can I say something?"

"Certainly," Thane said, inclining his head.

"Well," I murmured, sitting back in my seat a bit. I heard the sound of the engines powering up, and the shuttle shifted just a bit under our feet as we began to pull out of the docking port. I had no idea who was flying, but... it was probably the same person who flew Garrus and Shepard down in the first place.

I was silent for a moment, trying to gather my thoughts. "I'm sure you... heard about how I left the cockpit of the Normandy during that mission to save HK and Abby," I began. I then looked at him intently. I was trying to gauge how he felt about what happened, and what his thoughts were. Or if he said nothing much, I would just press on with what I wanted to say. Either way... I just wanted to get this out, somewhere. And Thane seemed to have a good, listening ear.

Thane merely sat, waiting for me to continue.

I cleared my throat softly, then went on. "Well yeah... I didn't really leave the cockpit because I had a nosebleed. I mean... yes I did have a nosebleed, but at the same time..." I pressed my lips together in a thin line, looking at him again.

He simply continued to sit there, obviously intent on listening, but silent. So I simply decided to launch into what I wanted to say.

"Frankly, when this mission first started-I mean, when we first got yanked into this whole adventure, the day me, Abby and HK ended up on the Normandy... it was so scary at first. And I was sure that I was going to die. I mean, at least HK and Abby could defend themselves. And I even acted like a jerk for a while until I found a purpose on the ship; I began to clean and cook.

"So," I continued, "well... I was kind of looking out for myself a whole lot. I was nervous when people went out on missions, but they always came back okay. Sometimes they were not in the greatest shape in the world, but they were alive and Dr. Chakwas could always patch them up." I paused, thinking briefly of that scar Abby had on her face. Where did she get that again? Was it during Jack's recruition mission? I shoved the thought aside; it was irrelevent. "So I guess I have been taking for granted that people are gonna go on dangerous missions, but they'll keep on coming back... more or less in one peice, because it's always happened so far.

"Anyway," I went on, "well... let's just say that one of my... visions showed me a possible future; I could get captured by Collectors, and die. So I decided to go on another mission, and Shepard let me go to Haestrom, but that went so terribly. So it feels like... I might die one way or another. Because I almost did on Haestrom."

I paused for another breath, taking a moment to gather my thoughts again, then I proceeded with my speech. "But you know... when Abby and HK got captured? That was NOT supposed to happen. And when everybody left the ship to go rescue them..." I pressed my lips together again, inhaling deeply through my nostrils. "I had almost been able to forget what happened on Haestrom, when I almost died... and Shepard was making me watch everything, and it was sorta like being on another mission. I guess part of me felt... scared, even though I was on the safety of the Normandy the entire time.

"And," I went on, "well... this was the first time that... nothing in my 'visions' could tell me what was going to happen. I was worried that you or Shepard or one of the others would get badly hurt, and I was afraid that HK or Abby had been badly hurt. I didn't want to see that. I wanted to see you guys when you came back to the ship, safe and sound, or under Chakwas' care. I didn't want to see one of you DIE right in front of me. So when I got a nosebleed... I used that as an excuse to leave my post. Because... I didn't feel like I could handle it."

I leaned back in my seat again, not realizing I had leaned forward toward Thane. I felt a little embarrassed by that, and sheepish about... well, pouring out my heart so much. But... there, I said it. And I did feel a little better about it.

"There is a tale among my people," Thane said softly, breaking his silence for the first time, "about a male. We never knew his name because records were not kept that well such a long time ago. When we lived on our home planet, in the beginning, before the hanar uplifted us, this man was invisible. He was timid and afraid, though his heart was in the right place.

"I won't say that we are the peaceful people your species tend to think we are-we've had wars. Plague. Suffering equal or even surpassing the kind you're ancestors endured on Earth. This man was called upon to fight, but as soon as he saw the action he would run away. Hide in fear, waiting for it to be over. And then...

"Then he saw the carnage and destruction of war firsthand. He journied to the Sunset Seas and knelt upon their shores. It was a very holy place for us, where we would contact Kalihira, goddess of the ocean and the afterlife. He asked her if she may spare those around him from the carnage of war, and Kalihira replied that he must prove that he is worth listening to, for he was a coward and she does not take kindly to those who shirk from their duties.

"And so this man prays to Arashu, the protector, and asks her if she would watch over his actions. Arashu did not answer his prayers, because she agreed with Kalihira. The man prayed to the rest of the gods, but there was no other answer. He had only Kalihira's word to go upon. And so he took his spear and he took his supplies and rejoined those who called upon his help. They paid no attention to him and would not talk to him, and he knew he had disappointed them. He wrote down his story in a journal, detailing his plans to help win this war, and left.

"Until then he had been a coward, afraid of death and battle. He simply cared too much about those around him. Instead of leaving the army as he did before, he rejoined at another location. He trained and trained and put his skills to good use. He was never a mighty warrior, never somebody as smart as those who ranked above him, but he made up for it with committment and passion. Because he cared, because he accepted the risks that were upon him just like the others had. Because he had learned never to ask somebody to do something that he wasn't willing to do himself."

Thane leaned back in his seat, still staring at me with those strange, glassy eyes of him. "He enabled the hero of the story, Lenot, to win the war. He was never mentioned until after his death, not even by Lenot. Only when his journal was uncovered did we realize the role he had played in the entire war. And so his name still is not known, Lenot and all who fought with him are dead, and his story is one of the most well-known among our children today."

Thane wasn't done speaking, yet. I'd never seen him talk so much. "Humans have a saying... 'Rise up and rise up again, until lambs become lions.' If you give up now, while we all still depend on you, even if it is a minute dependance at best, you will continue to stay a lamb for the rest of your life until the end, when all of your various mistakes come crashing down on your shoulders and grief takes your heart so suddenly it is hard to breathe."

Thane bowed his head, and was finally silent.

I stared at him for a long moment. I had a feeling that I was probably going to be thinking over-and trying to process-everything he'd just said for hours, maybe even days.

Finally, I decided to speak again. "Thanks for telling me about that," I said genuinely, giving him an inclination of my head-somewhere between a bow and a nod. "You know... there's always been something that I've struggled with. It's like, well..."

I paused, wondering if I should even say it. But he seemed like a wonderful listener... and it seemed like it was my turn to talk again. I guess.

"I hate making mistakes and I hate disappointing people," I finally blurted. "And I'm not sure if I'll ever stop feeling that way because I think it's just part of my nature. But when it happens, I feel like I just want to wipe it away somehow or make it so it never happened. But that's impossible because it did happen, and everybody will always remember it. So," I shrugged, "I guess I'm not really sure how to move past some things, so to speak."

"Letting go of the past is something each of us struggles with on a day-to-day basis," he said. "But those mistakes shape us and mold us into the being our gods had always envisioned us becoming. Embrace every mistake as proof of your existance in this life... you're..." His lips shaped around the word with difficulty. "Humanity. Use them to become aware."

I shook my head slightly, gazing downward at my shoes. It was then that I realized our purchases had been tipped over by my feet. I bent down to put them back into their parcels, and I made a mental note to put everything we had bought in the room that me, HK and Abby shared as soon as I got back to the Normandy. "You make it sound like making mistakes is a good thing," I finally said as I finished straightening the bags and carefully shoving them aside.

"Mistakes in everyday life are common," he said. "That's why you train yourself. Over, and over, and over, until your reactions become so much a part of your muscle memory that a mistake to you would not be a mistake to anybody else. For example..." His lips quirked in a small smile. "I have difficulty adjusting to dining in the mess hall among others. Recently, I took my food into my quarters, preventing me from building the strong social relations that are needed for the completition of the mission. A mistake anybody could make, but it seems larger to me than it would to you, perhaps, or Shepard. I also accidentally put the dishes in the trash, thinking it was a hanar version of a dishwasher. I expect that is why you took so long in arriving. But when I fight, I fight as I train-hard, accurate, and relentlessly. When I fight... when I kill, the mistakes I make are so tiny that nobody would notice them but me. And so I correct it and move on. Mistakes are nothing but a learning experiance. About yourself and your mandate in life."

I thought over his words, then nodded a little. "Yeah, makes sense," I agreed. "Though sometimes I wish mistakes didn't have to happen. It would be nice if we could just be perfect from the start." I laughed a little, though it wasn't very heartfelt.

"Some would argue that it is the pursuit of knowledge that gives meaning to life," Thane pointed out. "Being perfect from the start of creation would be unnatural."

I was too tired to get into a religious or philosophical discussion, so I simply chose to nod. "Yeah, makes sense," I said simply, and gazed out the window.

Thane simply looked at me, then closed his eyes, sliding into meditation. It seemed to be all he would say on the matter.

I peered at him for a long moment, then I rested my head against the back of the seat. I guess I would just relax too, until we got back to the Normandy. Shouldn't be much longer now anyway.


	24. The Turian Rebel

**(HK)**

After leaving Sarah and Thane behind, we had gone about the usual routines of Garrus's loyalty mission: Go to Bailey and talk to him about Fade, then start to head down to the lower levels where Fade was.

And throughout all of that time, my mind couldn't stray from how Garrus's emotions were right now. It was very similar to in the game: He was more bent on revenge than ever before, and was ready to kill Sidonis. The Garrus we all knew and wanted to change.

However, it seemed so much more in-depth, being right next to him. I could see the fire in his eyes when he glanced at us. The hurt, the pain, the anger, the need for blood. It almost matched up to Grunt's thirst for death and action.

Almost.

I wondered if Shepard would let Sidonis die or bring Garrus back to his senses and let the turian live; maybe I was biased, but letting Sidonis die was a cold choice that cemented Garrus's outlook on life and death for eternity. Since ME3 has yet to come out, we won't know what he'll be like there, but I doubted that it would be any different if you killed Sidonis and went on your merry way.

When we made this bizarre wish, we wanted Shepard to be a Paragon. And all things considered, she had been. Renegade Shepard would have flayed us alive or held us captive for days after we bursted on to her ship. However, some of what she did and said was still unexpected, especially because she was _Shepard_. We didn't control her anymore, we could only guess at what she would do.

And she had ignored Billy on Purgatory. She let Daniel die on Omega, though to her credit, she did try to save him. It just wasn't enough. I hoped that letting an old friend murder a turian, no matter how cowardly he had been, crossed the line for her.

_We can focus on that after we deal with this. Before the choice comes, we have to get through Harkin and all of his thugs and mechs._

All five of us walked through the door that led into that storage area, or whatever it was, in the lower Zakera Ward. We looked around, and saw two krogan just standing there, watching us. A few seconds later, that volus contact approached.

"Fade? You're not quite how I imagined you," Shepard commented.

"Looks can be decieving," the contact retorted. "So, which one of you wants to disappear?"

"I wish you would make someone reappear," Garrus replied.

"Ah...that is not the service we provide."

Garrus pulled out his rifle within an instant, like it was nothing new. And, in truth, it wasn't. "Make an exception. Just this once."

The volus began to get alarmed. "Damn it! Quick, shoot them! Shoot them you lumberi-"

Shepard and her two party members opened fire on the two krogan, sending them down within seconds. The volus stared at them for a moment in shock, then turned back to us. "Why do I even bother?"

_Well, I see they enjoyed handling this the Renegade way._

Abby was looking at the corpses of the krogan with detached amusement. Since our capture I'd noticed she'd had less patience with krogan than ever before, even though Grunt was an exception. Her lips quirked in a small smile.

"We're looking for someone. A client of yours," Shepard continued, walking up closer to the volus.

This was always where the volus reached his limit and was ready to confess. "Not mine! I'm not Fade! I just work for him, sort of."

"I knew it," Shepard said, stepping back and looking at Garrus.

Garrus walked up to the contact, and crouched down. "Well then maybe you'd like to tell us where to find him."

Garrus grabbed the volus by the collar, and the contact began hurriedly speaking. "Y-Yes, of course! He's in the factory district, works out of the old prefab foundry."

"I know the place," Garrus told the rest of us.

He released the contact, and he turned to walk away. "Uh...he's got a lot of mercs there. Blue Suns. Harkin thinks they're protecting him."

"Harkin? What's he doing in all of this?" Shepard asked.

"I'll explain on the way," Garrus answered.

_Sarah._

That was all that needed to be addressed about that.

"So I..I can go?" the contact asked.

"Sure, but if we don't find Harkin, we'll be back for you," Garrus coldly answered.

The volus turned away. "Oh, good," he stated.

"Harkin's an ass," Abby stated, "but he's got a lot of hired muscle. Some heavy mechs, LOKI mechs, Blue Suns. The whole menegerie of troops. It'll be fun."

"Why yes, getting into another near-death incident will be tons of good fun and laughing," I sarcastically remarked, as we all whirled around and began to walk out of the room.

"Whatever the case, Sidonis will soon be dead," Garrus vowed.

* * *

After getting on a transport cab, or speeder, or whatever they were called, we headed right for the Zakera factory district. The ride was silent and solemn; Garrus just seemed to want to kill Sidonis, Shepard looked to be getting more concerned for him, and Grunt was probably just waiting to murder all the people that worked for Harkin.

Garrus didn't bother asking us about the mission, either. Sarah had likely told him every single detail about it.

The cab landed, and we all jumped out to see Harkin up ahead, with a few Blue Suns mercs.

"There he is," Shepard said.

Harkin looked at us in confusion and shock. "Shepard?" he said aloud. He looked to his mercs. "Don't just stand there, stop them! Stop them!"

"Run all you want, Harkin, we'll find you!" Garrus shouted.

We all darted for cover, and I made sure my rifle was loaded, before peeking back up. I took a shot at one Blue Suns merc, and he immediately fired back, but luckily I dodged it just in time.

Grunt charged out, Claymore in his hands, and ran over the nearest man. "Raaaaaaaah!" he yelled. I didn't bother to see how that played out, because there would only be one ending to that story.

Garrus squeezed off a few rounds and the other man did a stuttering dance, falling to the ground in a limp mass. "Wooohooo!" Abby yelled, grinning. "Good one!"

"Well, that took care of that," I commented, standing as we all prepared to enter the next room.

We did so, and at first, everything seemed calm. Shepard grabbed a few supplies off random desks and tables, but as we prepared to round a corner, a mech carrier opened, and shots were fired at us.

I felt a couple piece my armor, but thankfully, they didn't hit me anywhere. I darted for cover, like everyone else, and took several good shots at the mechs. One went down, while Grunt smashed another into pieces. Abby took out the last one on her own, but there wasn't any time to stop and breathe, because more mercs approached from the front.

Shepard did not say a word or look at one of us, but quickly threw her rifle behind her back, and the next thing I knew, her grenade launcher was out. She blew the mechs up within four or five seconds, using that heap of firepower.

"You're gonna need that," Abby said loudly, taking cover behind one of the many cargo boxes. "Save that ammo for the heavy mechs!" She flinched, covering her ears, when Shepard unleashed a shockwave of pure biotic energy. Three more LOKI mechs were taken out, but the aftershock of energy acted like a strong shove, sending Abby to the ground.

"Incoming," she said calmly, staring up at the ceiling. I glanced up, too, and noticed that small cargo-carriers were dropping more mechs on our position.

Grunt barked out a laugh. "Is that all he's got?" he bellowed, raising his Claymore.

Abby sprinted for cover across the small path made by the cargo containers, taking up position beside Garrus and I. "Grunt, take point," Shepard said, reloading. She appeared next to us. "Garrus, take the rear."

I thought Shepard might have been trying to stop Garrus from making irrational choices, but when he took out his sniper rifle I understood-he was a better long-range fighter than any of us.

Shepard and Grunt charged on ahead, systematically taking out the resistance. Abby and I followed behind.

We fired a few shots at the mechs, or the few mercs that were around, that we could, but it was mostly everyone else doing all the work. Before we could even fire at a mech, one of the three others had taken it out.

They were almost better than they were in the game.

It didn't take long at all for this group to be devoured, and we all pressed on, into the next area.

"Harkin's in here somewhere. I can smell him," Garrus declared.

"Good to know," I muttered.

We rounded another corner, and the mercs up ahead spotted us. The mechs started calling out attack protocols, while missiles and biotics and bullets were all launched at us. I ran up onto an upper platform, taking cover behind some boxes, and when there wasn't a barrage of various attacks coming at me, I came out of hiding and shot furiously at a few mercs.

Grunt charged once again, literally devouring our opponents in a number of ways. Garrus continued his snipering tactics, while Shepard pretty much performed every kind of attack you could think of.

We pressed forward as more fell, but there was still chaos going on all around us.

We slid into cover behind Shepard, who was taking a quick breather while Grunt and Garrus took care of the rest of them. "Tell me, off the record" she said in a low voice, "just how bad is this going to be for him?"

Abby shot me a questioning look. I just nodded. "There are two ways this can go-you can kill Sidonis or not. Personally, I think that if you killed Sidonis it would be worse for Garrus in the long run. Let him live, and Garrus finally begins to forgive himself."

"Indeed," I agreed. "Killing Sidonis won't do much for Garrus. Not as much as letting him live will. It'll be behind him, either way, but if Sidonis lives, Garrus will finally come out of this strange state he's been in, about killing and all that."

Shepard nodded. "I'll keep that in mind."

She stood, making an upward motion with her hand, and the six or so cargo containers offering shelter to a group of Blue Suns rose in the air, giving grunt ample oppertunity to sate his bloodrage.

* * *

"Aw, _crap." _Garrus didn't sound happy, and Abby and I immediately knew why. "Two heavy mechs incoming!"

Abby turned right back around and climbed on top of the higher cover, motioning for me to do the same. "Shep," she said, activating her communicater since the Commander wouldn't be able to hear her over the gunfire, "we're going to stay up here, there's not enough room for all five of us down there."

Shepard nodded, looking at us from down below, and said something to Garrus. He ran to the other side of the pack, staying low. I could see the heavy mechs taking aim. They opened up with their automatic weapons, and I saw a few glance off of the turian's bullets before he slid smoothly into cover. At the same time, Shepard had run off in the complete opposite direction, jumping up the small ledge and hitting cover before the two mechs could so much as compute the problem.

Grunt, being Grunt, stayed right where he was.

Abby activated her omni-tool, a gift from Mordin before her mission to Purgatory, and typed in a command. She stood, exposing herself to enemy fire for a few minutes while her omni-tool made the connection. I had to fight the urge to pull her back down into cover when she stumbled back a few steps, reeling from the kinetic weight of the bullets pounding into her shields.

She knelt back down, pale and unsteady. "Left guy's shields are down, Shep!"

"Whoa. Maybe I didn't pl-see enough in my visions, but I thought only Kasumi could do that," I commented, shocked, while Shepard pounded into the left heavy mech.

Abby still looked pale and unsteady on her feet, breathing heavily. We both hadn't fully recovered from our ordeal yet, and I felt weaker and more fatigued than I was used to. "Mordin had an upgrade for me. Kind of like a bad-ass Overload, it short-circuits the shields or something, I don't know. It works pretty well with the heavy mechs."

"Are you alright?" I asked. I didn't feel well, but she looked a little worse off. "I can't have you falling unconscious right in the middle of a battle like this, or you'll be scrubbing the floors with Sarah until the suicide mission."

"Oh please," she grumbled. "You're talking to the lady who stayed up playing games with an idiot boy the night before her blackbelt test at 5AM the next morning." She peeked over cover. Shepard seemed to be making short work of the heavy mech she'd stripped the shields off of. "Fun fun."

I looked over as well, and saw Garrus and Grunt turning to the other mech. It wasn't letting up, throwing missiles and firing it's machine gun like everything. We continued to wait, making sure we were down so the mech didn't spot us. It wasn't long before we heard Shepard join in on the second fight, after an explosion was heard.

"This is the worst part of his mission," I muttered to Abby.

She nodded fervently. "Time to hit Harkin, then we can rest."

We both stood once Shepard and the two finished off the mech, and she looked up to us, motioning for us to follow them. We immediately ran after the group, and I could tell just by his body language that Garrus was getting more and more tense; more and more ready to beat Harkin to a pulp and kill Sidonis.

I cringed.

"You'll never make it!" Harkin shouted, as we approached the center of his lair.

_That still doesn't make sense. We beat two heavy mechs with no problem and he thinks small LOKI mechs are a problem?_

Everyone, including Abby and I, opened fire on the LOKI Mechs. A minute went by, and they were down for the count. With that, Garrus glanced at all of us, and Shepard just nodded at him.

"I'm going around to intercept him incase he tries to run," Garrus simply said, before darting off.

I sighed, looking at Abby again. "Oh dear."

"Hurry," she whispered, jumping down the small cargo platform we'd been using as cover. She followed closely behind Shepard, and after a moment I did, too. She, Grunt, Abby, and I climbed up the various platforms, silent except for our heavy breathing, and it was Shepard and Abby who reached the top first.

They moved in on the open door, their weapons already aimed; a small heat haze seemed to wrap Shepard's body, which I instantly recognized as a biotic charging their powers up.

Just as I climbed the last platform, behind Grunt, I heard Harkin snort. "You were close, Shepard," he said, and I knew he must be preparing to run. "But not close eno-ung!" There was a commotion, and then Garrus spoke:

"So, Fade, couldn't make yourself disappear, huh?" he hissed. I walked into the room, my pistol drawn, in time to see Garrus slam Harkin to the wall, pinning him there by his throat.

"Come on, Garrus," Harkin said, a small smile on his face. It didn't hide the fear we could all see in his eyes. "We can work this out. Whaddya need?"

Garrus observed him for one second, then let him go. Turning around, he glanced at us, then at the wall. Abby and Grunt, on Shepard's silent orders, moved across the room to stand guard over the only other exit. "I'm looking for someone," Garrus said.

Harkin stretched out his shoulders, popping his neck "Well... looks like we both got something the other one wants."

Garrus turned right back around and got in his face, his expression hard. Then, in one swift movement, he plunged his hard, armored turian knee right into the man's testicles. I winced automatically; Grunt chuckled appreciatively.

"That had to hurt," Shepard said dryly. "Maybe you should just tell us what we want to know."

Harkin struggled to his feet. "I still don't know what you want to know!" he growled, slightly hunched over. I was kind of impressed-he'd taken that knee _hard._

"You helped a friend of mine disappear," Garrus stated. "I need to find him."

"I'll need more info than that."

"His name is Sidonis, he came from the-"

"I know who he is!" Harking snapped, "and I ain't telling you squat."

"Is that information really worth all the trouble?" Shepard asked sweetly.

"I don't give out client information, it's bad for business." Harkin's back was against the wall, now. He wasn't going to be going anywhere.

Garrus moved faster than I had imagined, gripping Harkin's head with both hands and kneeing him in the stomach. Harkin dropped to the ground, groaning, and Garrus placed one foot on his throat. "You know what else is bad for business?" he demanded. "A broken neck!"

"Uggggh! Urrrgh! Get off me, you crazy turian! All right, all right, get the hell offa me!"

Garrus and Shepard exchanged a look, and then they both looked at me. I nodded, and Garrus released his hold.

"Living out there in the Terminus really changed you, huh Garrus?" Harkin whispered, sitting up.

"No, but Sidonis... opened my eyes," Garrus muttered. "Now arrange a meeting."

Harkin was left to stumble to his feet, and I watched, feeling just a little bad for him. I knew exactly what a strike from Garrus felt like thanks to our training sessions, and it wasn't a forgettable feeling. I glanced at Abby, but she was looking intently at Harkin, a frown on her face.

"I'm going," Harkin muttered. He limped over to the communications relay and opened up a link. "Hey, it's me," he said in a morose tone of voice. "There's a chance your identity may be compromised. That's why I'm calling. I'm sending an agent. Where do you want to meet?"

Garrus had taken out his pistol and was looking it over with a benign expression. He exchanged a glance with Shepard, who looked at him impassively.

"Yeah, yeah, don't worry, I got it covered," Harkin said. He clicked out of the link and turned to look at Garrus. "He wants to meet with you in front of Orbital Lounge, middle of the day. So if that's all, I'll be going..."

"Oh I don't think so," Garrus said, gripping the front of Harkin's shirt and pulling him closer. "You're a criminal now, Harkin. I can't just let you run free."

"So what, you gonna kill me?" he challenged. "That's not your style, Garrus..."

I cringed as Garrus spoke again. "Kill you? No, but I don't mind slowing you down a little," Garrus said, taking out his rifle.

_Shepard, please stop him._

Shepard jumped forward and grabbed Garrus's arm. Garrus looked at her in shock.

"You don't need to do that," Shepard told him firmly. "Let C-sec handle him."

Garrus scowled, then shook her off. She took a couple of steps back, eyeing him warily. Then Garrus turned back to look at Harkin. "I guess this is your lucky day," he told him dryly.

Harikin appeared relieved-until Garrus's knee shot up and kicked him firmly between the legs.

"Come on," Shepard said to all of us, turning her back completely on Harkin and pointedly walking away. Her movements and her body language all said the same thing without her having to say it: Let's go, we're done here.

"I didn't shoot him," Garrus said in dry amusement as he followed after Shepard.

Abby and I exchanged a relieved, happy look. I walked behind Shepard and Garrus, feeling pretty good, when I heard a grunt of pain and a chuckle from Grunt. I twisted around, looking back, and noticed Abby standing over the prone figure of Harkin. He seemed to be knocked out. "And that was for flirting with Shepard two years ago," she said, grinning, but he was beyond hearing.

"I like this one," Grunt rumbled.

"Abby!" Shepard's voice was sharp. "What do you think gives you the right to kick the man while he's down?"

Abby blanched, surprised. "If we alert C-Sec they'll catch him," she said, sounding slightly hurt. "Okay? I'm just trying to help-"

"I don't care," Garrus said, walking past us all. "I just want Sidonis."

* * *

Grunt and I followed Garrus right to the catwalk. He was carrying his sniper rifle, and was fully prepared to off Sidonis. It had been a very intense ride over here. Abby and I knew what was about to happen, and that Shepard had to save Sidonis. Shepard had also spoken to Garrus, explaining how this wasn't him, and she wouldn't let a situation like this change her too much.

"Ga-Garrus," I began slowly. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

"I have to," Garrus replied coldly, setting the sniper rifle up. "For my men."

"No, you don't have to," I told him. It was Shepard's place to convince him not to do this, but I felt the desperate need to try. "Sidonis can live, if you just let-"

Garrus turned to glare at me. "Don't start in on me," he told me in an emotionless, but very firm, tone. "I already have Shepard and Sarah on my ass about this fiasco. I just want Sidonis dead, and there's been a whole mess of trouble before it. You two don't need to get any more involved, either."

"Yeah, just let him kill the guy," Grunt encouraged.

I frowned. "If you wish..." I trailed off.

Abby was conspiciously absent, and when I turned around to look for her I noticed that she was behind a car a few rows down, stroking her chin. I gave her an inquisitive look, and she shook her head, holding up one finger. I followed the finger and saw that she was pointing at Shepard.

She slowly came up to me, still watching Shepard make her way through the promenade, and Garrus had already begun to set up. "Told Shep not to let Garrus take the shot," she muttered to me, too low for Garrus to hear.

Garrus finished setting up his rifle, making certain that the nozzle and the sights were extended properly. Then he leaned over the railing with his skilled hands touching the weapon with ease. He peered through the scope, aiming the weapon like the pro he was.

"There he is," Garrus said softly into his commlink, alerting Shepard. His left eye, which was peering through the scope, remained on his target. "Wave him over and keep him talking."

I looked out in the direction where Abby had pointed a moment ago and I saw Shepard. I couldn't see her as clearly as Garrus could through his scope, but I could make out her armor. I saw her raise her arm, gesturing for a turian-one seated on a nearby bench-to come toward her.

The green-skinned turian came closer, stopping just in front of Shepard. There was no way I could hear what they were saying.

"You're in my shot," Garrus whispered. "Move to the side."

I looked out toward Shepard and Sidonis, knowing that Abby was doing the same. Shepard did not move.

A moment later, Garrus's eyes widened with outrage. Apparently he had heard something through the commlink-something only his ears could hear. And it had angered him. "Damnit Shepard!" he said angrily. "If he moves I'm taking the shot!" His hands tightened around his sniper rifle.

I glanced out again-I could see Sidonis begin to move, but Shepard reached out and grabbed him. Sidonis flinched away, then stood perfectly still. Apparently he had been adequately warned by Shepard that his life was in danger.

"Oh dear," Abby muttered.

Garrus was more tense than I'd ever seen him before. I thought I saw a hint of something on his face-he might have felt a little betrayed, but it was difficult to tell with his head down and his eye pressed against his scope.

I looked out and saw Shepard and Sidonis moving. Actually Sidonis was moving, but Shepard was moving along beside him to continue blocking the shot.

"Everyone has a choice!" Garrus snapped suddenly into his commlink, obviously responding to a conversation only he could hear. "Let me take the shot, Shepard. He's a damn coward!"

Another moment of silence passed. Shepard still seemed to be talking. Sidonis was still talking too, apparently.

Then all of a sudden, Shepard backed away, and she almost seemed to look directly at Garrus, somehow locking her eyes with his through his scope, perhaps. She was obviously saying something.

Garrus stared through his scope. He had a clear shot of Sidonis now. His mandibles tensed and he blinked a couple of times, then lowered his head. His resolve had faltered, and he seemed... unsure of himself. He also seemed frustrated and angry.

"Just tell him to go," Garrus finally said into his commlink. He hadn't lowered his weapon... much. But he was no longer looking through the scope. It was almost as though he couldn't bear to keep looking at whatever he was seeing through it at the moment. And I had a feeling it was more than simply Shepard's eyes.

In response to his words, Sidonis glanced up, in our direction. After a moment he turned and walked away. Shepard cast him one last look, then turned and walked in the opposite direction-back toward us.

She was coming back.

"Ah crap, you didn't kill him. Wuss," Grunt commented.

Garrus shot him a look, then turned back to look in the direction that Sidonis had gone. He stared straight ahead until the other turian's retreating form vanished from sight. "There was still good in him," he finally murmured. It sounded like he was talking to himself more than to anyone else. "And Sarah was right," he added, in an even quieter tone.

"Um," I muttered, looking to Abby for a moment, then to Garrus. "What did Sarah say, exactly?"

"That whatever the outcome, I'd be satisfied either way," he muttered. "But I'm not sure... I don't think I'm satisfied yet. I'll never forgive him."

"I...I see. I understand, but you'll be glad that you didn't kill him. I promise," I told him.

We headed back for the shuttle, and Shepard was already arriving there. Garrus rushed towards her, and the typical game conversation began.

"I know you want to talk about this, but I don't. Not yet," Garrus told her.

Shepard sighed. "I know this didn't go the way you planned, but I think it's for the best."

"I'm not so sure..." Garrus said uncertainly, glancing at us.

"Give it time," Shepard said to him.

"Yeah, maybe that'll be enough," Garrus said, looking to Shepard again. "I want to know I did the right thing. Not just for me, but for my men. They deserve to be avenged, but when Sidonis was in my sights...I just couldn't do it."

_Which is confusing, as you have no problem doing it in the Renegade playthrough. But ah well, good to know at least._

"The lines between good and evil blur when we're looking at people we know," Shepard explained to her close friend.

"Yeah," Garrus agreed. "There was still good in him. I could see it. It's so much easier to see the world in black and white. Gray...I don't know what to do with gray."

"You've got to go with your instincts," Shepard said.

"My instincts are what got me into this mess."

"Don't be too hard on yourself," Shepard told him, giving him a brief pat on the arm.

"Thanks, Shepard, for everything," Garrus said to his old friend. He looked to Abby and I. "And to you two, too. And even...Sarah."

"Oh I'm sure it was no trouble," I told him.

"Lets get going. I need some distance from this place," Garrus said, walking past Shepard.

"I'm with you," Shepard said, following him.

I just shook my head, as Grunt brushed past us, and followed as well. Abby and I walked to the speeder, too, and I felt some relief. This loyalty quest was finished, and had come to the right conclusion, no doubt. Garrus was more whole again, and Sarah probably wouldn't reveal quite as much to others as she had to him.

Overall, this was a success.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I was one happy beaver when everyone returned to the ship. It meant that Garrus was finished dealing with Sidonis, one way or another, and we didn't have to worry about that anymore.

Somehow... I didn't really care anymore that I had not been able to go on that mission myself. Knowing how things usually went when I was around, they probably had a much higher chance of succeeding without me anyway.

I greeted everyone warmly as they came through the airlock. Shepard simply gave me a nod and walked off, no doubt intent on getting back to the business at hand-or maybe she had something she needed to do. I couldn't tell. I did want to talk to her, but it was a private matter anyway. I did not wish to speak to her here.

I glanced at Garrus for a moment. He looked at me, then simply nodded and walked off as well. I couldn't be sure but I think he had a "we'll talk later" look. Maybe he just didn't want to talk out here in public... or maybe he still needed time to process what happened. Or maybe both.

So I focused on both HK and Abby. I grinned at them, then hugged them both. "How did it go?" I asked, looking from one to the other. Frankly... I did want to hear it from them first before I went to talk to Garrus about it.

Abby gave a thumbs up and winked. "Paragon, baby."

"It went the good way, like it probably should," HK assured me. "And like usual, Garrus is just a little shaken after the entire thing, but I think he's grateful. To all of us, including you."

I found myself smiling. I felt... glad and relieved that Garrus had not shot him.

I... kind of wanted to just give Garrus a chance to think things over or whatever, so I asked my two friends if they wanted to get something to eat.

Once we were down in the mess hall, we got some lunch and I listened as Abby told us the finer details of everything that happened down there, including how she took down a mech's shields all on her own. HK filled in any details that needed to be filled in. I simply sat, listened, and ate my food for the most part. I was more in a mood to listen than to talk. Plus you couldn't really eat your food if you were spending a lot of time talking.

After about an hour or so, we parted ways. I think HK and Abby each wanted to take a shower or whatever, and well... I did have some stuff to do. I had finished most of my chores aboard the ship, but I still had a few things I needed to do.

But... I decided that those could wait, just a little bit. There were a couple of people I wanted to talk to first. And one of them was Garrus.

So I made my way down to the gunnery, and simply walked in through the door without announcing myself. Garrus had his back turned to me-he was standing over the console. I couldn't tell if he was intently working on something or if he was simply lost in thought. I stood there quietly for a long moment, waiting to see if he would notice me on his own.

Garrus turned around, and finally saw me. "Ah, Sarah. It's, uh, good to see you. I guess you've heard how the mission went?"

I nodded. "Yeah, HK and Abby told me all about it. And I want to say that I think you did the right thing." I smiled. "You did exactly what I was hoping you'd do, actually."

"So that was what you meant, then," Garrus deduced. "I never thought of Sidonis living. For all that time, I just wanted him dead. Even when I spoke to you, even when I hunted for Harkin, I wanted him dead. The thirst got bigger and bigger, but now...I don't know."

I went over and sat down on one of the crates, then folded my hands in front of me. "Like I said in one of out talks... you can never seem to stand it when someone gets away from you," I commented. For some reason it felt... important to talk about this. At least to me. And well... it would be good just to have my say on the matter, I guess. "Think about Dr. Saleon. It wouldn't have mattered what Shepard said; if you had been alone when you found him, you would have wanted him dead, no matter what. Because he got away from you and it hurt your pride. And now with Sidonis... you only backed off because Shepard showed you he still had a good side. And it wasn't all his fault."

I shook my head a little. "I don't like it when I see people getting away with things either, trust me. I mean... well, there's nothing I can say that can compare to what happened to you and your men, but... let's just say that I had to put up with some crap from some people, and I'm pretty sure most of them have the high and mighty attitude that they did nothing wrong, or they just don't really know. But... I guess I figure that there's nothing I can do. If I did anything, I would become just as bad as them, or worse. So I figure... just let them go their own way as best they can; somehow or other they'll end up punishing themselves, either through self-torment or because they pissed off the wrong person."

I stopped. I guess somehow... listening to Thane back on the shuttle inspired me to make a speech of my own.

Garrus nodded. "I understand, and in some ways, you're probably right. It's just difficult for me. It is, and it always has been. Maybe it always will be, but I do see what you mean. I see what Shepard means, and maybe I let my hatred and vendetta get in the way a little too much."

He paused for a moment. "And I know you didn't go on the mission, but I wanted to thank you. You've been a big help throughout this whole thing, throughout my whole stay on the Normandy, despite your many...ah, oddities. I know you mean well."

"Yeah well... can I tell you a secret?" I said, smiling at the compliment.

"Sure," Garrus answered.

My smile turned sheepish and now I looked away. "Out of all my... visions... your little, um, mission there has always been my favorite." I coughed. Did I really say that?

"Sarah, I figured that out a long time ago," Garrus said with a snort.

I turned away from him completely now and let out a nervous sound, somewhere between a cough and a... girlish giggle.

"Nonetheless, thank you," Garrus finished.

"Yep," I said, not caring how Jack-like that sounded.

I pretty much took that to mean... we were done. Unless I wanted to say something, maybe. And I had nothing to say, really. So I simply smiled at him again, then slipped out through the door.

I heard the sound of the door closing behind me. I stood still for a long moment, then decided to go talk to the other person I wanted to talk to. I proceeded toward the elevator... specifically, the captain's quarters.

Taking a deep breath, I mentally prepared what I wanted to talk to Shepard about. I felt as though I had some... important matters to discuss with her. And one way or another, we were going to settle them... even if I had to take intiative in some ways that I wasn't used to-and in ways I didn't really like.

I stood in front of Shepard's door, sucking in another quick breath. Okay, time to quit being a chicken. It was now or never. I banged on her door, rapping my knuckles against it several times.

The door slid open of it's own accord, just as noiselessly as the rest of the doors aboard the Normandy SR2. Commander Shepard was not at her desk, like I'd kind of been expecting, but instead standing beside her bed, staring at me with an impassive, but interested, expression. Armor plates lay beside her; she was obviously in the process of taking them off. A small part of me wondered what the heck she'd been doing for the past hour, but I figured that it wasn't my business. "Sarah," she said.

I cleared my throat, then I tried my best to shake off any nervouness or meekness I felt. Then, clinging to the memory of Thane's words back in the shuttle for support, I forced myself to step forward and look directly into Shepard's eyes. Then I spoke in a firm, clear voice. "First of all, I just want to know where I stand on this ship now, Commander. Do you want me off this ship after what I did on the bridge?"

"I don't want you overseeing missions anymore, if that's what you're asking," she said, pursing her lips. "Everybody has their own strengths and weaknesses-yours just isn't on the bridge of a warship. Leaving or staying, though, is up to you."

I felt both surprised and relieved at her words. I was definitely glad that she didn't seem to be holding what I did against me. And hell, everybody on this ship probably knew well by now that I wasn't any good at going on any of the missions, or having anything to do with them.

So I guess the things I had come up with to say in my defense weren't necessary to say. I didn't even need to tell her what I had told Thane. Who knows... maybe she already knew, in her own way. At least to some extent.

"Okay then," I finally said with a tip of my head. "Thanks. Anyway... there's another reason I came here." I forced myself to look straight into her face again, meeting her eyes.

She merely looked at me, waiting.

"I want an implant." There, I said it. The one thing I had been meaning to talk to her about, yet had not gotten around to it for various reasons.

"An implant?" she echoed. "Explain."

I forced myself to keep my gaze matched with hers, although I began to fidget a bit and shuffle my feet a little. "I just want something to give me an edge, somehow or other... in case I ever get into a position where I HAVE to fight or defend myself. I know I'm not going on missions anymore, but you never know what will happen." Oh of course I knew what was going to happen; Collectors were going to board the Normandy, eventually. But I couldn't tell her that.

"No, I don't, but you do," she said, raising one delicate eyebrow. She looked away, unbuclking the bracers on her forearms, and placed them side-by-side on the bed. One seemed slightly more diagonal than the other, so she adjusted it slightly so they were both perfectly parallel. "So the Normandy will be attacked in the near-future, and I'm assuming that it'll come as a complete surprise. Yeah-I don't like that. Nice job trying to keep it from me, but you're as easy to read as an open book."

Shepard moved to the desk on the other side of her bed and straightened the N7 helmet laying there. She tapped her fingers on the hard surface, apparently deep in thought. I hesitated to break it. "Any implant that Mordin would be capable of doing would only work if you already had one installed. And despite his qualifications as a doctor, he's not as familiar with human neuro-surgery as an experienced doctor on Earth would be. Right now, I'll have to say no."

I glanced away from her, peering into the giant fish tank. It was full of water but I didn't see anything in it. I didn't pay much attention to it, merely focusing on my own thoughts.

Well, it seemed like this had been a complete waste of time, then. I had been so sure that Shepard would give me an okay or a permission slip or something so that I could get an implant. And I assumed that either Mordin or Chakwas would... put it in me. Okay... somehow the thought of an actual surgury on my brain to put something in it kind of creeped me out anyway. Maybe I was actually glad that Shepard had said no.

But also... now I had more or less told her that the Normandy was going to be attacked, apparently. What was I supposed to do now? Simply leave, or try to lie to her, or what? Better yet... what if I could somehow try and save the crew before they were captured? Then again... I knew it was dangerous to try and... tamper with events. There was no way to tell how things would go if we... spilled the beans.

"Well thanks anyway," I said with a sincere smile, turning back to look at her. "Oh and, don't worry. The Normandy is not going to be attacked." Yeah, that was the truth... sorta. It wasn'g going to be attacked YET. Not until we got that IFF thingy, which wouldn't be for a long while yet.

Shepard just stared at me with those X-Ray eyes of hers, and I had a feeling that my little white lie hadn't fooled her one bit. She'd dealt with the worst of the criminal scum, survived two encounters with a Prothean Beacon, and had the Cipher in her head-a janitor lying wasn't going to faze her in the slightest. "I'll go on thinking that way, then," she merely said.

My eyes darted around the room nervously for a moment. Then, just to try and change the subject... I blurted out the first thing that popped into my head. "Just curious... do you love anyone on this ship?"

Okay, so I was still a sucker for the romances in some ways. In my opinion... Shepard should ALWAYS end up with someone.

Her eyes flashed, and I shot a small glance towards her desk. Kaiden's portrait was turned down. "Normally," she said, "I would tell people it isn't their business and mind their manners... but..."

Shepard visibly relaxed and bowed her head, a small smile on her face. She sat on her bed, leaning down to unbuckle the plates on her shins. "No... nobody."

Suddenly, an impish impulse passed through me. Maybe it was because she turned down my request for an implant, accompanied with the fact that I couldn't tell her anything about the Collectors attacking. But... part of me just wanted to... talk about one area I might be able to get away with. Besides... what harm could it do to have just a little fun?

"My visions tell me that-depending on how things go, and who you grow closer to... there are four people who you could possibly become involved with," I said.

She began to list them: "Kelly, Jacob, Garrus, and Zaeed-correct?"

I blinked several times, sinking into a nearby chair without bothering to ask for permission to sit. "Uh... not Zaeed, Thane," I corrected dully. "But yeah... how did you know?"

Shepard rolled her eyes-it was the first time she'd shown any human emotion in front of me since my screw-up on Haestrom. "There are subtle hints everywhere," she said, "you just have to look for them. Kelly happily told me she was bisexual three weeks ago. And with the rest I just know. Except for Thane... though I suppose that is very likely. He's a lonely man, reaching out for a friend. I know exactly how he feels. But the bottom line is this: I can't let any relationships get in the way of our mission. No matter my... feelings on the matter."

"Yeah well... everybody deserves a little happiness," I found myself saying. I guess in my quest to take more intiative... well, now I found myself giving life-advice. Or romantic advice. Or whatever. "In my visions... you seem very happy with the person of your choice."

"The mission comes first. It has to. Everyone deserves to _live_, first and foremost," Shepard told me. "We can't get caught up in romantic entanglements in a time like this. It's out of the question."

Well, at least I knew she wouldn't touch Garrus, then. I had to turn my head away to hide a slight smile at the thought.

"And don't worry, there is nothing going on between Garrus and I. If that is why you wanted to know, then you can breathe easy."

My outward confidence faltered. I felt embarrassed and I knew it showed on my face. "Yeah, okay," I muttered simply-it was an automated response.

"I need a little more..._time_," Shepard told me, staring right at me. She sighed. "Sarah, I just got my life back. I was dead for two years, and had to be revived. And the minute I was, it was up to me to lead an all new crew on yet another life-threatening journey. All but three of my old friends are gone from my life, and one man that I did let myself care about refused to listen to me for more than five minutes. I can't jump into something else after all of that. Not yet, anyway."

I leaned back in my seat a little, feeling a bit stunned. Everything she said made perfect sense, and I felt a little bad for even getting into this discussion. It also made it all the more evident that this was a real, flesh and blood Shepard right in front of me, more real than the one that existed in the game. In Mass Effect 2, Shepard was more or less ready to jump in and start flirting with anyone at any time the user felt like it. But this Shepard... she had the mission to focus on, and she was still trying to cope. And she probably still hurt over what happened between her and Kaiden.

"I'm sorry," I finally said, softly. It was all I could really say. I couldn't exactly erase this conversation.

"There is no reason to apologize," Shepard said, raising an eyebrow. "You did nothing wrong. However, I am just trying to make a point. I am not one to give some kind of big emotional talk, especially in a time like this, but what I said remains. You and your two friends are decent people, all of you with decent skills. However, every single one of you slap these revelations, and these questions, on us like it is some kind of _game_. I understand that we were only in your visions before this, but you tell us these things like they are common, everyday things. Some of them are personal subjects, and while I do ask on occassion for the answers, it still can be shocking. We are _real, breathing people_."

I felt myself pale a little. Part of me had ALMOST laughed a little when she mentioned the word "game", considering the irony of it. Then she pretty much slapped the cold hard reality in my face-this wasn't a game, and these were real people with real feelings. Of course I knew that very well, especially after talking to them so much, and after nearly getting killed on Haestrom.

"Sorry," I said again. I meant it a little more this time. "Maybe in a weird way... this is just my way of coping. I mean... I won't speak for the others or anything. But maybe part of me just wants to... goof off sometimes, because it helps keep me distracted from the danger. If I don't focus on it too much, I'm fine. If I do... I stress out. I'm just not a military person, as you know pretty well."

Shepard nodded. "I know, and I wouldn't have any of you any other way. When you are yourselves, that is when you're at your best. Most of the time. And I've grown accustomed to your random comments or questions, but I just had to explain the position that we are sometimes put in."

"Yeah I think I get what you're saying," I said with a nod. Of course I would never have heard her say anything like this in the game. There were not three, weird "psychics" in the game. "And this must all seem pretty weird for you," I added quickly.

"Not as weird as it was. My casual reaction to your comments on my romantic life just showed that. I have grown used to everything around here, but I don't know whether I will get involved with anyone or not. I have more important matters to deal with."

"Yeah, I understand," I said with a nod. I had also relaxed quite a bit. "Say, while we're talking... can I ask you something?" I leaned forward intently, resting my elbows on my knees and resting my chin in my hands.

Shepard nodded.

Now I started to feel sheepish again. "What do you think... Garrus thinks of me? Has he said anything about me?"

"He doesn't have romantic feelings for you, if that's what you're asking. He hasn't said much about you, but I don't think he thinks badly of you. Not anymore. He seems to think you are alright, and is grateful for how much you've tried to help him," Shepard answered.

In spite of myself, I actually chuckled a little. "That's uh... good to know. Though um..." I shook my head a little. I really did not need to let her hear THAT unfinished thought spoken aloud. "Nevermind. Can I go now?"

Shepard raised an eyebrow, but just gestured to the door. "If you want to," she answered.

"Thanks for everything," I said simply. Then I got up and left.


	25. Kasumi

**A/N: **WOW! 97 reviews? You guys are too nice to us. I have a request: think we can make it an even 100 on this chapter? If you read, comment, please! To all those we haven't responded to yet, I apologize. We love your love. ^0^

~Abby

* * *

**(Abby)**

When I wasn't in my room, the Med Bay, or down in the cargo hold training with Jacob, Zaeed, and Miranda, I had no idea what exactly to do with myself. You could only draw so much until people started to think you were a little, well, not all right in the head. So after I took a shower, changed into some new clothes, and got some much-needed nutrition in my body I decided it was high time to visit my favorite pilot. After all, Sarah had long talks with Garrus, right?

I snuck around Kelly, not exactly willing to hear "Hey girl, good job!" right now, and made my way up the bridge to Joker's cockpit. Part of me was afraid that he might have been sleeping or something and wasn't up there, but he was. And he was pretty vocal, too.

"Because that's how I did it before, EDI!" Some of the crewmen were shooting him hurried, amused looks from their stations, and I saw one of the men lean over to nudge another guy with his elbow. "And if you take a look at my record you'll see it hasn't exactly been much of a problem before, so just drop it and take my lead for once, okay?"

EDI's soft, authoritive voice replied in a somewhat reluctant tone, "Very well, Mister Moreau. Though I will point out that the-"

"I _know!_"

"Sounds like you two are getting along well," I said wryly, coming to stand behind him with my hands in my pockets.

Joker glanced over his shoulder, did a double-take, and sighed. "What do you want, kid?" he asked, sounding annoyed. "I'm kinda busy here."

I glanced away, a little stung. "Well, so-_rry," _I muttered. "Talk to you later, then."

I turned around to go, but I heard a sigh and slowed down. "Look, you can stay if you want," Joker said, "just don't-_touch_ anything, okay? No touchie the techie stuff."

I raised one eyebrow. "I'm pretty sure I can figure out the rules," I said dryly.

"Well, that makes one of us," he muttered. "EDI, you streaming the data or what?"

"It has already been confirmed and sent," she said, reprimanding him in her way of hers. "If you had checked, you would have seen it."

I took a seat right next to EDI, folding my legs up close to me and resting my chin on my knees. "So what do you think about the mission so far?" I asked curiously. "About the Collectors and the Reapers and it all."

"You should know that, right? You _are_ the resident psychic."

I frowned. "You don't believe us?"

"It ain't my call, it's the Commander's. Just because I trust _her _doesn't mean I'll be all warm and lovey-dovey to you, so don't get any ideas."

"I guess I can understand that," I said cautiously. "We're a bit out there, aren't we?"

"Do you _really_ need me to answer that question?"

"Mister Moreau, fostering hostilities among crew members is not your primary function," EDI said reapproachfully.

"So you made some good guesses so far," Joker said, ignoring her. "Maybe you're legit, and maybe you're not. But just because I know the Reapers are out there doesn't mean I'll just go and accept that you three can see the future." He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "Look, I'm just stressed right now, okay?"

"Hey, we are, too," I said. "Don't think you're the only one."

"Yeah. . . you guys took a beating down there," he said quietly. "That didn't make Shepard too happy."

I looked up, my interest perked. "Shepard was actually worried for us?" I asked, blinking. "I thought she might have. . . well. . ."

"Rescued you just so she could use your information? Keep the stuff you know out of that asari lady's hands? Well, yeah, that's part of it. What, you didn't know she cared?"

"She. . . doesn't really display her feelings a lot," I said quietly.

"Trust me. She likes you three for some odd reasons, I don't know. If she didn't, you could tell. You go on all those missions with her, don't you?"

"Yeah. . ."

"And you're getting beat up by Jacob, Garrus, and Miranda all the time downstairs, for your own good," he pointed out. He gestured to the monitor beside him. "I watch sometimes, y'know, when there's nothing to do up here."

"Oh wonderful," I muttered, chagrined. "How bad we look?"

"Actually, not as bad as you first were," Joker said. He still hadn't turned around in his seat and was still talking to the console in front of him, but he did throw a glance at me over his shoulder. "And you guys're still alive. Good job."

"Mister Moreau is telling the truth," EDI reported. "You both have advanced significantly far throughout the past few weeks under their instruction."

"Thanks," I said quietly. "So. . . what did the rescue mission look like? Back. . . there. I heard something about you controlling the Hammerhead?"

Joker laughed. "That was just great. Cerberus doesn't shirk their duty when it comes to their tech-I had full control, could see everything."

"The whole team was involved?" I asked.

"Shepard split us up into three teams," Joker said. "You had the Infiltration team, which were Tali and Thane, and then you had Shepard's team: Jacob, Mordin, and Samara. The rest, Zaeed, Miranda, Grunt, Jack, and Garrus, were pretty much outside giving the Collectors a taste of their own medicine."

And before I knew it, Joker launched into full story recap.

"I took the Hammerhead out and patrolled the perimeter, letting their scanners pick me up so Shepard could sneak in safely. Liara already put out a false beacon about a group of biotics in the area, so these guys were prepared. I had to stay back for a while so Grunt could take out the mortors, but I could see everything, right?

"So Garrus was laying back up in the mountains, maybe about a mile, two miles away, sniping. Miranda and Zaeed didn't give them any time to focus on him, just whacking everybody in sight, and then Jack and Grunt were basically at the head of the little army. Jack would clear a way with her biotics and Grunt would come charging through with that big shotgun, _bam-bam-bam!_

"Once the turrets were down they let me in," he continued, a smile evident on his face even from my angle, "and I helped out... you know, a bit. Some of those motherfuckers just wouldn't die, though, and that was the problem-uh-"

He threw a hasty glance at me, apparently alarmed by what he just said. "Sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

"Relax. What happened next? They wouldn't die, and then...?"

"Well, Tali was inside trying to find you all. Apparently she and Thane had split up to cover more ground, I don't know. Anyway, there were some gunships we had to worry about. EDI had picked up an entire fleet of them on the other side of the base, near their hanger. I was going to have to bang out fast with the rest of the crew, but Shepard took care of them. Spliced the lines or something, I don't know."

"Mister Moreau is leaving a few parts out," EDI supplied. "The beginning, to be exact, when Tali'Zorah infiltrated the base to gather their floor plans and hack into their security mainframe-"

"-yeah, yeah, not important," Joker said, waving her down. "We knew she could do it."

"Tali's the best infiltrator on our team," I agreed. _So far,_ I added to myself. "Just like Jack and Samara are the best biotics, or how Miranda, Jacob, and Garrus are the best at controlling a battlefield-well, besides the Commander."

"So anyway, the gunships are down and I'm running around the place, lighting their asses up-and I mean _up. _There was this one guy who wasn't wearing a helmet, right, and he had this giant grenade launcher. No wait, it was a missile launcher. Anyway, I ran him over. Not enough to kill him, because I saw him stumbling around dazed behind me. " Joker laughed. "He had the funniest expression when his face hit my windshield. I think he used to have a big mustache too, or something, I dunno, because half of his face had hair on it and the other didn't. We probably attacked in the middle of a shave or something. Idiots."

I found myself laughing. "Did he die?"

"I'm pretty sure Jack took him out. Jack..." He shuddered. "Crazy lady. I'm not getting on her bad side. So we're running around fighting all these people, then Zaeed notices that the layout of the base is almost exactly like the layout of some _other _place he ransacked hundreds of years ago. He and Grunt took a small break while Jack's running around with Miranda, I'm still whacking people, and next thing I know they're giving me different targetting data."

"Is this where they take out the septic tanks?" I asked shrewdly.

"Yup! Ha, it was hilarious. A few missiles up the chute and-well, the explosion was pretty nice."

"I could hear something that sounded like thunder in the distance," I recalled, frowning.

"Shepard said the inside started flooding almost immediately. Just the clear water at first, nothing too germy until maybe a few minutes after we got you all picked up. By now the place is probably rotting." He shook his head, still smiling. "You gotta hand it to Zaeed, he can pick the weak points."

"He's like Shepard, except he takes checks," I repeated.

Joker stiffened a little in his seat. "Uh... yup. So what was it like down there? Shepard told me you guys weren't awake, y'know, during most of it, but... okay, nevermind, forget I said anything. I don't want to know, and I don't wanna make you talk about it."

I fidgeted uncomfortably. "Is flying the Normandy hard?" I asked, changing the subject.

"Yeah, pretty much," he supplied. "Why? Wanna learn to fly it?"

"I'd love to see how the computers work," I said, standing so I could peer over his shoulder. "It's all so confusing, I wouldn't know where to begin."

"Easy enough. You know the basics, right?"

"Uh... no."

"Have you ever touched a computer before?"

"Mordin gave me an omni-tool," I said, shrugging. "But the only thing I know how to do on it is overload the shields of a mech, and that just isn't going to help me, y'know, on the Collector base. They have heavy armor and biotic barriers, but no shields. It's frustrating. Normally I'm not technically retarded."

Joker gave me a look, raising one eyebrow. "You're fourteen years old and you've never learned to use an omni-tool before? Didn't you ever watch those vids on them when you were three or something?" I shook my head and he looked at me with a horrified expression. "Do you even know how to overload something, or did Mordin-"

"-he hotkeyed it for me," I muttered, abashed.

You would've thought I'd told him that I'd never heard of an Xbox before. "Okay, well... I can't right now, but when I'm off-duty you and I are going to sit down and I'm going to show you how to use it." He shook his head. "Can't even use an omni-tool..."

"I can shoot, does that count?"

"You'd have better hand-eye coordination if you'd ever played a video game in your life. Ever hear of-?" And he rattled off a few futuristic video game names. Blinking, I shook my head in a mute no, promising myself to look them up later.

"EDI, is she lying?" Joker asked suddenly, turning to the blue holographic Death Star.

"No, she is not," EDI answered.

Joker's jaw went slack. "Shit!"

"Does EDI have lie-detecting software in her?" I asked, sprung by a sudden thought. "I noticed when we first got here that she did most of the interrorgating."

"Yeah..."

"I am equipped with it, yes," EDI answered. "You are disturbingly honest."

"Disturbingly," I echoed with a smile. "Alrighty, that works! Look, I'll let you go so you can do your work, but thanks for talking."

"Yeah, uh-huh. I'm off in three hours. Meet me at the mess. Hasn't even heard of 'Marks of the Sky'... I mean, _really_..."

* * *

I went down to visit Zaeed next, ecstatic now that Joker had promised to spend some time with me. I took the elevator down, aware that I should probably head to bed soon for a small nap or something before I had to learn more technical nonsense, and entered Zaeed's room. "I'm heee-eeere!" I sang, tossing a piece of chocolate at him I'd nicked from Rupert's private stores. "Enjoy."

"About damn time," Zaeed remarked with a laugh, catching the piece of chocolate and throwing it into his mouth. After swallowing, he spoke again. "Thought you weren't coming for a minute there."

"Was talking to Joker," I said, taking a seat on a few crates next to his workbench, where Jessie, his prized assault rifle, lay. "Garrus's mission went well," I told him, sticking my own piece of chocolate into my mouth. "He ended up not killing Sidonis, thank God. Now I guess we'll take care of Kasumi's business and get out of the system."

"Didn't kill that traitor? Why the hell not?" Zaeed asked, raising an eyebrow. "He deserved to die for what he did to Vakarian's men."

"The difference between Sidonis and Vido is that Sidonis felt bad about what he did," I said calmly. "Vido, on the other hand, is a bastard. He deserves to die. Sidonis just deserved a chance to make things right."

Zaeed shrugged. "Whatever Vakarian thinks is right, but I would've killed him without a second thought. I'll kill Vido without a second thought," he remarked. "Hope Shepard hurries her ass up and gets us there soon."

"Don't worry about it," I said. "Vido's staying there for a good long while, but you have to think about the people he's exploiting in there, too. It's so sad."

"Vido's exploiting everyone. That's why the bastard has to die," Zaeed said.

I nodded thoughtfully. "I'm normally not the type of person to... well, casually think about killing people. Ever since I joined up with this ship of lunatics I've been killing every time I go outside. What's a fight you remember the best?"

Zaeed snorted. "I'd say that fight to rescue you and HK was a pretty damn memorable one. I wasn't getting paid for it, and I was fighting more damn bugs," he replied. "But, next to that and Horizon, there was this one time that I was hired to track down some stupid nun..."

"Sister Ethea?" I asked, dread settling into the pits of my stomach.

"Fiesty bitch, that one," Zaeed replied. "Not surprised that you know of her. Crazy lady went to Thessia and led a riot against the asari, because of them worshiping a lady instead of a man. She assaulted many and trashed some worship center, then managed to escape with barely a scratch. I think she scared the asari a little, so they hired me to go catch her. Some of these aliens take their religions too seriously, especially since most of it is a pile of shit."

"Let me guess... she's also the one person you've failed to capture?"

"Unfortunately," Zaeed answered with a growl. It probably still upsetted him to admit it. "So I'm on my way to find this lunatic, and next thing I know, I get a call from a hanar saying that she assaulted them and tried to defile some site of that extinct species they worship. So I know that this bitch is wanted badly, and if I capture her and both species try her for the shit she pulled, I'd get twice the money. I get this lead on her, saying she was heading to Tuchanka to preach to the damn krogan of all people."

"T-Tuchanka..." Oh, HK, HK, HK. "You, er, didn't happen to pull up any files of her daughter, did you? Erin?"

"I did, and her daughter is just as crazy as she is. Apparently she's done a lot of crime in her life, but she wasn't my target," Zaeed replied with a shrug. "So the krogan don't really like off-worlders on Tuchanka, but somehow, Seer snuck onto the planet anyway. They let me stay on there just so I could get her off, and I found out that she was last seen charging straight towards the home of one of the most ruthless clans."

"Sister Ethea won't die," I said, shaking my head. "And... neither will Erin. If you really want to know, I think Erin deserves it more than she does." I shuddered. "You should have seen some of the things she's done..."

Erin was also HK's character, created before Ethea, believe it or not. She was a dumb blonde who always mispronounced everybody's names, was drop-deap gorgeous, and had no sense of morality whatsoever. As long as she got her cute boy Erin was very, very happy. And I mean happy-happy-happy. HAPPY. And if she wasn't shopping for clothes and getting in trouble like the crazy lady she was, the cops were probably trying to bring her to the loony farm for her own safety.

Unfortunately, Erin never stayed captured for long. A trait she seemed to inherit dimly from Sister Ethea, albit at a small scale-Sister Ethea had never been captured before, period.

Zaeed nodded. "Her track record is worse than her mom's, but her mom was still a pain in the ass," he said. "So I get to the base of that clan, and shit has already hit the fan. There are fires, and krogan on guard everywhere. How they didn't capture her, I'll never get, but she was still on the loose, preaching about God and all that crap. Apparently this clan hadn't gotten the memo about me being after Ethea, so they start shooting at me once they see me. I had varren and krogan coming at me before I even got inside! It was one hell of a fire-fight, but I did get inside, and I knew she was beating alot of krogan within an inch of their life. That chaos continued while I fought through more damn hords of krogan."

"Was she beating them with a Bible?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. I was grinning openly now.

Zaeed nodded. "Yes. Never seen someone do that much damage with a book in my life," he answered. "Then, finally, with only a portion of that clan left thanks to her and I, I find her at the center of the base. She didn't seem surprised, told me that some lady called Miss Jinkins told her about me, and that she was ready to deliver the Word of God or something to that effect."

"And what did she tell you?" I asked. "Get on your knees and pray for your soul after killing all these krogan? And pray for their souls, too, for being as demeted as they were?"

"Yeah," Zaeed answered with a scoff. "Instead, I came at her, but she was ready. We got into a fight, using books and guns, and it was one of the longest fights in my whole damn life."

I giggled. "Ethea is... a piece of work. But trust me, at least you weren't chasing Erin."

"After a long time of a crazy duel, the bitch escaped. She got away from me, and it pissed me off," Zaeed continued. "I wasn't about to give up that easily. I followed her out into the fields of Tuchanka, and saw that a battalion of the remaining clan members were after her, too."

"So it's you and a giant gorup of enraged krogan... chasing after the nun?"

Zaeed nodded. "Almost funny when you think about it," he commented. "But we both chased after her, and she was a damn good runner. She didn't even seem nervous, either, just continued to shout out about the Lord. Then that thresher maw attacked, and it was a whole new game of hell."

"...of course the thresher maw attacked."

"So we're out in the middle of nowhere, and we've got this huge thing attacking us. They say that krogan have to face those during their initiation test or something, for a specified amount of time. Well, there was no time limit on this, so this battle went on for quite awhile, and those krogan were all picked off. It came down to just me and her fighting it. I was going between trying to take spare shots at her, and trying to dodge the maw's attacks, and get it down for the count. This went on for awhile, until the next thing I know, the nun is hopping all over the damn thing, and it's dead! The bitch managed to kill a thresher maw! After that, she disappeared before I could go after her again, and I couldn't get anymore leads on her. I had no choice but to just give up on the mission, as much as I hated it."

I shook my head sadly. "There are... unexplainable things in the universe," I said dryly.

Zaeed nodded in agreement. "She's sure as hell one of them. That's definitely a top tale of mine, though. Fun story to recap from time to time," he said.

I laughed. "I wish I had cool stories like that," I said, shaking my head. "The only thing I can say that really sticks out is me taking on a krogan with Rupert's kitchen knife."

"That's something I don't think any of us will ever forget. You're a very resourceful girl for your age," Zaeed told me. "Which is damn good, considering what kind of mission we're on."

I laughed, pleased. "Thanks."

"I don't usually give compliments, but I think you're the best out of you and your weird vision trio. You have a better handle on everything, but aren't a hardass," Zaeed explained to me.

I blinked, shocked. "They're good, too," I said, uncomfortable with the flattery. "I'm just... more motivated in the combat area, I think. I like the challenge. For me, training is like... well, drawing. It's something that takes forever to master, but you never master the entire thing. You master a particular style, which is different from anybody elses. I think fighting is kind of like that, you know, when you master something you only master a variation-your own variation. They're two sides of the same coin."

"You're right," Zaeed agreed. He looked to his side, and grabbed the krogan helmet. "Here, take a look at this. Probably one of the more interesting things you'll see."

With that, he tossed it to me.

I still had a piece of chocolate in my hands, and I'd been munching on it throughout the conversation. I stretched over to my left, trying to grab it with my free hand, and knew immediately something bad was about to happen. The helmet glanced off my fingers and hit the table with a loud thump, jarring Jessie, Zaeed's priceless assault rifle.

We watched in slow motion as Jessie slipped off of the edge of the table... and hit the ground.

Zaeed's face lit up with horror. "SHIT!" he shouted at the top of his lungs, rushing towards the rifle. "Damnit, Abby, you were supposed to catch that! Shit!"

I backed away, horrified at what I'd just done. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry! Is she broken?"

Zaeed looked up at me furiously. "You'd better damn well hope not!" he yelled.

I jumped backwards, hitting the wall with my back. I felt my shoulder blade depress a button, and suddenly a high-pitched noise blared over the loudspeakers. I covered my ears, turning around to see what I'd done, and moaned in horror.

I had just broken Jessie. Now I'd pressed the fire alarm.

"EDI, EDI turn it off!" I yelled. "Turn it off."

"I do not have control over that function of the ship," EDI informed me in the same calm tone she normally used. The only difference was that she'd merely turned up the volume.

And then the doors opened, exposing the last person I wanted to see right now: Jack.

"What did that turian-loving bitch do now?" Jack screamed over the harsh rings of the alarm. "I'm going to rip her damn head off for this!"

"It wasn't her, it was her!" Zaeed yelled angrily, pointing at me.

The alarm turned off and the ringing in my ears finally began to cease. "Zaeed," I said, "I am so, so sorry-"

And then Commander Shepard showed up, dressed in Cerberus-issued fatigues, her hair wet like she'd just gotten out of the shower. "Took the stairs," she said, her eyes sweeping over the room. Zaeed was on the floor, cradling Jessie, Jack looked pissed, and I was standing with my back pressed to the wall, looking terrified, right next to the fire alarm button.

It probably hadn't taken long to figure out.

And then...

Commander Shepard's eyes saw the chocolate wrappers on the table where Jessie had previously been. She took a deep breath. "Zaeed, is Jessie okay?" she asked, not looking at him.

Zaeed nodded, releasing a breath. "She's fine, barely," he said, glaring at me. "So I compliment you, and you return the favor by nearly destroying a treasure?"

"You're all crazy as hell!" Jack shouted. "If Sarah isn't coming to me requesting advice on how to get Garrus to screw her, _she's_ destroying weapons and pulling fire alarms!"

"It was an accident!" I said. "D'you think I do this on purpose?"

Shepard took another deep breath. "No... but what are those candy wrappers I see on the table?"

"Uh... chocolate." I squirmed.

"Weren't you specifically told that no food was allowed out of the crew quarters?"

"...kinda." Not really, they'd just told me I couldn't take it up to the bridge, but I supposed the end was the same. I just wanted to crawl into bed, or turn back time and drop the chocolate, catch the helmet, and stand as far away from Jessie as possible.

"Yes or no."

"...yes. Yeah."

"Just throw 'em off the ship, Shepard. Visions or not, these dumbasses are useless," Jack said.

My right hand curled into a fist at my side... which I quickly relaxed. Jack was just being Jack. I tooka steadying breath and retrieved the candy wrappers, throwing them in the trash can beside the workbench, and left the room. "I miss Earth," I muttered, tears stinging my eyes as I entered the elevator. I wiped them quickly and pressed the button for the crew quarters.

I was just going to stay in my room until Joker got off of work and avoid this lunatic band of misfits as best as I could.

It's just a game, I told myself.

* * *

**(HK)**

"You and your two friends are on thin ice," Miranda told me coldly, looking irritated, from her desk. "We're on a deadly mission, and it seems like all you can do is fill this ship with chaos."

"Okay, so it looks like I'm in a damage control situation here, so I'm just going to say this: It was one incident, and it's very unusual for her to have those type of incidents. I know Sarah has a number of them on her plate, but I don't know of any chaos that she's caused lately on the Normandy. She is getting better, too. It has all been accidents, and I can understand you being upset, but just please know that we're doing our best," I explained to Miranda desperately, hoping that she would listen.

After Abby's little incident with Jessie and the fire alarm, things had simmered down, but Miranda, and to a lesser extent Shepard, were not happy. Oh, and Zaeed was definitely not happy, either.

I highly doubted that Shepard would kick all three of us off the crew, but Miranda was in one of those moods where she was so irritated that she probably just wanted to chew us out.

Correction: Chew me out. Abby had gone to curl up in the crew quarters after that chaos, and Sarah was busy cleaning, so I was the one brought into her office and try to keep her temper to a bare minimum.

Miranda groaned. "Yes, yes, I know it was an accident, but this ship needs to run cleanly and effectively if we wish to defeat the Collectors. We can't have all of this," she told me. "Just try to keep these happenings out of our lives in the future."

"We will try, I promise, but no gurantees," I said.

Who knew what Sarah or Abby would do next?

Miranda glared at me.

"Really, anything they do isn't...too bad," I said, pausing and trying to find the wording. "We got through it, and again, I doubt much more will happen."

Miranda sighed. "Fine. Go. And if any of you ever pull the fire alarm again-"

"We won't." I promised. That much I was sure of.

There were two guranteed things that neither of them would ever do again: Bite a finger or pull a fire alarm.

"-I'll put all three of you through a training session that would make _Jacob_ cry," Miranda finished.

"Don't worry, the fire alarm will stay un-touched by us," I said again, slowly standing up.

I turned to walk out of the room, but Miranda spoke again.

"Oh, and HK," she started, smirking at me. "You do damage control quite well. I see all of your abilities clearly now: Sarah cleans, Abby fights, and you speak."

I couldn't tell whether she was being serious or making an attempt to joke with me.

"Thanks," I replied with a hint of sarcasm, walking out of her office.

I looked to the mess hall, and saw Mordin there, speaking to some of the crew members like Tali, Garrus, the random people, and some others. They all seemed to be having some kind of nice talk, until Mordin's omni tool began to beep. He answered it, and spoke in a low tone for a moment, before suddenly leaving.

I raised an eyebrow. There was only one thing that could've disturbed Mordin like that.

"He looked upset," a voice said, and I nearly jumped out of my skin when Kasumi appeared beside me. "Maybe you should go speak to him."

"How nice to _see _you, Kasumi," I replied to the ninja. "And why me?"

"They say that you are one of the 'psychics' on board, and your two friends are occupied, so why _not_ you? I'm sure he'd appreciate it," Kasumi advised.

Abby and I had speculated that we would somehow have to help these people with their loyalty missions. Maybe now was another time to do that.

"Alright," I said. "Thanks."

I left, walking over to the elevator and heading straight for Deck Two. It stopped after a minute or so, and I stepped out onto the Bridge. I walked past Kelly, who gave me a kind greeting, and walked into the lab.

"Hi, Mordin," I said slowly. "Is something wrong?"

Mordin was turned around, his back to the door, looking outwards into the stars passing us by. "Received a distressing message," he said. "But no matter. You already know, correct?"

"If it's about Maelon, then yes, I know," I replied slowly, hesitantly approaching the scientist.

Mordin sighed heavily. "Then you know we must go save him. I will talk to Shepard about it."

I nodded. "Don't get too worked up about it. We're heading to Tuchanka eventually to help Grunt anyway, so it won't be out of the way for the Commander," I told him softly. "Just don't let it get to you too much, if you can."

"Oh, please," Mordin said, waving his hand dismissively. "I have worked under stressful conditions before, but Maelon was my student. I have lost a lot of people and I don't wish to lose him, too."

I nodded again. "I definitely understand," I said.

I wished I could tell him more, but I couldn't. Just like I couldn't go tell Jacob what his father was up to, or tell Thane how high the stakes were when it came to Kolyat. Just like we couldn't tell Garrus that Sidonis may very well live.

I sighed. "It'll be okay, hopefully," I told him.

He chuckled. "Hopefully?"

I had no clue why he was laughing. Only Mordin...

"Well, we may know what potentially happens, but it's up to everyone else to execute it. Again, just don't worry. If all goes well...it should turn out okay," I said. "But I really can't say anymore."

"No matter," said Mordin. "Must get back to work... a lot of things to do. Please let Yeoman Chambers know I need to see the Commander."

I nodded, and turned to the door. "I will," I said, exiting the room.

"Kelly, Mordin would like to see the Commander when she gets a chance," I told her as I walked by her station.

"Alright. Thanks," Kelly replied.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

Okay... it wasn't that I LIKED it or anything when one of my friends had troubles or went through a hard time. But right now... even though I felt bad for Abby... I couldn't help but glow a little inside. And I could tell it showed on my face-I was smiling, and the people I passed by-or who passed me-noticed it as well.

Why was I smiling so much? Because for once, I wasn't the goofy klutz who messed something up and/or pissed someone off. Maybe this meant that I had a cruel streak inside of me or something, but... right now, I just felt so pleased. Maybe even borderline smug.

I would just try to be very, very careful not to let anyone know WHY I was smiling so much or feeling so smug. I didn't want to hurt Abby's feelings or anything. If anyone asked... maybe I would just say I was high on the cleaning chemicals or something.

It took me a couple of hours to finish cleaning up the mess area. For the most part a lot of the people on this Cerberus ship seemed to be good at keeping things neat and cleaning up their own messes. But there were a few people-who I wouldn't dare mention by name, simply because I'd rather stay alive-who left quite the mess sometimes. Well, it wasn't TOO bad, but somebody needed to take care of it all the same.

When I finally finished, I had to decide what I wanted to do next. So the first thing I did was go into the kitchen and grab a nutri-grain bar, shoving it into my mouth. I then noticed a pile of dirty dishes, but I chose to ignore them for the moment. They could wait until later.

I thought about going up to the quarters I shared with HK and Abby, but well... I figured Abby might want some alone-time for a while. And I wasn't very good at cheering people up. Maybe I would just... stay in the kitchen and give HK a chance to go see her first.

Besides... I'd probably make her feel worse anyway. I couldn't stop grinning, after all.

So I tried to figure out what else I could do. Oh yeah there were always a million little things I could do, like I could clean the bathrooms again, or mop the floors down the corridors. I could even do some dusting. But right now, I just wanted to laze around for a bit.

Then a thought occurred to me. I really liked to go around and introduce myself when we got a new person onboard, just to be able to say I met them all, so to speak. Right now the only person I hadn't met yet was Kasumi.

I shrugged slightly to myself... then decided to go check out her room.

A couple of minutes later I was standing outside of her door, feeling slightly sheepish. I'd never met a ninja before, and I always thought that ninjas were cool. Especially the "cyber ninjas" that existed in the Transformers Animated series. Then again, Kasumi was the real thing-and she wasn't a robot.

I opened the door, then peered inside. I didn't want to bother her so... I waited to see if she would invite me in or not.

Kasumi was every bit as she was in the game-clothed in a dark, form-fitting tunic, hood up, lounging on the couch overlooking the great view of the Citadel's arms reaching seemingly for the heavens. It was dark inside, but that didn't stop her from reading a paperback book by the light of the Citadel's twinkling lights. She looked up, her expression unreadable from underneath her cowl, but I saw her lips twitch in a smile. "Hello there," she said cheerfully.

I took that as permission, more or less, to enter. I stepped inside, not bothering to glance at the door as it shut behind me. I smiled at Kasumi and found that somehow... I felt comfortable around her. I knew she was as dangerous as anyone else on the ship, yet somehow... I don't know, maybe it seemed like... she was a sweet person who wouldn't actually do anything to me.

Then again... that was probably the mark of a good ninja. They could decieve people in a number of different ways. But nevertheless... I felt calmer being around her than, say, Samara. I had nothing against the asari justicar, and I liked her, it was just... there was something eerie about her. But Kasumi seemed... okay. I couldn't think of any other way to put it.

"Just thought I'd say hi," I told her. I cast a quick glance around her room, taking it in, then I focused on her again. After all, I didn't want to appear rude. "How are you?"

"Well, aren't you quick to the point?" she asked, chuckling. "I'm doing very well, how are you?"

"I'm great," I said, and another goofy grin spread across my face. Damn. I was enjoying what happened with Abby just a little too much.

"Great," Kasumi said. "What's your name?"

"Sarah," I told her.

"Do you need anything, Sarah?"

I cleared my throat a little, slightly surprised by the question. Then again, I was probably grinning like an idiot. I fought to wipe the expression off my face-I think I succeeded in minimizing it, at least. "Nah," I said. "I just wanted to meet you. I know about you, and uh... I just think you're awesome."

"Oh... really?" Kasumi asked, sounding a bit taken aback. "Oooh, I suppose you're one of the three psychics the Commander talked about. Am I right?"

"Yep," I said. I smiled again-not the same goofy grin as before, more like my natural, pleasent smile that I used when I was being friendly.

"Has anybody ever told you that you're a very excitable young lady?" she asked, laughing. It wasn't at me, but with me. "Have you ever read a real paper book before, Sarah?" she asked, holding her novel up so I could inspect it from the other side of the room.

I eyed the novel intently with a nod. "Yep, I read a lot of paper books. I was especially fond of Star Trek novels when I was a teenager, and I still like them."

"Good, good. Most people don't read the real, paper ones anymore," she said. "Would you like to sit down?" She gestured to the couch across from her.

"Sure thanks," I said with a smile as I sat down where she indicated. I leaned back against the pillows and looked at her, draping one arm over the nearest armrest. "So uh... I know you're a very observant person. I was just curious... how much do you know about me?"

I wasn't sure what kind of answer I was expecting. I just knew that Kasumi noticed things that no one else noticed, like... who was in love with whom, or who got along the best, or even if Morinth replaced Samara.

Maybe in some ways I was sorta curious if she had already heard that I had a crush on Garrus, because well... stuff like that seemed to pass around fast. I guess I assumed Kasumi was probably the closest thing to a mind-reader on this ship, sort of. Just because of her observation skills. So maybe I was just wondering how much she already knew, even though she hadn't been on the ship very long yet.

"You're standing around like you're either about the steal my stuff, plant a bug, or something else," Kasumi said calmly, "So either you're going to do that or you're just very excited in meeting me. I'm hoping it's the latter."

I blinked at her, then I actually laughed in spite of myself. "Do you think I would put a bug in here or steal something?" I asked.

"Would you?" she challenged.

In spite of myself, I actually had to stop to think about that. There were times when someone asked me something, and I actually found myself pondering it literally. Not because I was necessarily going to do it-not really, at least-it was more like... WOULD I do it, if circumstances were different somehow? Could I do it somehow, if I needed to or really wanted to for some reason?

"No," I finally said. "I mean... I'm sure I COULD do it, but I don't have any reason to. And I doubt I would be able to slip it past you anyway. You'd probably notice it somehow, or catch me doing it."

It was then that I realized something. Kasumi might be very observant, but it probably took her a little time to figure someone out, so to speak. She didn't know anything about me except for what little she'd heard from Shepard, and anyone else she might have talked to. I hoped that she would eventally figure out I was harmless... except for the stupid things that happened sometimes because of me.

Kasumi frowned, pursing her lips a little bit. "Do you always act this way towards the new crew members?" she finally asked.

My eyes widened a little and I presed my lips together as I thought about the time when I first met Garrus...

And Miranda...

...And Thane...

"Yep," I answered simply.

"What do you do on this ship?" she asked.

"I clean and I help Rupert cook whenever he needs a hand," I answered with a smile.

"And do you normally come into people's quarters, waiting for them to ask you questions, or don't you have any of your own?" Kasumi asked. I couldn't tell for sure, but I was nearly positive that her eyebrows were raised.

This... wasn't going quite the way I had expected. Everybody else had been pretty weirded out by me, or at least intrigued, but... well now it seemed like I was facing something akin to an informal interrogation. I think I had inadvertantly made Kasumi suspicious, though I couldn't be sure.

"Um... I make it a habit to say hi when people first come aboard because I want to meet them," I told her, trying to explain. "And well, I share a room with my two friends. I guess you could say we're like roommates. But one of them is upset right now, and I wanted to give her some space. And I finished cleaning what I needed to, so... I decided to come say hi."

I couldn't help but wonder... would she accept that explanation, (and it WAS true, pretty much) or would she think it was pure BS?

"Aw, why is your friend upset?" Kasumi asked curiously. "Wait-is she the small blonde one with Shepard down on the Citadel?"

"Yep," I said with a nod. I had pretty much sobered by now, so I no longer grinned like an idiot when I thought of her. "She's... had a rough day," I said simply.

"Oh really?"

I shook my head a little. I didn't want to get into how she had had a rough day, because... for all I knew I might just start grinning again. Abby deserved better than that.

"Yeah well... I'm sure she'll be okay," I said with a dismissive wave of my hand. I was trying to cut this topic short. My eyes darted briefly toward the doorway, contemplating a quick exit, but then I looked back at Kasumi again, focusing on her.

"You're a jumpy one," she noted.

Okay, THIS was getting uncomfortable. I had thought that being around someone who could see and observe so much would be fun and cool. But... this was getting annoying-even downright unnerving. How did I go from feeling okay around her to feeling kind of... edgy?

I suddenly realized that somehow... I felt better having that odd discussion with Thane when I first met him. It was... less awkward somehow, at least. I looked at her, simply raising my eyebrows, unsure what to say. Who knows what she might glean out of it next?

Kasumi chuckled. "Scared you, have I?" she asked in a light tone of voice. "Okay, I know what can make you talk: questions, right? So how'd you three end up being on the ship? It seems like everybody here has a unique story."

I shrugged a little, leaning back against the couch all the more. "Yeah well... let's just say my friends and I didn't end up here the normal way. We just kinda... showed up." I glanced away, smiling in spite of myself. Yeah, it wasn't like that could be explained to Kasumi any more than it could be explained to Shepard.

"And Shepard let you aboard? Wow, you must have negotiated pretty hard."

"Um... we already had a few cards in our favor," I found myself saying.

"I suppose. You sold it to EDI you were legit, and I don't think she can be fooled."

"Nah, she can't," I agreed. "But I think it's safe to say I've really pissed off and/or annoyed a few people on this ship." I grimanced as a few... specific memories passed through my mind.

"How'd you manage that?" she asked curiously.

Oh boy. She just had to ask didn't she? Yet somehow... she was right, I just couldn't resist responding to questions for some reason. "Well for one thing... I uh..." I swallowed. "I bit Jacob's finger when he was trying to teach me to fight." I winced.

"He's the tall, dark one on Deck Two, right?" She grinned. "Somehow I can't imagine him taking that sitting down."

"He uh... kicked me in the head. Knocked me out cold for a bit," I told her, staring down at the floor.

Kasumi actually laughed. "Not good," she said, shaking her head, "not good at all. Why'd you bite him?"

I shrugged sheepishly. "Well... I was getting creamed in the training room. So I did the only thing I could think of to do some damage." I sighed. "Let's just say I am not a fighter. Shepard took me along on one mission, and I nearly died."

"No shame in not being able to fight," Kasumi said. "There's always another way for the determined individual."

"What do you mean?" I asked curiously, with a touch of wariness.

"Well, you do whatever you can on the ship. If you haven't noticed, the ship needs a lot of maitnence to keep it up to protocol." She grinned. "Oh come on, lighten up. You're all spun up."

"I am not," I said indignantly, and made a show of lounging against the cushions in a relaxed manner. "I'm just..." I shrugged.

Kasumi twitched her mouth in a smile. "I understand."

"Understand what?" I couldn't help but ask. I always wanted to know what people were thinking about me. It was a habit of mine.

Kasumi rolled her eyes-I could see the glint of them underneath her hood. "Nevermind," she said. "But I understand." I could've sworn she was playing a little game with me.

"Is there something you want to say?" I pressed. I wasn't sure how else to go about the subject, because I couldn't exactly guess what she was thinking. But if she didn't want to say, there wasn't much else I could do.

"Is there something you're not saying?" Kasumi asked. "Girl, I could keep this up all night. Better quit before I get competitive." But her tone said she was joking.

Suddenly, in spite of myself, I began to feel like playing a little. "Heh, is there something you want me to say?" I finally asked.

"Well, you did just come into my room and are expecting me to carry on the conversation. One person can't have a conversation alone you know."

"Okay then," I said slowly. I could see what she was saying. At times I just had trouble sparking up or carrying on a conversation... especially when I just met somebody. Part of the problem was that this really was Kasumi, for real, in the flesh. And I was sitting in front of her, for real. It was the same with anyone else on this ship; I wasn't simply sitting in front of a monitor controlling Shepard's dialogue. I had to intiate my own dialogue.

"How come you conceal your face?" I finally asked, taking on a slightly bolder tone.

"Have to keep quiet somehow. I'm the best thief in the business, after all." She smiled mischeivously.

"Yep I can imagine," I said with a nod. I also recognized that it was my turn to keep the conversation going. "What's the most expensive thing you ever stole?"

Kasumi had to think about that one. "Honestly... it's a tie between ten or so items, I believe. But the craziest one had to be the hanar painting _Songhyao_. At least, that's how they spelled it. It actually has a different name, but nobody can pronounce it because they speak by biolumenenescance. It was beautiful, the size of a _wall_. One of the hardest heists I'd ever done, and when the hanar found out they were furious. Thankfully my buyer gave it back to them; Apparently he was hiring the best thieves in the business to test the museum's security." She smiled from ear to ear. "I can't put a price on that painting. It was made by a group of six hanar and six drell, famous artists, all of them, and they all put as much creative talent they had into the piece. And it wasn't just paints and oils or gels they used, either-they used everything, and it all seemed to fit. It was a right sight hard to get it out of the door, though, let me tell you!"

I stared at her with widened eyes as she told the story. I was trying to envision that in my mind. I hadn't even noticed that most of my awkwardness and jumpyness had faded quite a bit. "How in the world did you get it out the door?" I asked curiously. That was something I definitely wanted to know.

"The official story to the public was that the thing was actually created right on that wall, with mass effect fields and the gravity wells in place to protect the artists, but after I did some digging I realized that each artist had completed his piece at their own studio. So that made me wonder how they got it out of the door, too. My partner, Keiji, found an alcove of hidden wires and gears that lowered a part of the ceiling. All the maitnence men had to do was slide it out, have the mass effect fields catch it, and nail it to the wall. Which sounds pretty cool, right?" She laughed out loud. "So anyways, Keiji took care of the security systems as best as he could, and I snuck in. I hid away for two days, believe it or not, in that alcove because the hanar and everybody were chasing after Keiji. Once he'd given them the slip I came out and brought _Songhyao_ up. As soon as I got it down the hallway (which was like specially designed for this huge thing!) I loaded it up in a yacht parked outside, courtesy of Keiji. There were actually fifteen tracking devices in that thing, you know? Every time I would disable one, another one would appear."

At times I had a difficult time trying to visualize what I was being told. Some things I just had to be there to see it for myself before I could know it-words just did not give a very good picture sometimes. But I simply nodded and took her word for it.

"You must really miss Keiji," I commented thoughtfully. "I bet you can't wait to get that memory box back."

"That I can not," she agreed. "Shepard told me not to ask, but I'm curious-do you know how it'll play out?"

In truth, I only knew because of youtube videos, and from what HK and Abby had told me. They had both played their games with Kasumi and Zaeed, but... unfortunately I had ordered my copy of Mass Effect 2 used from Amazon, so... I didn't get to download some of the bonus content. But I had seen the entire playthrough on youtube.

"Yep... and I know that there's three ways it can turn out," I murmured. I knew this only because HK had told me once. 1: Kasumi kept the memories. 2: Kasumi deleted the memories. 3: Shepard deleted the memories.

"Care to spill?" she asked lightly, but I could hear the slight tension underneath.

Once again I found it tempting. Of course I had, well... been tempted at other times too, of course. Surely Kasumi was good at keeping secrets though... right? I knew that she kept it a secret if Morinth came onboard.

"Um... part of me wants to," I finally said. "But part of me doesn't know if it's a good idea."

"I bet one of the outcomes is bad, isn't it? I die?"

"Not if you and Shepard are very careful, which I know you will be," I replied with a shrug. Then I decided to allow one little thing to slip out, because I figured it wouldn't matter TOO much. "They won't let you in, though."

"Won't let us in?" Kasumi echoed. "Why? How can I fix that?"

"No," I clarified. "They'll let Shepard in, under the identity you give her, they just won't let YOU in."

"Huh." Kasumi snorted. "Interesting. Hock doesn't know who I am, though. I suppose he'll just be covering his ass, I except, because after I'm done with Shepard she's going to look fantastic. I'm going to be pretty drab compared to her."

I knew exactly what her dress was going to look like; I had seen it on youtube. "Yeah she's gonna look like the Belle of the ball," I murmured in spite of myself.

"It's a very beautiful dress," Kasumi commented. "I decided to keep it short, though. Believe me, I know exactly what it's like to try and sneak around in a ball gown, and it isn't fun at all. I figured if she had her legs free she could pull it off... except for the heels. I don't care how athletic Shepard is, I need to see that girl in heels. You can't just waltz into Hock's mansion without being properly dressed, you know." She laughed. "Shepard will be gorgeous. She hasn't got that much hair to work with, unfortunately, but it's going to be soft and almost glowing when she uses the shampoo I bought her... okay, I aquired the shampoo, I didn't really _buy_ it..."

I beamed, knowing exactly what she meant. Then I asked something out of sheer curiousity. "Don't you ever feel bad stealing things? I mean... wouldn't you feel better if you got things the honest way, at least sometimes?"

"That kind of ties into why I became a thief, I think. It's not a question of understated morals if that's what you mean. I never, ever steal from people who work hard and earn an honest living. Just because we make our ways in the galaxy a bit differently doesn't mean I should look down on them or anything. But what excites me is the challenge. Most of these high-rollers are jerks, so I don't feel bad stealing from them, you know? Unless I need something for absolute survival, I try to keep it nice and simple like that... though I'm tempted to break into Zaeed's room and steal his rifle, Jessie, when he's not looking. Joker told me all about his fascination with it when I got aboard."

I chose to stay silent about, well, what she said about Zaeed and Jessie. I couldn't even imagine the thought of going into that room and trying to take something... I'd probably end up worse for the wear. Possibly worse than what happened to me on Haestrom. Then again... I was a bumbling buffoon in comparison to Kasumi's grace and skill. Or compared to anyone else on this ship, for that matter.

"But you stole from that museum with that... huge painting by the drell and the hanar," I pointed out, referring to that story she'd told me before. "Was that place being run by criminals or something? Or did you just do it for the 'challenge'?"

"I was hired to," Kasumi stated matter-of-factly. "Basically word was out about some big heist, I tracked down the source, heard the details, and got him what he wanted. I needed to make a living, too. The money I received was put to good use, believe me."

She abruptly got up, all grace and skill, and went to face one of the paintings on the far wall. She delicately plucked a red rose from the top of the frame and brought it over to me, sitting down beside me. "See this here? I used to leave it as a calling card in the place of the thing I stole. Really sentimental, childish even. And it left a trace. Sometimes it's better to be unseen and invisible than having everybody know you're on top of the world."

I studied the rose in her hand for a moment, leaning in just a little to peer at it. I then eyed her curiously. "I guess in some ways I still don't get it," I said with a small shrug. "I mean, why you do what you do, but... I guess you're really good at it, and you're needed on this mission, so..." I shrugged. "It doesn't really matter what I think, or if I get it or not."

"I know what you mean," she said wryly. "I met up with this asari once, a real... innovator, I guess." She giggled. "She worked on Omega, if that gives you any clue."

"Um... what do you mean?" I asked, wondering what this had to do with what we were talking about. "What did she do?"

"She was one of the first-generation asari/humans. Her mother was a stripper... her dad was a stripper..." She looked away, giggling. "I'll never be able to do this lady's job. I can't remember her name, but she was a therapist, of a sort. A sex therapist. Not to make you better in bed like the conventional guys out there, but she believed in resolving issues with, well... sex. She had rules, though. She would sleep with anybody, any way they'd like it, to help them out, but she wouldn't sleep with a married person unless it was just a bad marriage. Crazy lady. I'd _never _want her job, ever!"

I blinked several times. "Well uh... to each their own I suppose," I finally said, scratching the back of my neck.

"We can't be other than what we're born to be," she said. "I was born to be a thief, so here I am. It's the best job, because the only competition you have... doesn't know you exist."

"I'm not entirely sure what I'm born to be yet," I said, suddenly looking at her with a touch of envy. At least she seemed to have her life mostly figured out. "But... I do enjoy cleaning." I shrugged.

"Just do whatever makes you happy," Kasumi said, patting me on the shoulder. She placed the rose next to the painting, on a small workshop area of some type, and continued, saying, "Now I have to get going. I have Shepard's dress here and I need to take it upstairs. We'll be there in two days if our current schedule holds, and she needs to look like a cultured person instead of a military grunt. She should be able to pull it off-she's got that Shepard charm to her. I think if she plays her cards right, Hock might even try to get to know her better. Wouldn't that be hilarious?"

"Ooooo," I answered mischieviously, nodding at the thought. "I bet he'll definitely like to look at her, when he sees her in that dress." I chuckled a little.

"And don't forget the purse," Kasumi said slyly. She revealed an ornate, leather-covered beaded bag that made me blink. "I didn't actually steal the outfit, so we're good. I have a friend, an elcor, actually, who specializes in the fashionista side of life. I helped him out with a problem a long time ago, and he and I have been good friends ever since. He designed these clothes for me."

"Awesome," I said with a sincere nod. "Say... can I ask a favor?"

"What do you need?"

I began to twirl the ends of my hair around my fingers a little, feeling a little awkward. "Well um... you can sneak up on anyone without them knowing that you're there, right?"

A sly grin flittered over her face. "Yeah. What's the target?"

I wasn't sure but I THINK I might have blushed slightly, especially when she said it like that. "Don't you want to know what I have in mind first before you ask that?" I murmured.

Kasumi just looked at me, and I could've sworn she was raising her eyebrow. "That's why I asked, right? C'mon, girl, what's on your mind?"

I sucked in a breath. "I was just wondering if..." I exhaled through my nose, making sort of a soft chuckling noise through it. "Nevermind it's silly," I finally said, waving a dismissive hand through the air. "You've got better things to do I'm sure," I added.

"Well, if you say so," Kasumi said, shrugging. She went to her closet and retrieved the dress that matched the purse, plus a pair of high heels that made me blanch. How was Shepard going to walk in _those? _"I need to get these upstairs. It was nice talking to you, Sarah." She smiled.

"Yeah okay," I said with a nod, returning her smile. I hesitated. "Thanks for talking," I added. Then somehow I ended up blurting out, "Think you could... sneak up on Garrus?"

_God I didn't just say that..._

"Why?" she asked curiously. There was a hint of suspicion in her voice, too, and I wondered suddenly if Joker had mentioned anything about me liking the turian crewmember in the same conversation that included Jessie as well.

I glanced at the opposite wall, twiddling my fingers together. "Well... I was wondering if it might be possible to get a picture of him somehow without him knowing anything about it." I winced. This was really starting to seem sillier and sillier, especially while I heard myself saying it outloud.

"You like him, don't you?" she asked kindly, leaning against her back against the desk chair. "Don't worry, I won't tell a soul. But that's almost too easy. What kind of picture? Toilet? Shower?"

THAT was not the question I was expecting her to ask me. All I knew was that... a minute or so passed, and I was pressed back against the couch as my shoulders and chest shuddered in a mixture of laughter and awkward coughs.

"I'm assuming shower?" she asked playfully. "Or when he's getting ready for bed? Hmmm, that excite you a bit?"

I managed to get ahold of myself and I grinned at her. Honestly... I had not even THOUGHT about asking her that. I was thinking of just asking her to get a good picture of his face as he concentrated over his work station in the gunnery, or perhaps sleeping peacefully after he had fallen asleep in his bed. I would never normally DREAM of having something like... what Kasumi was suggesting done to them.

Still somehow... well... hmmm. She was the best in the business, right? Able to move about without ANYONE seeing her or ever knowing she was there?

"You decide," I finally said with a shrug. God somebody kill me, right now. "Just... please make sure HK and Abby never find out about this either. If anybody ever finds out... I'll die." That, of course, reminded me that I shared a room with two roommates. "Erm... then again... I share a room with my friends, how in the world am I going to hide it from them?" I mused aloud. Maybe it might be better just to forget this entire thing.

"Why would you need to hide it?" she asked, confused. "I'd just send it to your omni-tool. Just don't ask Garrus to help you with your omni-tool in the future." She set the clothes down, a grin already spreading even wider across her face, and opened up her omni-tool. "Now, what's your email address?"

"Uh," I said hesitantly, "I don't have an omni-tool. I just... haven't bothered to get a new one." I phrased that in such a way that I hoped she would just assume that something happened to my omni-tool or something. In this universe, it seemed embarrassing to admit that you've never even had an omni-tool. "And I... am not really sure how to use them anyway," I added.

"Wow, really?" she asked. "Okay, then! Let me run these things up to Shepard," she said, picking the clothes up again, "and I'll give you a crash-course in it. It's pretty simple, anyways." She motioned for me to go out in front of her, and i supposed it was time to leave. She locked the door behind her. "Meet you later!" she said cheerfully. "I like this challenge.. it's almost too easy, but I'll spice it up somehow."

I grinned mischieviously. "Sure!" I said, then I slipped out of her room. I guess I would... go wash those dishes now.


	26. The Drell Assassin & the Master Thief

**A/N **

**PLEASE READ THIS MESSAGE!**

School starts this Tuesday, 8/24, and due to a hectic schedule I won't be getting home until quite possibly late at night. I'm still hoping to get homework done during school hours, but most days I'll be getting up at 5:45am to catch a bus 10 miles away from my house and so I can't work on the fic late like I was hoping I could. This chapter here is probably the last one I'll be able to write as much for, and as you can tell I tried to make it funny! :P

Love you guys, will try to update as much as I can.

Abby

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I had finished a few chores onboard the Normandy, and I felt somehow... satisfied and exhausted at the same time. It always felt good to get a lot of work done. Especially if it meant having less work to do tomorrow.

Then again, I was probably also feeling a bit... giddy because I had my new omni tool, and Kasumi had shown me how to use it. Right now it was in my pocket though; I was up to my elbows in soap suds, cleaning an area behind the kitchen counter that I had neglected to clean for some time. I had already washed the dishes, cleaned the tables again, cleaned UNDER the tables, and I even cleaned off the stove and made sure that all the food leftovers that were over a week old had been thrown away.

I swear one leftover dish looked like it had been in there for... maybe since the mission started. I'm not even sure what it was supposed to be. But right now it was green and moldy and... it almost looked like a developed civilization inside the dish.

I had taken the protective wrapper off of it and grimanced as a horrid smell came at me like a wave. "EW!" I couldn't help but exclaim. I was just totally glad there was no one else in the mess hall right at that moment.

Anyway I was almost finished cleaning behind the kitchen counter... when my new omni tool beeped in my pocket. I knew what that sound meant; I had an email.

I froze. I felt sheepish and awkward, but... this was just a secret between me and Kasumi. So long as nobody looked at my omni tool... I would be fine.

I rushed into the nearest bathroom, slamming the door shut and locking it. I then dried off my hands on a towel, then took my omni-tool from my pocket and then activated it to check my email.

When I saw the image that Kasumi sent me... my eyes widened to double their normal size.

The picture was of Garrus, just like she'd promised... but Garrus wasn't in the calibration room. He was downstairs in the cargo room where Abby and HK normally practiced, and he didn't have a shirt on, exposing his bare, glossy torso to the world as he lay on his stomach, sighting up something with his sniper rifle. I couldn't see his face, but the deep, muscular outlines of his back were completely visible to me. I found myself lost as I stared at his strong shoulders, watching how they curved over his alien form, down towards his butt. He was still wearing pants, some light khaki's or something like that I'd never seen him wear before, but I was suddenly wondering what it would be like to see the entire picture.

I continued to stare at the image for a minute longer, then giggled a little in spite of myself. "Thanks Kasumi," I whispered, then glanced around sharply. Part of me wondered if EDI might somehow be watching, or if she was wondering what in the world I was doing.

I snickered under my breath, then I shut off the omni tool and shoved it back into my pocket. For the time-being... I really needed to get back to work. But I would have to do something to thank Kasumi later... but what I could do for her that she couldn't do for herself? Maybe if I just said thank you in person sometime, it would be enough.

* * *

**(HK)**

So, after waiting for a bit, we had all departed from the Normandy again. Thane and Shepard thought it would be best to wait a little while until they went looking for Kolyat, because they checked with Bailey and C-Sec hadn't seen anything yet.

However, this time after Samara, Shepard, Thane, Abby, and myself went to the Captain, he had heard something, and had just sent us in the direction of Mouse. Abby had also felt good enough to show herself and join us for this mission, which signified that she was getting over all of this.

We walked through Zakera, making our way towards the Dark Star.

"Mouse will be a little hard to crack," I explained to Shepard and Thane. "You may have to get a little rough with him."

"You may," Abby interrupted, before Thane could speak. "You could be nice, too. Either way."

"We will see," Thane simply said.

"Just keep control over yourself. Try not to do anything unjust, or it may do more damage than you know," Samara instructed.

_Funny, we have the two people with the lost kids with us. Both of them at the same time, on one of their missions. Ironic._

We all headed up to the exterior of the Dark Star, and there Mouse was, speaking on his comlink like always.

"Yeah. Sure, I can get you two cases by the end of the day," Mouse told whoever he was speaking to.

"You Mouse?" Shepard asked.

Mouse whirled around. "What do you-" he backed away with eyes wide once seeing Thane. "Oh shit, Krios! I thought you retired!"

Shepard glanced at Thane suspiciously.

Mouse looked back at Shepard. "Commander Shepard? I thought you died. What do you want with me?"

"Be still, Mouse. You can change your pants in a moment," Thane said peacefully, giving him a gentle pat on the shoulder.

I was not usually one to laugh during times like this, that was Abby's job, but I did have to surpress a snort.

"How do you know Thane?" Shepard queried.

"Krios? He didn't-? Uh, if he didn't say nothing, I ain't either," Mouse replied, crossing his arms.

Thane looked at Shepard. "When we heard the name, I didn't think it could be the same Mouse," he explained. "He was a contact on the Citadel when I was acted. He and some other children would gather information on my targets."

"You put children in danger to spy for you?" Shepard asked in shock.

"Children. The poor. My people's word for their kind is 'drala'fa': the ignored. They're everywhere, see everything, yet they are never seen," Thane answered. He proceeded to look back to Mouse, and grab the man by his collar. "You gave another drell instructions for an assassination. Who's the target?

"I-I don't know. I didn't ask. Cause the people I work for?" Mouse began, stepping back. "They can make me disappear. I'd like to help you, Krios. You always done right by us. But I ain't gonna die for you."

"Look, you know Thane," Shepard said, walking closer to Mouse. "He wouldn't ask if it wasn't important. Do it for him."

_Paragon way. Good._

"I want to," Mouse told us, sounding slightly nervous. "He was always nice to us. But these people ain't nice, Krios."

"Nobody's gonna know you talked to us," Shepard vowed.

"Mouse, I swear that you won't be named," Thane told him.

"All right, all right," Mouse said, putting his hands up. "He came with that holo you took of me. Said he wanted a job. I ran through your old contacts to see who might give him a shot. The guy who offered was Elias Kellham."

Mouse then explained Kellham and what he did to Shepard and Thane, and the rest of us just listened quietly. After some more chatter, Mouse looked at Thane, and stared for a long moment.

"Krios, you got any kindness for me, put a bullet in Kellham before you go," he said, walking off.

Thane looked at Shepard, and she spoke again. "That couldn't have been easy," she remarked.

"Mouse knew more about my life than Kolyat ever did," Thane replied, then went into flashback mode. "He smiles up at me, broken teeth and scabby knees. Bare feet black. A dead-end future looking up at me. Worshipping the petty gifts I offer."

We all watched, slightly interested, though Abby looked like she was anxious to get moving.

Thane snapped out of it. "I was the only good thing he had, back then. But I left him, as I left Kolyat.

"Don't blame yourself," Shepard said to him.

"If I don't, who will? We must carry the weight of our decisions, Shepard," he said as we all began to walk off. "You, of all people, should know this."

"You're making it up to him now by saving your son," Abby said quietly. "After we take on the Collectors... maybe you can find Mouse again. Get him into a respectable business."

"Perhaps. If I live that long," Thane commented in a monotone.

I frowned, as we walked back to Bailey. Thane was a very nice person, a very kind man, but his life was so sad. So depressing. And he was only fixing it all before he died. It seemed like he deserved more than that, despite his past actions.

We got back to C-Sec HQ, and the usual stuff happened. Bailey got told about Kellham, revealed about his little backhand deal with him, but brought him in anyway. He then let Thane and Shepard in to the interrogation room, while we three stayed outside, and he promised to handle Kellham's lawyer.

The man was already there, speaking to several officers.

After the door to the interrogation room was shut, Kellham took a deep breath. "Okay, here we g-"

"Captain, can you help me with something?" an officer called from her desk.

"I'm a little busy," Bailey replied.

"This is urgent," she argued.

Bailey sighed. "Crap...fine, fine, I'll be right over there," he said, heading in her direction.

My eyes widened. This was _not_ supposed to happen! Bailey was supposed to distract the lawyer for a minute or two at least while Shepard and Thane interrogated Kellham. Shepard was not a Renegade, so this wouldn't be short, and there was no way that those officers could hold him back for that long.

This whole mission would go down in shambles.

On the other hand, we could always just tell them the name of the guy ourselves, but that would look very suspicious to Kellham and co., if we managed to find all that info out on our own. And it would probably make Bailey mad, for the fact that we made him break his deal when we were able to locate Kolyat all along.

Things had to transpire as close as they did in the real game as possible.

I looked at the lawyer, who began to move past the officers, anxiety welling up in my chest. I glanced back at Bailey, who looked to still be dealing with the crisis across the room.

Thinking fast, I looked to Abby. "Abby, we have to stop him! Your dad's a lawyer, can't you keep him occupied?"

Abby shot me a look that might as well have suggested I was telling her to take the guy to court herself. "Ahh... hell," she cursed, glancing back at the man. "On it!"

She darted past me and ran towards the lawyer like she was in a panic, eyes wide, hair flying. I thought she would sidestep him, but that wasn't to be. She bowled right into the lawyer, taking him down to the floor. "You're not taking me back to the orphanage, you're not taking me back there!" she cried, pounding at his chest with her fists. They were nothing more than weak, girlish slaps, but they were enough to scare the lawyer.

My jaw dropped, and I glanced at Samara.

"She is a clever girl," the asari justicar commented. "And very random."

"Wha-who is this girl?" the lawyer shouted, looking from her to the C-Sec officers, who just blinked.

"You know damn well who I am, and you ain't taking me anywhere-you stupid-piece-of-urgh! Gerrof me!" Three C-Sec officers were trying to remove her... but they weren't succeeding. Either they weren't trying, Abby was hanging on exceptionally well, or they were just horrible at their job. She had her arms around the lawyer's neck, locking her legs around his torso in an effort to stay on despite the man's struggling.

I tried to keep from laughing. Oh, only Abby would do this...

"This girl is unstable! I have business to attend to, get off of me-ah!" the lawyer yelled, as he stumbled around with Abby clinging to him, and the officers trying to cling to her. "Taze her, taze her!"

"Do NOT taze her, boys!" Captain Bailey yelled, jogging up to the scene. "She's a minor. Hold your horses here-"

"He's back to take me to the orphanage!" Abby cried, sounding deranged. "You guys ain't takin' me, go away, leave me ALONE!"

Captain Bailey knelt down to remove her from the lawyer's prone body, and she came easily, detaching herself. Her head was bowed and she sounded as though she were sobbing... but I knew that she was probably just laughing. She collapsed against one of the other officers, still laughing and sobbing hysterically, and he ushered her away to a quiet room.

Captain Bailey helped the lawyer up, already apologizing profusely. "She's a girl we've been having trouble with for a while, you know how it is. She's going through withdrawel. Just-ah, forget it. You need first aid or anything?"

"No," the lawyer grumbled, scowling at Bailey and Abby. "I just need to see my client."

He began to move towards the door, but I quickly yelled somethig. "Sir!" I shouted.

He looked back to me. "Yes?"

"I'm sorry about her. Like Captain Bailey said, she's just having some trouble," I explained, trying to stall. "We'll pay for any medical bills if there is anything wrong."

"Hmph," he said, turning back to the door, but just then, Thane and Shepard emerged.

"What did you do to my client?" the lawyer asked, glancing back at Bailey.

"Go talk to him to find out," Bailey replied coldly.

The lawyer walked inside, and then Thane and Shepard explained the whole Talid situation to Bailey, and Bailey told them about Talid and his anti-human campaign.

"We need to stop this assassination," Shepard finally declared. "Can you get us to the 800 blocks?"

Bailey looked to an officer. "Sargeant! Get us a patrol car! These two need to get to the 800 blocks."

The officer saluted, said the typical "yes sir", and got to it. Out of the corner of my eye I saw the same officer who had taken Abby away reappear with her in tow, and she looked as though she were having a ball. She glanced at the door the lawyer had disappeared into and broke out into violent giggles.

"You three stay here," Shepard told Samara, Abby, and myself.

I nodded. "Don't worry," I said. I just hoped they wouldn't be too late to stop Kolyat, or Thane was going to be depressed until the day he died. "And...good luck."

Abby just cackled. "You can do it, Thane," she said, patting him on the back, then burst back into laughter.

Shepard cast a weird glance towards Abby, and Thane just nodded. With that, the two left.

_Please, find Kolyat, Shepard. Don't lose Talid. Or else Thane's life will be down the tubes, and we're one step closer to dying._

That sounded too grim for me, but in a way, it was the truth.

We looked behind us to see the lawyer and Kellham walk out of the interrogation room, something we never saw in the game. The lawyer spotted Abby, and his eyes widened.

"Let's leave _now_," he told Kellham, ushering them both away.

I shook my head, and laughed.

Abby turned to me and collapsed on my shoulder, shaking with hysterical laughter. "I love my job," she choked out.

* * *

After about fourty five minutes, everyone returned, including Kolyat. Talid was alive and well, and Thane had gone inside the interrogation room to speak to his son, and they had been in there a long time.

Abby, Samara, and myself all stood by Shepard while she spoke to Bailey, convincing him to clear Thane's name of all those assassinations that took place years ago on the Citadel.

I really felt for Thane, and was glad that Kolyat and him were starting to repair their relationship. I just hoped it could last, and it sounded in the game like it did. And now, Thane's loyalty was secured.

Heck, maybe he'd even romance Shepard.

We all turned when Thane emerged from the room, walking towards us.

"How'd it go?" Shepard asked.

"Our problems-they aren't something I can fix with a few words. We'll keep talking, see what happens," Thane replied.

"Your boy shot some people. No one I feel sympathy for, but there it is," Bailey interrupted.

"I watched those guys shaking down businesses and threatening humans," Shepard told him.

"But he can't just get away with it," Bailey argued.

"The kid wants to make a difference. Give him community service," Shepard suggested.

"Community service for attempted murder? What jury would agree to that?" Bailey asked in shock.

"None that I've seen," the Commander answered. "This would need to stay out of the judiciary. Strictly within C-Sec.

Bailey got up to shake Thane's hand. "Interesting, I'll think about it," he said.

"Thank you, Captain," Thane said, before turning away. He looked back to all of us. "And thank you. All of you. Especially you, Shepard. I couldn't have done this without you."

"No problem," Shepard assured him.

"I'm glad things worked out for the best," I said with a light smile. I glanced to Abby. "It's how they should work out. In our visions, at least."

Abby smiled calmly up at Shepard, and something seemed to pass between the two of them. Maybe it was acceptance or something else, I didn't know, but the Commander just came to stand in the middle of us and pat us both on the shoulders. "These are my troublemakers," she told Bailey and Thane wryly. "We couldn't have done anything about Kelham without them."

"Two kids? That's surprising, but I'm learning that you are a little surprising," Bailey remarked.

"Uh, thank you, Shepard, but you're way too kind. Most of it was all you," I said with a nervous chuckle, happy but shocked at the same time.

"Come on," said Shepard, walking past us to join Thane at the door. "Let's go. I don't think there's anything here we need to worry about any more."

Abby and I exchanged a surprised but willing grin and followed her out and back to the Normandy.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

Well... I guess the ship was more or less spotless, at least in the areas that were important to keep clean. There were still a few dusty spots here or there, but I had a little rule for myself; If it wasn't in the main walkway or eating area, and if it was barely noticeable, it was a very low priority. And since Rupert had never said anything to me about this, if I happened to ignore some minor areas... well, I figured it was okay. Or at the very least, he didn't care.

So I yawned to myself, put my cleaning supplies away, and proceeded toward the elevator. I figured that Abby and HK-along with Shepard, Thane, and Samara-were probably due back soon, but I was tired. So I would simply go and get some rest.

And just as I entered the elevator, and the doors shut-my omni-tool beeped again.

I blinked several times. Wasn't that the noise it made when I recieved an email? Who could possibly be emailing me? Only Kasumi knew my email address right now.

I stopped the elevator, made sure the doors stayed closed, then I looked at my omni-tool. Yep, the email was from Kasumi, but... what was she sending? I thought she had already sent me a picture...

Oh wait... she had sent me ANOTHER one. I raised my eyebrows in surprise. I thought... she was only going to send me one. I thought that's what we agreed. But she was sending me more, even after that?

I suddenly felt a mixture of horror and strange delight. Well... this could certainly be fun, and I knew Kasumi wouldn't get caught or anything, but... doing it more than once? It felt like we were being mean to Garrus in a way.

Still, my curiousity got the better of me... and I looked at the picture.

Garrus was facing the lens of the omni-tool's camera, looking directly into my eyes. He seemed to be kneeling down, attempting to fix something mechanical. Kasumi must have snuck underneath the Hammerhead and waited for the exact moment. I could see every pore of Garrus's turian face, his scars, and most importantly his small, intense blue eyes. He filled up the entire picture, a testament to how close Kasumi had gotten.

I liked the picture very much, but at the same time... it made me cringe. She had gotten THAT close to him? In some ways it almost seemed as though she was boasting, because... well, just the fact that she could get right in his face and take a picture without him noticing her. That scared me and impressed me at the same time.

I glanced around warily. Yes I was quite alone in the elevator, but... I began to realize that Kasumi could be right behind-or right in front of-ANYONE at any time without them seeing her. It was almost like sharing the ship with a sorceror.

* * *

**(Abby)**

Sarah and I exchanged a nervous glance as we boarded the elevator. Neither of us knew why we were both suddenly summoned to the Commander's quarters, but it couldn't be pretty. And in the fact that HK wasn't requested to join us only made my head spin even faster-we were probably going to be reprimanded for our behavior on the ship, and I didn't exactly like that idea.

So I was extremely surprised when the elevator stopped after ascending one floor and Kelly jumped in. "Hey, guys!" she said cheerfully as she doors closed. "This is going to be so much fun."

Sarah and I must've had identical expressions on our faces. "What's gonna be fun?" I asked suspisciously.

Kelly actually giggled. "I don't think the Commander even knows, but Kasumi says she needs some girl help up there. She's getting Amelia ready for Hock's party."

I blinked, shocked. "And you don't think that the Commander would be slightly ticked if we all came barging in there with fashion help?"

"Well, probably," Kelly allowed, "but she'll have to get over it. She's not in control right now-it's all Kasumi's mission."

I giggled nervously.

Sarah glanced between me and Kelly for a moment. She looked... incredulous. And a bit nervous, too. "But I don't know anything about dresses," she protested quietly with a shrug. "I mean, I've never even been to a fancy party or anything, so what would I know? The only fancy shindig I went to was my aunt's wedding, and that was a kid so I wasn't even in charge of what I was wearing back then-"

Kelly then interrupted her rambling.

"So offer advice when you can," she said. Nothing seemed to dent her sunny mood. "It's a girl's night tonight, and you guys are invited."

"Shepard is going to kill us," I said, grinning, "but that makes me love it even more."

We stopped at the top floor and Kelly pranced on ahead of us, knocking on Shepard's door once before letting herself in. "We're here!" she said. Sarah and I followed behind her a bit slower, and I could see Shepard sitting in the middle of the room in her desktop chair, her hair freshly washed and already dressed in her formal regalia. She looked bad-tempered. Kasumi was behind her, rubbing some sweet-smelling lather into her hair.

"Good, you're here!" Kasumi said, massaging the soap or whatever it was more firmly into Shepard's short red hair. "Kelly and Sarah, you're in charge of makeup. Abby, you're going to help me with the hair."

Kelly had brought a bag of makeup with her and spent an undue amount of time with Sarah picking out the exact shade of makeup that Shepard could pull off. I went around and talked hair with Kasumi. Shepard, our play-toy, sat in her seat with an unfathomable expression on her face. "So what do we have?" I asked Kasumi, observing what she was doing. We'd met before and had a nice conversation when she appeared in the room I'd shared with Sarah and HK, and we both liked each other.

"I'm putting soft highlights into her hair," Kasumi said, maneuvering the locks with a delicate touch of her fingers. She showed me exactly where and told me to grab a small plastic cap. She placed it over Shepard's head and began to dab a little of the excess amount on the poor woman's eyebrows.

"For God's sake, Kasumi, we're probably going to end up shooting our way out anyway," Shepard complained.

"At least you'll look good while you're doing it," Kasumi countered. "When is the last time you had somebody do your hair?"

"I offered to trim it for her, you know," Kelly spoke up. "She said no, I don't understand why!"

Sarah and I giggled a little bit. Kasumi bent down to examine Shepard's legs... and my eyes were drawn there, too. They were hairy. "Uh, Shepard... you can't go all European here. Please tell me you shaved your armpits recently."

"I shave those," she muttered, abashed. "But there's just no point in shaving your legs when you wear armor half of the time. I haven't seen a pair of shorts since my last furlough."

"Shep... that was two years ago."

She sighed. "I know."

"Are you getting enough sleep? You have bags underneath your eyes. Honestly, Shep, you have to take better care of my raw material. Kelly, do you have a light concealer in your bag?"

Kelly handed her a small liquid bottle and Kasumi carefully dabbed small drops on to the baggy areas, blending it in with her pinky. "This stuff is wonderful," Kelly was saying, "I use it whenever the oppertunity arises. It doesn't clog your pores or anything, which is good for me, since I typically have greasy skin. I have to. . ."

Kelly went on and on, jabbering about her skin care regimine as we worked on Shepard's face. Sarah shot a brief look at Kasumi, a blush spreading across her face, and said "Thank you" in an undertone when she walked to the desk, retrieving a brush for her.

"Looks like the hair color's done!" Kasumi said excitedly, ripping off the plastic bag. "Come on, up you get, time to wash this stuff out. Go take a shower and put that dress back on. Wash your face really well, too, and get that makeup off."

Shepard lumbered up and went to the bathroom. Once the door closed behind her, Kasumi jumped up and said, "Don't forget to shave your legs!"

We set aside the makeup supplies Kasumi had approved and began to plan out how much we would apply to Shepard's face. Once we hit an agreement, Kasumi lounged on Shepard's bed and Kelly took a seat in her comfortable leather chair. I meandered over to her desk and flipped Kaidan's picture up, staring at the face on it. I'd never seen him in real life before, but I couldn't help but wonder. . .

I dismissed the thought. We'd find out in the next game. If we lived to play the next game, at least.

Shepard had no collectable ships, nor fish. There wasn't even a space hamster on her shelves, sadly, but she didn't seem like the type of person to bother decorating her room with worthless things that would only be destroyed later anyway.

"Kelly," I said, "how many upgrades has Shepard purchased for the Normandy?"

"Oh, a couple-"

"Armor?"

"Yes."

"Weapons?"

"Yes."

"And shields?"

"Yes."

"Good!" I said happily.

Sarah was listening to everything that was being said, although for the most part she was quiet. She helped here or there if someone asked her assist, and she occasionally asked questions or made a comment here or there, but for the most part she was just watching the masters at work. After all, she never wore fancy clothes, or any makeup for that matter. So even though she seemed to be enjoying herself, all of this was just a bit outside her normal league.

"So what happens when Shepard comes out of the shower?" she asked curiously. She was sitting on the edge of Shepard's bed, near Kasumi's feet.

"Well, we're going to fix her up! All the makeup we've set out will be applied, we'll curl her hair a little, and perfume. Hock is a cultured man, so I thought something French would suffice. As it happens there is a fragrance out there, pretty cheap, that's almost a dead ringer for an expensive asari perfume... and as it happens, Kelly has some for special occassions."

Sarah nodded a little, smiling at the thought. "Heh, you know," she said in a thoughtful tone, "I never really bother with this much... preparation when I go somewhere. I'm always satisfied with a simple outfit." She shook her head slightly, appearing amused. "Maybe it just doesn't take much to satisfy me-or I'm just a simple person or something, but.. I don't really see how the 'cultured' people can do this every day." She nodded toward the makeup bags and gestured toward the dress for emphasis.

"It's a primal urge for every species to dress up and flaunt their power," Kasumi mused. "Personally I don't care much for it, but there is a certain... oh, I don't know, charm about dressing up. It's actually very exciting, focusing soley on your appearance for once. I think that this is very good for the Commander. She may act like one of the guys, but she's a girly-girl deep down."

"I see what you mean," I said, nodding. "When I was younger I was the biggest tom-boy you'd ever see, but I kind of like showing off my feminine parts from time to time." I laughed.

Sarah chuckled a little. "Heh sometimes... I feel like part of me would LIKE to dress up in something nice, at least. But..." She shrugged sheepishly, glancing down at the floor. "Well I think I look okay, but I'm no super-model or anything. I have never had an hour-glass figure or anything, either." She chuckled softly again. "Though I've always believed I look best in black."

"Black would be very pretty on you," Kelly said, "but you're very beautiful, Sarah." She shot a sly glance at Kasumi. "Maybe after this whole thing is over we can all just... check into a hotel or something and be pampered."

"If they don't kick us out first," I said with a grin. "We'd burn the place down."

Kelly laughed. "Yes, possibly, considering your luck! Hopefully the bad luck streak will be directed towards the collectors instead of us once we get through the Omega relay."

"If we could bottle our awesomeness, we'd have a weapon of mass destruction on our hands," I said with a laugh.

"I don't know what you guys are on about," Kasumi said, chuckling, "but I apparently haven't been filled in on all the details since your arrival."

"And you pretty much don't want to! Boring, anyway." I winked.

Sarah shifted her position a little, once again looking a little sheepish. "Probably mostly my fault," she muttered. "I seem to have... a way of, um..." She trailed off, squinting. She looked as though she was trying to come up with the right words. "I swear I have a weird effect on people sometimes... or something," she finally said.

"I can normally tell which of the mini-incidents on the ships are the doings of you three," Kelly said. "Shepard's face goes all impassive and she gets this slightly manic look in her eye."

"Like 'why oh why did I allow these people on my wonderful ship?'" Kasumi asked.

"Oh please, we're not as bad as Jack, at least," I countered.

"Jack is an interesting young lady," Kasumi mused. "Very... well. Interesting."

"I believe Jack is beginning to care deeply about our mission, though," Kelly said seriously. "Her walk is different around Shepard. I think she's struggling with her own personal issues, barriers of trusting other people she's placed up against herself. She's a sad, lonely child in a way, but until she lets somebody help her I don't think she'll ever really be able to heal," Kelly said sadly.

"Hey I have an idea," Sarah said randomly, smiling in a mischievious way. I could tell she was either up to something or about to make a jest of some kind.

"Oh dear," I muttered.

"What?" Kasumi asked curiously. "Want me to run downstairs and take some pictures of Jacob?" She grinned.

Sarah blinked a few times, yet quickly relaxed and grinned. "No uh," she said very quickly, "I was thinking... um... maybe we could get HK up here and make him all pretty while we're waiting for Shepard." She then laughed, making it clear that it was meant to be a joke.

"I call hair!" I said. "You'll take the makeup, Kelly has toes, and Kasumi can have the fingers!"

While we were all laughing, inspiration struck. "You know... I may have an idea, too. Why don't we ask EDI to get HK for us, put him on the line... and ask him what color he wants his nails to be?" I made a face. "You know what, that sounded better in my head. I think we should ask Jack that instead."

"Oh gawd," Sarah said, her eyes widening at the thought. "I think that if anyone went anywhere near that woman with an eyeliner brush or nail polish, they'd be thrown across the room." She leaned forward a little, looking thoughtful again. "Of course it wouldn't do any good to have Miranda come in here... she already looks perfect, thanks to her genetic tailor. But ummm... eh I dunno, it still might be fun to try and pretty up one of the guys on the ship." She grinned impishly. "Don't you think?"

Kasumi crossed her arms. "You've never seen that video about the krogan, haven't you?"

"What video?" I asked curiously.

"Nothing," Kasumi said quickly. "If you don't know, then I surely won't enlighten you. I'm still washing my mind out with soap."

As if on cue, the door opened and Shepard stepped out of the bathroom with a grumpy expression on her face. She'd dried herself off and dressed in the silk underslip that went with the dress, as Kasumi had ordered, and on close inspection it was revealed that she'd shaved her legs. "Good!" Kasumi said, declaring her decent. She manhandled the Commander back into a chair and began to dry her hair with a furturistic-looking hairdryer that had no cord, a diffuser on the end. "This will bring out the natural curls in your hair and cut down on frizz," Kasumi told her. "It probably won't help much right now, considering your hair is so short, but-"

"-after you're done with me I'll look like a fashion model. I know." Shepard sighed.

In truth, Shepard looked HOT. Once her hair was dry it looked like a reddish-orange cloud on her head. Kasumi had already cut it before drying and had worked some styling gel into her locks, giving it some needed shape and form.

"You look really, really pretty, Commander," I told her fervently as Kasumi shut off the dryer. "I think Hock is going to _really_ notice you."

"You still haven't told me the rest of the plan, Kasumi," Shepard said, ignoring my words.

"Oh, you'll know about it soon, Shep!" Kasumi giggled.

"And now for the makeup," Kelly said with a grin.

Shepard closed her eyes. "If there is a God, please save me."

"Sarah, can you and Abby work on her nails?" Kasumi grabbed a bottle of nailpolish from Kelly's bag and tossed it to us. I caught it in one hand, then stared at the color within. It was a pretty pink, with a pearlish cast to it.

Sarah peered at it too, then glanced at Kasumi with an inquisitive expression. "Uh," she said, "are we just doing her fingers, or are we doing her toes too? Just wondering," she added quickly.

"Just the toes," Shepard said before Kasumi could open her mouth. "I can't stand fingernail polish."

And her expression was such that we didn't argue.

Sarah actually blinked a little, opening her mouth, then closed it. She seemed to dismiss whatever she had been about to say. "Okay um... I'm not sure how to do this," she finally admitted. "I've never painted any nails, at all."

I grinned, getting to my knees. "I'll show you," I offered kindly. I dipped the small black brush in the foul-smelling polish and wiped a bit on the edges. Taking Shepard's foot, I started at the cuticle and slowly brought the brush towards me, creating a wide line of pink color on her big toe. I quickly did the rest of the toe, covering the entire thing in glossy pink polish. I did the other big toe, also, since those were the hardest ones. "Just treat it like a coloring book," I suggested, and handed the tools to her.

Sarah looked at me incredulously, as though she couldn't possibly imagine comparing Shepard's feet to a coloring book. Then she began to focus a little on what she was doing. She took the tools from me and then she dipped her brush into the polish.

Then she carelessly lifted it into the air... and a large drop of it fell on her pants. "Oops," she muttered. She didn't seem overly bothered by it though.

"It'll come out," I assured her. "After all, it's not exactly krogan blood, is it?"

We all shared a laugh.

Sarah sobered a moment later and looked down at Shepard's foot, hesitating. "You're not ticklish are you?" she asked the Commander.

"No," Shepard replied.

"Okay," Sarah said, and yet she still hesitated. She seemed a little... uneasy. Almost as though she thought the Commander's feet might bite her or something.

I watched, somewhat amused. In many ways Sarah's relationship with the Commander seemed to mimic that of my relationship with my Sensei back on Earth. He was probably one of the most intimidating persons I knew and never failed to make me nervous when I was around him. If I'd been asked to paint HIS toenails... well, I'd probably drink the bottle just to get out of it.

Finally Sarah seemed to relax just a tad-or work up her courage-and she began to paint the Commander's toenails with a careful, delicate touch. She was a bit slow at it, but at least she didn't miss with the brush or spill any of the polish.

"Perfect," Kasumi declared. She made to pull back a bit to study Sarah's work, probably because her large hood didn't give her the type of perephial vision needed for this, and nodded, satisfied.

Kelly was adding the last touches to Shepard's eyes, delicately bringing a small black brush across her upper lid. I immediately recognized the eye liner, and watched, fasicnated, as the eye liner dried and appeared to shimmer in the light, then changed from black to steel blue. "What kind of makeup is that?" I asked. "It's changing colors!"

"It shifts in different lights," Kelly said, cleaning up a stray line with her pinky nail.

"Cool!"

"Are we done yet?" Shepard asked irritably.

"Nearly, Commander, don't get yourself in a knot!" Kasumi chided. "Okay, I have the perfume here somewhere..."

"Perfume? I am not wearing perfume. No."

"Shepard, you have to be cultured for once! Now hold your breath." Kasumi sprayed a small glass bottle around Shepard's neck, just twice, and I wrinkled my nose. I'd always hated perfume with a passion. To me, it smelled like Clorox and laundry detergent (and not the good smelling kind) but I guessed it seemed to have an effect on the other ladies, because they each took a deep whiff and sighed peacefully.

Shepard took that as a sign to breath in, and her face immediately wrinkled. "I smell like a French whore," she muttered, her eyes still closed as Kelly finished her eyeshadow. Kasumi bent down, ignoring the Commander's previous words, and began to smear a natural-looking lipstick on her lips. "Now why are we putting _this _on when it already looks like my lip color?" she demanded, making it difficult for Kasumi to put it on her lips.

"Just trust me, Shepard!" Kasumi said, and I swore I heard an edge of irritation in her voice.

I looked at Sarah and grinned.

Sarah returned the grin and then moved toward the Commander's bed. She looked like she was about to sit down on the edge of the mattress-then stopped at the last minute, as if thinking better of it. She probably didn't feel comfortable doing that while Shepard herself was in the room.

"Hey," Sarah said suddenly, that impish look crawling into her expression again. "I wonder what all of the guys are going to think when they see Shepard once we're done in here."

"For all the work you guys are putting in on me, I'm beginning to think you all should just go to Hock's party and call me when you're done socializing," Shepard grumped.

"Oh hush," Kasumi said, "we're almost done."

"You know, I think we should have a party on the Citadel or somewhere beautiful after all this is said and done," Kelly said happily. "I'd like to see everybody all dressed up for once."

Shepard grunted.

Then I heard Sarah mutter quietly, "I wonder how turians look when they get all dressed up..." She sounded almost dreamy.

Kelly and Kasumi laughed, and I couldn't help but chuckle. "SO, Commander!" I said, a thought striking me. "Do you have your eyes on anybody here on the ship?"

Kasumi and Kelly got abruptly quiet, listening hard.

Shepard sighed. "No, and I'm not looking for anybody."

I was half-tempted to suggest that she go for Garrus. Kasumi, Kelly, Sarah and I exchanged identical grinning looks, and then Kelly said, "I think Jacob has his eye on you, Commander..."

"Jacob is a nice man," she said. "And he's certainly built well enough-but no."

We all giggled, Sarah and I even more so because we knew exactly how the romance scene would play out. "He's obviously attracted to you," Kasumi said archly. "What is it you don't like about him that much?"

"I do like him!" she objected. "Jacob is sweet, and he cares a lot. He's a wonderful soldier and he'll always have your back. I can trust and respect that. But he's not exactly looking for a relationship right now, and neither am I."

"So if you both were...?"

"Dammit, Kasumi, don't twist my words. Mister Taylor is a-a fine individual. But we have bigger things to worry about than fraternization."

"And what about Thane?" I asked with a grin.

"He needs a friend more than anyhting I could offer him," she said. "And he's a drell, not a human!"

"And Garrus?" Kelly asked, shooting a covert glance in Sarah's direction. Sarah's gaze sharpened, but she quickly tried to cover it up. Obviously she was paying CLOSE attention to this, though.

"A wonderful man, friend, and ally. But still-no." Shepard sounded impatient. "Look, I can live without a man. Just because Kaidan and I are-" Her eyes shot to the desk, where I'd flipped up the picture. Her eyes tightened for a moment when she saw him, and she continued in a more subdued voice, "Just because Kaidan wants nothing to do with me anymore doesn't mean that I'm suddenly a free agent."

We finished doing the Commander's makeup in silence, though Sarah, Kasumi and I really had nothing more to do as Kelly was taking care of it. I suddenly wondered, though, why nobody had asked about teh Commander's opinion on Kelly. As much as I liked the woman now, I didn't think that Shepard would choose her...

...or well, hopefully she wouldn't. It wasn't as though I had anything against gays or bisexuals or lesbians-I didn't! But Kelly's stripping would forever ruin her as a romance option for me.

Kelly had a wistful, sad look on her face as she did the makeup, and I was sure she was thinking exactly what I thought she was thinking. She was attracted to Shepard, and to hear her in such emotional distress probably tugged at her heartstrings a little bit.

"Time to slip on the dress, Commander," Kasumi said. The Commander stood without a word and retrieved the dress from the bathroom. She slipped it on over her underclothes and adjusted the top accordingly. "Good, good, it's very pretty on you." Kasumi came over and made a few adjustments to the bust area so her bra didn't show, tightened the shoulders a little, and made a few more adjustments to the hair before she deemed the Commander the most beautiful woman on the ship.

I placed the Commander's pistol in her purse, along with some credits, feminine necessities, ID, and her communicator. "Omni-tool," Kelly mouthed to me, and I leaned over and picked it up from the table, stuffing it into the bag as well. I handed it to the Commander with a bow. "Your equipment, Miss Gunn."

"I think Allison Gunn looks perfect," Kasumi said with a big smile.

"Shoes!" Kelly reminded us, and I scurried off to get Shepard's high heels.

"If I don't kill myself in these," she said in distaste as she slipped them on, "I'll end up killing somebody else."

"That's the idea," Kasumi said cheerfully.

Sarah was staring at Shepard's shoes. "I didn't even know they made high heels THAT high," she commented with raised eyebrows.

"Want to try them on?" Shepard offered.

"Nope I'm good," Sarah said with a thin-lipped smile. "I'd probably break an ankle anyway," she added.

I wasn't about to let the oppertunity pass me by, however. "I'll try em!" I offered. Shepard handed them to me and I placed my bare feet in them. I had taken off my boots when I walked in the room. "Holy..." I was taller than Shepard now. I took a few wobbly, experimental steps. "Oh wow. Have fun, you'll do great!" I slipped them off and she eyed me with great distaste.

She nearly fell down on the way to the door, but seemed to regain a semblance of balance by the time she reached the elevator. "Somewhere out there Ashley's laughing her ass off," I heard her mutter as she struggled into the elevator.

We all boarded with her, and there was a sly grin on Kelly's face I automatically distrusted. We descended to the bottom level, the cargo hold, and Shepard stepped out gracefully.

There was a flash of a dozen different omni-tools taking a picture, and she blanched.

Jacob Taylor, Grunt, Zaeed Massani, Garrus Vakarian, Thane Krios, Joker, HK, and Mordin Solus were all standing there, waiting for us... and they'd taken pictures.

"Holy SHIT." Jacob was gawking at the Commander. "Ma'am, you look _good."_

"You're stunning," Thane said, blinking rapidly.

"Uh... yeah," Garrus said lamely, his mouth still open.

"Dress is very supportive of your feminine features, Commander," Mordin said kindly. "You are very attractive."

Joker's eyes were wide, and his mouth was open. "On the risk that you'll break every bone in my body... you know what? I'm not going to say it. You, uh, you look good. Uh. Ma'am."

Sarah laughed a bit at Joker's remark, then glanced curiously over at Garrus. By the way she was looking, she was obviously trying to be discreet about it. I glanced at Garrus to see exactly what she was seeing.

Garrus was still gawking at the Commander, seemingly amazed and floored. Sarah peered at him for a moment longer, then turned her head away and looked at Shepard again, focusing on her.

"Well shit, Shepard," Zaeed said, eying the shoes. "Think you can run in those?"

"Trying," she mumbled.

"I don't see why humans feel like they have to dress up in dumb shit like that," Grunt rumbled. "You can't fight in it. Show up in your armor and be proud of it, not some sissy dress."

"Shepard complained the entire time," Kasumi assured everybody.

"I bet she did," Joker mumbled.

"Nonsense. It's a good cover," Mordin supplied.

Joker snapped another picture.

Sarah casually moved toward Joker, then said to him in a quiet tone, "Can you send one of those to my omni-tool later? I'd like to remember this because she'll probably never get dressed up like this ever again."

Even HK, who was also down here with us, seemed to stare in awe for a moment. "Wow, Shepard, you do look nice," he commented.

She grimaced and walked past them, towards the car in the back of the cargo hold. "Come on, Goto," she snapped.

Kasumi threw us a happy salute and ran off after her, climbing into the pilot's seat.

"Guess I better get up to the cockpit to let 'em down," Joker said, chuckling. We all moved into the elevator and crowded in. Zaeed and Grunt got off on the first stop, HK, Sarah, Thane, and Garrus at the next one, and everybody else once we hit the bridge. Kelly crossed over to her terminal, smirking to herself, and Joker limped up to the cockpit. I hesitated for a moment, wondering if I should ask Kelly if she was interested in the Commander, then decided against it.

Then I realized that all of her stuff was still in the Commander's room, so I got back on the elvator and took it up to the first level. EDI let me in, but I had a feeling that she was probably watching me very closely as I went around the room, picking up the things that didn't belong and stuck them in their bags.

After dropping everything off where they belonged, I went back to the Bridge and told Kelly, then I walked up to the cockpit and took what was going to be my usual seat in the future, my back resting against EDI's terminal as I struck up a conversation with Joker. But I wasn't too interested in talking, and neither was he. I just closed my eyes and let myself be lulled to sleep by the sounds of bickering that occassionally came up between the pilot and his ship cancer.


	27. The Cerberus Operative

**(Abby)**

Kasumi and the Commander arrived back on the ship nearly two hours later. Fresh from my nap, I leaned against the observatory window on the engineering deck, watching the two get out of the Kodiak drop shuttle. The car had apparently been left at Hock's mansion.

Kasumi's shoulders were slumped and defeated, and Shepard, dressed in her regular old N7 armor, had an arm around her shoulders. I waved at them, and Shepard waved back half-heartedly. I pointed to Kasumi, who wasn't looking at me, and Shepard shook her head.

No. Relief coursed through me, and I closed my eyes, nodding. I gave her a thumbs up before she disappeared into the elevator directly below me. She didn't make a stop on this level, so I assumed that Kasumi wanted some time alone. The door to my left opened, revealing Grunt. He was still dressed in his armor, as he always was, and the bulk of him seemed to fill the entire doorway. "The annoying one looked injured," he noted.

"Kasumi is not annoying, and she wasn't injured," I said. Physically, at least. "She lost something at Hock's mansion she'll never be able to get back."

"What, a gun?"

"Something even more important to her than that," I said, "but I shouldn't say anymore. It's her business."

Grunt blinked, shrugged, and turned back around. The door closed behind him, and I sighed, my breath forming a small misty cloud over the window. When I closed my eyes I could see the cargo bay as it was at the end of the game-holes blown in the sides, scorch marks, and coffins. Hopefully, however, there would be no coffins on this trip...

HK, Sarah, and I made a sort of checklist of loyalty missions. There were the finished ones (Miranda, Garrus, Thane) and the unfinished ones (Jacob, Mordin, Legion, Grunt, Zaeed, Jack, Tali). So far the unfinished ones were outweighing the finished ones, at Shepard had made it clear to us already that we couldn't wait too much longer to retrieve that Reaper IFF.

I asked her about Overlord, but the Commander hadn't received that email yet. I could breath easily again, but I knew that if it came up I would have to volunteer and go. Overlord was the scariest DLC Bioware had come up with, and certainly the craziest and hardest.

But that was the future, and this was the present. And right now, we had to deal with Jacob.

We would arrive on Aeia in thirty-two hours, and Jacob was getting tense. He refused to practice with HK and I, meaning that we were stuck with Garrus and Miranda. It was probably for the best, seeing that he would probably inadvertantly break our bones with how strung up he was. I knew that the Commander was talking to him, and even Joker was trying to get him to calm down. Really, though, Jacob didn't seem too tense, except that he wasn't talking as much and spent more time cloistered away in the armory.

I would've preferred Jacob training with us, though. At least he would've talked Miranda down.

I didn't know what in the world gave her the idea, or why she thought it would help us concentrate. As soon as I saw Grunt arrive in that elevator, taking up more of the space, I felt my stomach drop through the ground and into a black hole somewhere out there.

Sparring Grunt was brutal, but it was as much training for him as it was for us. He was trying to work past his blood rage issue, which made me realize that Shepard must have talked to him, too. "A warrior controls his temper," Grunt said quietly, sizing me up. "I'll figure it out. Or I'll kill you."

At least we had an audience of biotics watching us, ready to push Grunt off if things seemed to go too far-which they did, half of the time. Miranda had Grunt pinned to the ground with the power of her mind alone whenever he spilled too much blood. I now had three broken fingers and a rebroken nose, but Doctor Chakwas, who had consented to come down and supervise, had the bones fixed in less than fifteen minutes.

I could see Zaeed watching from the observational window, though I tried not to notice him too much. He had, after all, thrown me into a cargo box because I poked him in the eye. I didn't want him down here.

Thane even popped in, too. He threw Grunt off of HK with his biotics when it got too out of hand again, then consented to step into the sparring ring... against _both_ of us.

Well, Thane won. I didn't really have to get into details about that, did I? He was faster than I'd realized, his body moving gracefully in and out of us, finding openings only a master could. We got him to the ground only once-just once-and then he'd just rolled backwards, got to his feet, and made us both run headlong into each other.

Sarah had come in to watch a bit, but she got an email from Rupert and had to leave. I was glad she was making use of her new omni-tool, courtesy of Kasumi. My knowledge was steadily improving under Joker's tutelige, and I was already a Level 7 Assassin on one of those crazy games he was making me play in my downtime.

Sooner or later, though, even an ass-kicking has to end. Miranda and Garrus called it a day and HK and I stumbled back upstairs without a word. We each took a shower and crawled into bed. It felt like I could sleep forever and not feel bad about it.

It wasn't to be. Ten hours later Samara entered our room and placed a cool hand on my arm. "You must wake up now, it's time for you to depart." She moved to HK like a spector in the night and whispered the same message. I got out of bed, feeling groggy, and took my clothes into the bathroom to change.

Five minutes later I met Jacob, HK, Miranda, and Commander Shepard on Deck Five. I was armed with my pistol and omni-tool, as usual, but Shepard didn't approve.

"Garrus told me you can shoot well enough to use these," Shepard told us both, handing us an assault rifle each. "And these." Miranda handed both of us a sniper rifle, and I laughed, my weariness gone. I collapsed the sniper rifle and slung it across the webbing on my back, holstered my pistol, and held the assault rifle in both hands. I felt _awesome_.

"Wow," HK said, breathless. He did the same as me, holding the rifle in his hands. "Thanks, Shepard. And thanks, Garrus, even though he isn't here. This should really help."

I giggled, making sure the safety was on. Jacob led the way into the drop shuttle, taking a seat on the far side. HK and I sat beside each other, and Miranda and Shepard sat close together in the middle, on the other side.

The floor dropped from under us as the belly of the Normandy opened. The shuttle slid out easily, racing for the ground. There were no windows, so I couldn't tell where exactly we were. I felt the engines kick in after ten seconds of free-fall, bringing us to a soft, gentle glide to the ground.

The door opened, and Jacob was the first one out.

Shepard followed, and HK, Miranda, and myself all jumped out at the same time. The shuttle remained behind us, which was unusual, considering that in the game it normally took off. But we had bigger things to worry about.

"Don't screw this up," Miranda muttered to us both.

"Don't worry, I'm sure it will turn out like you hope," HK whispered.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I woke up, blinking several times. I was lying on the floor, curled up into a ball. Well not exactly... though I was in a relatively confined space.

It took me a few moments to remember what had happened. Sometimes when I had a deep relaxing nap, it took me a couple of minutes to remember where the heck I was and what I had been doing. But I managed to recall a conversation I'd had with Rupert. You see, usually he was the one who cleaned out the shuttles if they needed it, but this time around there was something he needed to fix on a couple of the toilets and one of the showers. So he asked me to clean the shuttle that was going to be used for Jacob's loyalty mission.

I did a pretty good job of cleaning it, too. Then I found myself slipping into the storage area of the shuttle, making certain everything in there was neat and tidy. I then found myself yawning. At times I felt tired, even though I kept pushing myself to keep busy and to keep doing my work.

However, this was one moment where I simply felt like being lazy. I just wanted to lie down somewhere and catch a little bit of rest. So... despite the cool, metallic hardness of the floor, I lay down and did my best to make myself comfortable. I knew I was going to wake up stiff in a little while, but at least I had my head resting on my arms.

But now that I was awake... I did feel stiff, my leg felt slightly cramped, and my arms were full of pins and needles. I hastily sat up, making a series of hissing and groaning noises along with a few ow's as I waited for the cramp to ease off, and for the circulation to return to my arms.

When I could finally stand I decided that I had better get off of this shuttle before Shepard, Jacob, and whoever they were taking with them came aboard. I still had some things I needed to do, and I definitely didn't want to go on the mission. I knew that Shepard would never allow me to go on another mission in a million years anyway.

I quickly moved toward the shuttle door. When I opened it though... I recieved the shock of a lifetime.

I didn't see the interior of the shuttle bay. What I did see was... brown dirt, stretching as far as the eye could see in every direction. Well, that and a lot of rocks and trees, bushes, flowers and grass-just the sort of thing you'd see on a planet...

Plus the air itself suggested that this was a planet. It had... well, what I would call "fresh air". Not the slightly stale air that was recycled over and over again on the Normandy. I'd actually gotten kind of used to that air, but this was definitely better. I found myself inhaling deeply and appreciatively for a moment... until the realization set in, followed by horror.

I was... um... was I on Aeia right now? Had I been asleep for so long that I missed the fact that we had left the ship, and we'd landed? And no one had even noticed me onboard? Though I guess everyone would have assumed I wasn't there... there wouldn't be any reason to look around normally.

I felt scared. No, terrified. I was on a planet, and a dangerous one at that, and... I didn't even have any weapons. I didn't even know where Shepard and the others were right now. I didn't even know what direction they had gone in. I also began to feel angry. How could they just leave me here like this? Why hadn't they made SURE that the shuttle was empty before they took off with it?

Well... I decided that there wasn't much I could do except stay at the shuttle. If I went anywhere or tried to find Shepard, I'd either get killed by the hunters or Shepard herself would kill me just for being here when I wasn't supposed to be.

Ugh. I wondered how long it would take until anyone began to miss me aboard the Normandy. Well... maybe if no one did... I could just hide away in the cargo area again and just stay there until we returned to the ship. Then maybe, just maybe, no one would ever even know I was here.

I was just about to carry out that plan, but a sudden noise prevented me from heading toward the cargo area. I turned around to peer out of the open door. Then I saw something moving in the distance-it took me a moment to realize that they were several somethings. They were dressed in tattered clothing that obviously hadn't been washed or mended for a long time. Heck, the people themselves looked like the hadn't had a bath in a long time; they also had unkempt facial hair, and head hair that was long and ragged.

And they were carrying guns. I only realized that when one of them took a shot at me, missing me by inches. The blast went into the shuttle, right beside the door.

I yelped loudly and flinched, then crouched down. I wasn't sure what else to do so... I simply jumped back from the door and smashed my fist against the door control, forcing it to shut. Then I could hear the sounds of weapons firing outside-they were shooting at the shuttle!

I tried to figure out what to do. Maybe the shuttle would be able to withstand the firepower. I looked around quickly, then glanced sharply toward the cockpit. Hey... would it be possible that maybe, just maybe, I would be able to get this thing to fly? I dashed up toward the cockpit and looked at the controls.

No. No way. There were just too many. There was NO way I would be able to figure that out, not even remotely. I'd probably blow the engines up or cause the shuttle to crash or something.

The sounds of shooting was getting louder and louder. I knew I couldn't go outside though; I'd be dead in a heartbeat. So what the hell was I supposed to do? I had no armor, no weapons, no chance. All I could do was hope that the shuttle hull was strong enough to withstand all of this.

I glanced around me. Well... the shuttle seemed to be taking it okay. In some ways it sounded more like heavy, thunderous rain pounding down on the exterior from all sides. I didn't see any burn marks or any excessive damage from the inside... yet.

Then I heard a noise that sounded like a banshee screaming at the top of it's lungs. The firepower faltered-then there was a loud noise-an explosion?-and then the shooting seemed to stop altogether.

Everything was deathly quiet after that. I only realized that I was holding my breath when I felt my lungs about to burst-I began to inhale and exhale, deeply and carefully.

Then I heard what sounded like banging on the door, accompanied by someone yelling. It sounded like a crazed, frantic woman.

There was no way I was going to open that door.

After a few moments passed, whoever was out there apparently decided I wasn't going to let them in. So then the person moved around toward the front of the shuttle and hopped up to where the front window was. I looked over to see who it was-and I nearly fell down.

"No way," I muttered, staring with widened eyes and shaking my head. It couldn't be. It just damn could NOT be. But then the rational part of my brain pointed out to me that, well... if HK's OC character could somehow appear in this adventure... who said that one of mine couldn't?

But what the hell was she DOING here? This woman certainly didn't belong here of all places.

I was suddenly very curious to find out... especially since it was very possible that this woman had just saved me. Why, I have no idea. But maybe it would be a good idea to find out.

Very slowly I walked around to open the door. After a moment, the woman sprang toward the open door and right at me. She was breathing heavily, and she looked terrible.

Somehow though she didn't look terrible in the same way that those feral hunters looked awful. No, she simply looked terrible because she was naturally ugly. She had eyes that were too large for her face, a crooked nose, and way too much makeup on-only the makeup didn't add very much improvement. She was wearing a tattered green sweater and a black shirt that did nothing but show off just how bull-legged she was. She had short black hair-which meant that she had let it go back to its natural color, apparently-and her skin was so pale she almost looked like death itself.

And yes... that was her natural look. Only she normally wore much better clothes.

"Petra Black?" I asked cautiously as she came inside and took a step toward me. I was suddenly very nervous, and unsure if I should have let her in. After all, well... what if she had eaten some of the toxic food?

Then again, this was Petra Black. She would be dangerous and unstable whether or not she touched any of that junk.

She squinted at me, then narrowed her eyes. "Who are you?" She quickly waved a dismissive hand. "Don't care. I just want to get out of here." With that she turned and began to move toward the shuttle cockpit.

"Hey, wait!" I said, following her-but not touching her. "We need to wait for the others, then we can go."

She turned to look at me then. "What others?" she demanded. Then she waved her hand again. "Doesn't matter; I'm going home." She turned around and began to move toward the cockpit again.

"Wait a minute, how did you get here?" I pressed. "Why are you here?" In some ways this was both scary and amazing. It wasn't every day you got to meet your own character, so to speak. But at the same time it was freaky. Especially because I knew how unstable she was.

Basically she was an insane scientist. And one who you did NOT want to tick off in any way whatsoever.

Petra ignored my question; she seemed to be lost in her own little world, rambling mostly to herself. It made me wonder if being isolated on this crazy planet with all of these crazy people had made her even more crazy. Possibly to the point where she couldn't really talk coherantly to another person anymore. I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing.

"Petra... did you eat any of the food here?" I asked her. "And did you stop those men out there who were shooting at us?"

"Eat... the food?" Petra scowled, though she wasn't looking at me. In fact it looked as though she was talking to the wall. "Yes, ate some food. And I got rid of those punks with the guns." She shrugged as if she had merely swatted flies off of the shuttle.

"How did you do that?" I wanted to know.

Suddenly she grinned at me. And this time she spoke directly to me, not to the wall. "I made an invention that kept... blowing up. It was supposed to do... something. I can't remember what now." She grimanced and pressed her fingers against her head. "ACK! So hard to THINK! But... but... yes... it was... supposed to do something." She sighed and dropped her hands, looking at me again. "It always exploded, so I used it to take out those punks."

She shrugged again. "Nasty kids around here. Punks and gangsters think they run the place. I just want to go home."

Kids? Gangsters? What planet did this woman think she was on?

"Look uh, we can go home," I told her. "I mean, I'm sure we can get you home eventually." I also figured that Chakwas could take a look at her, but I wasn't going to mention that. "Please just.. sit down, okay?" I pointed to one of the chairs. "Sit here and... relax. We'll try to get you home soon."

One thing about Petra Black was that, well... you HAD to try and keep her calm. Otherwise things would turn ugly.

However, things DID turn ugly regardless. At least they started to, right at this moment. "NO! I won't sit down!" Then she turned and ran the rest of the way into the cockpit.

"Oh boy," I groaned loudly, then I immediately hit my commlink. "Shepard? Normandy? ANYBODY?" I held my breath as I waited for an answer.

"Sarah?" Shepard didn't sound happy. "Why are you on this frequency?"

"Uh Shepard, I'm on the shuttle and uh..." I looked toward the shuttle's cockpit, and I thought I heard the engines starting to fire up. "SHIT!" I exclaimed, starting to move toward the cockpit myself. I had to stop her or slow her down, at least.

"You're on the shuttle? What the hell are you doing on the shuttle? And what is that in the background?"

"Shepard, I-" I entered the cockpit, but I didn't get to say anything more. The next thing I knew, pain exploded in my face and I found myself staggering backward. It took me a moment to realize that Petra had just slammed me in the face with... one of her high-heeled shoes. And now my nose was bleeding. "STAY AWAY FROM ME!" she screamed.

Later, when I actually had time to think, I would realize that a large reason why she was acting like this was probably because, well... Petra had never been exposed to much violence before, even if she did occasionally throw tantrums and break stuff. She had never had anyone try to harm her before, so... maybe this entire situation had changed her, having a profound impact on her.

And it certainly hadn't done her any favors; she had changed for the worse. I didn't even think that was possible. Yet she was still... coherant.

I thought I heard Shepard shouting something at me, but I was too distracted and disoriented to pay much attention to it. I then looked right at Petra-it looked like she was getting ready to try and get the shuttle out of here. I sucked in a deep breath-God, I HATED what I was thinking about doing.

I eyed her carefully, making certain she was not focused on me. She wasn't-in fact, she seemed as preoccupied with the shuttle controls as Veetor did with those screens on that planet where Shepard rescued him. So I decided that... it was now or never. Despite my squeamishness to violence I HAD to make a move.

So, moving as quickly as I could, I grabbed her roughly by the back the shoulders and half-yanked, half-tossed her out of the chair. She scrambled to her hands and knees, about to try and get up-only I kicked her, as hard as I could, in the forehead.

She slumped and fell to the floor, motionless.

I leaned back against the wall, wiping at my nose. "Uh... Shepard?" I said into my commlink.

"Sarah, what is going on?" Shepard asked harshly. "Where are you?"

"I just... knocked out Petra Black. She was trying to steal the shuttle," I told her.

"Who the _hell_ is Petra Black?" Miranda asked. "And how did you get here?"

"We don't have a lot of time, Sarah, so explain quickly," Shepard commanded.

I took a deep breath and began talking. "I fell asleep on the shuttle while I was cleaning, that's the only reason why I'm here right now. And then these feral hunters started to attack the shuttle, and Petra somehow got rid of them. I let Petra in, and she tried to steal the shuttle because she wants to go home. I just knocked her out so she can't."

"She must be one of the marooned personnel," Miranda deduced.

Shepard sighed. "Sarah, put this woman outside, and leave her there. Then seal yourself in the shuttle. I think we're going to have to get the Alliance here, anyway, so they can take her. And don't let anyone inside the shuttle! Just _stay there_!"

"But," I began to argue in spite of myself-then hesitated. Just what was I supposed to say? That Petra Black was made by me and I felt strangely... protective of her, at least in some ways? "But it's Petra Black, someone I know!" I said instead. "She's uh... a little nutty, but... I at least want to find out why she's here," I added.

"You can do that after she's secured and is not trying to leave _us_ stranded," Miranda snapped.

I swallowed. "Maybe I can keep her under control, somehow," I murmured.

"You couldn't keep a rat under control!" Miranda yelled.

I scowled. Then I glanced down and saw that Petra was starting to move. Maybe she hadn't been knocked out, then; it was possible that she had simply been... stunned.

I cautiously squatted down near her-though not too close. "Why are you here?" I asked her, allowing my commlink to stay open so that the others could hear the conversation.

Petra squinted a little, then lifted her head a little to look at me. "Came here to..." She shook her head a little. "No!" she blurted out suddenly, jumping to her feet. "Can't leave yet! Must go finish what I started!" She bolted past me and headed straight for the door.

Before I could get more than a couple of words out she had the door open and she went outside. Five seconds later, she was completely gone without a trace.

Except for the heavily unconscious bodies that lay around the shuttle...

"Uh Shepard... she's gone," I said. "She just took off."

"Shepard, if we encounter her, we can deal with her ourselves. We need to find Jacob's father," Miranda said.

"Miranda has a good point. Stay on the shuttle, Sarah, and don't go after her," Shepard ordered.

"Yeah okay," I agreed readily. I didn't really want to go out there anyway. And well... Petra knew how to handle herself, I was sure.

I closed the door.

* * *

**(Abby) **

"So let me get this straight... Sarah fell asleep on the shuttle, EDI didn't know about it, and now she's back there dealing with Petra Black?"

We were inside the female camp, huddled together in a group. Jacob had the doctor's datapad in his hand, but he hadn't lost sight of what we were doing yet, and he seemed genuinely concerned for Sarah, though like the rest of us he had no clue why EDI hadn't picked her up.

"I guess so, though it sounds like Petra has vanished again," HK replied, glancing at Jacob. "I have no clue why EDI didn't notice her. Maybe she was cleaning, and EDI just forgot about her when we left? I have no clue."

"She's at the shuttle now, and hopefully that friend won't bother her again," Shepard said. "How do you know her?"

"We don't. Well, okay, we kinda do, but not like Sarah. Let's just say she's an old friend," HK answered. "But that's not why we're here. We need to continue on."

I nodded, slightly worried for my friend. "Hey, guys... you know Sarah doesn't have any weapons. Shouldn't we send somebody back to the shuttle?"

Shepard shook her head. "I'm going to contact Joker and have him take temporary control, lock the doors." She turned away to make the orders clear to our favorite pilot, and HK and I exchanged an amused glance.

"Abby." Jacob motioned for me to join him over by the spoiled food stores. I wrinkled my nose a bit, but the smell didn't bother me as much as the expression on his face. "I need to know if my father is who I think he is."

"He's done some bad things, Jacob," I said, figuring that he knew at least that much. "He did things that shouldn't have been done. He's changed, and he's not your father any more. Just treasure the memories you have of him instead of the ones you will have... uh, soon."

Jacob nodded. "I don't like this... if I'd gotten here sooner-"

I shook my head. "You never would have gotten here soon."

He gestured to the food. "Look at all of this. Mold, fungus, whatever. Years old and rotton, and he's making these people... I don't even know any more. I don't know. But this man... he's not my father. He deserves to die."

"That's not your choice, Jacob," I said. "You can't choose if somebody lives or dies. He's done horrible things, I know, trust me, I know. But... you can't just... lose sight of what makes you you. And you would never, ever pronounce death on somebody unless they were gunning for you."

"He is gunning for us."

"Everybody's gone insane except him. I don't think we'll ever know the entire story, but you have to keep everything in perspective. Don't let..." I was having trouble finding the right words. "Don't let what you're feeling rule your actions."

"Hey, you two, get over here!" Shepard called, motioning for us. We rejoined her, and she pointed at the stack of crates blocking our way. "I'm going to set a charge and blow it up. Stay out of range."

The charges set, she ran back to us, plugging her ears. The explosion was louder and more effective than it had been in the game. We continued forward, up the steep hill, and stopped at a pile of skeletal remains. "Those bodies have been there for years," Miranda said, stooping down to examine them. "They've been arranged. Like a warning."

Jacob grunted.

HK and I were becoming and awesome team, and despite Miranda's worries we worked well with Shepard. I loved the assault rifle, too. This battle, though still serious, didn't have the same issue with me as killing human beings did. These were just mechs, and they felt no pain. Humans, however...

They screamed. It was the screaming that made me nautious.

Shepard took out an entire line of approaching mechs with a single raise of her hand. Shockwave seemed to be her preferred biotic attack of choice, but I wasn't complaining, because it got results. It wasn't long until we arrived att he one part I absolutely hated.

Two heavy mechs and a load of crazy guys with omni-tools. "Fan out!" Shepard ordered, moving into cover.

"Dang it!" HK shouted, rushing into cover himself. He ran behind that group of trees and rocks, ducking down.

The mechs, and brainwashed guards, wildly shot at us all, and I saw HK slowly take out the sniper rifle. "Time to see how this thing works," he muttered, carefully aiming so that it wouldn't hit one of the trees.

He fired, and one hit a brainwashed officer right in the soldier. He yelled out in pain, stumbling backwards, and another shot hit his neck. He collapsed, dead.

"Good shot!" I congratulated. Breathing heavily, I peeked out of cover, took only enough time to aim, and squeezed the trigger. The officer running for Jacob did a little stuttering dance as bullets peppered his body, before falling to the ground in a bloodied heap.

"Those heavy mechs are a priority," Shepard said. She had circled around to the right, near the far brush of trees, and was working on the one closest towards her.

Oh yeah. I ducked back to reload, then peeked out of cover once more to spray a chain of bullets in the mech's direction. It took the heat off of Shepard for a moment, but there was also a downside: it knew I was there with a gun. Hmm, probably not the best idea.

"Overloading Left's shields," I heard Miranda call out.

Which left me. I waved my omni-tool in the mech's direction, but nothing happened. Then I cursed inwardly-Joker had made a modification to the hotkey for me. I whispered a string of profanities as I entered the walkaround script manually, hands shaking with adrenaline. "C'mon c'mon c'moooooon..."

I gave up and popped around cover, spraying more bullets in it's direction. "Yeah, come get me!" I yelled.

The mech lurched to the side, nearly losing it's balance: shepard had hit it with a strong biotic warp, draining it's shields by a modicum amount. The mech turned to look at her, and she looked at it, and I suddenly knew what was going to happen before it did.

The mech opened fire, and Shepard ran for it. The bullets ripped apart trees and the animals living within, and Shepard stumbled. She threw up a biotic barrier to protect herself as she ran for better cover, deflecting the bullets, but I could see it draining.

"I'm right here!" I yelled, standing up and spraying a bunch of ammo in the mech's direction. "Come get me, I'm right here."

It continued to shoot at Shepard with one arm, and launched a missile at me with the other one. I dived to the side, screaming, and felt my body move through the air. I collapsed behind cover with Jacob just as the shockwave hit.

There was another missile, then another. HK screamed only once before one slammed next to his place behind the trees. He flew through the air and hit the surrounding rocks head-first. He didn't move again.

Shepard was on all fours, her back against a large rock as she took off the armor plates surrounding her left shoulder. "I'm hit," she announced calmly. She threw back her head in a wince of pain as she pulled off the shoulder pauldrons. "Ah... damn it."

Jacob took one look at her, then at HK, and understanding passed between us. He slapped a medi-gel packet into my hand and pointed to Shepard. I ran across the battlefield as fast as my long legs would allow and slid into cover behind the rock. "Let me see," I gasped. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Jacob push HK's body behind a clump of trees with his biotics, keeping him out of the fight.

Shepard's shoulder was a pulpy mess, and I had to take a deep breath before I recalled the emergency first aid training I'd been taught. "Clamp down the artery with the medi-gel," she gasped. I didn't like the shound of that, but at least the bleeding would stop. I did as she suggested, placing my bare and bloody hands into her wound and placing a smear of medi-gel on the torn artery.

Until we got to Chakwas, however, Shepard would be in danger of losing her left arm. Clamping down on the artery would only buy us a little time. "Don't worry," I said shakily.

HK was down, too. Was he hurt? Was he dead? I did not go back into that torture hall just so he could die on me later. Naddah.

"The left guy is down!" Miranda announced. "Abby, how's Shepard?"

"Holding in there!" Shepard replied. She punched my shoulder with her free hand. "Don't worry about me, I'll take care of it. Go-go!"

My shields barely withstood the punishment of running back to my original cover, and I had to stay down so they could recharge. Another missile slammed next to us, and I would've been blasted away by the shockwave had Jacob not held up a hand and deflected the force with his mind. "These sons of bitches are going down," he growled.

I switched to my sniper rifle, leaving my rifle laying on the ground, and peeked out of cover once more. I took a bead on the heavy mech, sighting up carefully on the optics, and squeezed the trigger as I exhaled just like Garrus had taught me. The mech fell backwards, its' main nervous system friend, and exploded.

I yowled in pain as I withdrew, bringing my right arm close to my chest, holding the cut closed with my left hand. Jacob yelled something to Miranda and knelt down to take a look. "Let go, let me see," he told me. I did as he said, aware that there wasn't that much blood...

and then the sides of my arm split open as though somebody had made a deep slice with a scalpel. I could see the bone and sinew underneath, and the blood began to pour over my arm. I gasped and held it closed again. Jacob smeared medi-gel on it and I felt it clamp tight, holding the skin together.

"I'm good, I can shoot!" I told him, grabbing my sniper rifle. I leaned out of cover again and sniped down three more guys just to demonstrate, but I figured Jacob and Miranda could handle the rest.

Soon enough the battlefield was quiet. Shepard groaned, and the sound acted like a stimulant to Jacob. He got up and ran to her, just as I had before, and began to treat her wounds.

I ran for HK.

Jacob had dumped him behind some suitable cover, andI had to clib over the rocks to reach him. "HK!" I yelled. "HK!"

I knelt down next to him and began to make all the preliminary observations-no broken bones, a gash on his head, pale face, even, steady pulse. I scanned his body with my omni-tool, just like Mordin had taught me, and was relieved that there was no traumatic brain swelling. He'd just taken a hard bonk on the head.

"Oh thank God," I muttered. Then I flicked his head. "Wake up!"

HK groaned, and slowly opened his eyes. "Wha...no...ow," he muttered, clutching his head. He glanced at me. "What was _that _for?"

I hugged him. "Good, you're awake! I thought you were dead, you hit those rocks so hard. The fight's over, we won, but Shepard's hurt. We need to finish this up quickly and get her to the Normandy. Can you stand up?"

"Yeah, think so," HK said, moaning again as he stood with my help, but he seemed pretty steady. "Yes, I'm alright. We need to go deal with Jacob's father. Can Shepard come, or does someone need to stay here with her?"

"Oh please," Shepard grumped, coming over to observe us with the same grouchy expression she wore when she was the subject of our girlie night. The wound was ghastly and no longer bled, but she looked odd, her face bloodless in the bright sunlight. Her face was smeared with red. "I've had worse."

Jacob hovered around her, protectful, and Miranda leaned over and helped HK climb over the rocks. She gave him one curious look, scanned him with her omni-tool, and nodded. "No permanite harm done," she said. "You both did good."

"My father is through that door," Jacob said darkly, looking at the large security doors on the other side of the battlefield.

"Will there be a fight?" Shepard asked us. Her eyes flickered down to my wounded arm.

"No," I replied. I collapsed my sniper rifle and holstered it, then retrieved my assault rifle. "We're nearly done."

"It's time to see what this bastard has to say," Jacob muttered.

HK looked at me, and sighed. "Just stay calm, Jacob. I know it's hard, and it's not going to be pretty, but don't do anything rash," he said.

"I don't like it when people try and hurt my friends," he stated.

Ronald Taylor looked a lot like Jacob... a lot more than he did in-game. "You're here," he said, relief in his voice. "I knew a real squad would be able to blow through those mechs just fine." He eyed Shepard's shoulder and my arm. "Sorry if they scuffed your pads."

Shepard walked past him and leaned against the balcony. Jacob, Miranda, HK, and I spread out, leaving the man no avenue of escape. "I'll get you something nice when we get back to Alliance space," he said. "I gotta have some back pay coming." His tiny shrug and eyebrow raise was so exactly like Jacob's that it made me blink in surprise.

"What about your crew, Acting Captain?" Jacob asked harshly.

"Total loss," Ronald said sadly. "The toxic food turned them wild. They propped me up here in some kind of ritualistic behavior. Waiting for a chance to signal has been hell."

Jacob snorted. "Is that the best you can do?"

Ronald glared at him, then turned to Shepard. "You let all your people talk like that?" he asked. "Uh... who are you, exactly?"

"Doesn't matter," Shepard said, facing him. "You're running some very questionable behavior here, Captain."

"You might want to explain it," Miranda said.

"Of course," Ronald said. "It was chaos after the crash. The crew didn't accept my role as captain and rebelled and trapped us here. Once they started eating the food I couldn't control them, couldn't get to the beacon. We-"

"Just stop," Jacob said roughtly. "We already knew what you did to your crew. Why let this go on for ten years?"

"And who the hell do you think you are?" Ronald demanded.

"Taylor. Lieutentant. Jacob. _Taylor_."

"Jacob... my Jacob?"

Jacob nodded once.

"Looks like you're in a tight spot, Taylor," Shepard noted.

"I never wanted to explain this to him," Ronald said. "To anyone, really." He shot Jacob a desperate look. "You have to understand, this isn't me! The realities of command, they change you. I wasn't prepared for that. When I left, I made sure you were taught right, Jacob. That's the only thing I could wish for."

"I don't bite, Captain," Shepard said. "At some point you chose to do this to your crew. You."

"What was that moment?" Jacob demanded, getting into his father's face. "I want to know, what was the actual reason?"

Shepard glanced back the way we came and her eyes tightened. She motioned for me to look, and I did. The crazy survivors were stumbling towards us, but they weren't hostile yet. I collapsed my assault rifle and pulled out my pistol, aiming at them. A silent warning.

"There was resistance to the plan. Mutiny. We had to form a hard line to keep order. As the decay set in we made sure the crew were comfortable. Some... even seemed happier. Ignorance is bliss, right? And they were grateful for the guidance, like an instinct. Pure authority was easy... at first. Months in, their inhibitions were gone. They started getting protective and territorial. They didn't understand rank any more. We have to use dominance, make them see who was the big dog. After a while the perks seemed... normal."

"That's it?" Jacob asked. "You created a haram and played king, trapped in some... juvenile fantasy?"

"I can't point out where it all went wrong, but when the beacon was ready, explaining it all out didn't seem like such a good idea."

"I can't say this wasn't a hell of a vacation," Shepard said quietly, "but you can't just walk away after all this time."

"You're damn right!" Jacob shouted, bringing his pistol to bear. "After all that's happened here, I should vent his head!" He glanced around at us, as if making sure we wouldn't stop him. He took a few deep breaths, mastering his anger, and lowered the gun. "But he's not even worth pulling the trigger."

"We'll send a message to the Alliance," Shepard said. "For every day he spent here, he'll do twenty years in a high security prison."

"Too good for him," Jacob bit out.

"You don't understand," Ronald said. "The things that happened here-"

"Bastard," Jacob said. He walked away, shaking his head. "Come on, Shepard. I'm sure he'll live long enough for the Alliance to get here. The man who did this doesn't know right from wrong."

Shepard nodded. "Joker?" she asked, keying in another communications channle. "Bring the shuttle in and sent a message to Alliance command. I don't want them to see our tail-lights, understood?"

"Understood, moving in now."

"I would slap him," I told HK honestly, "but I don't think the medigel would hold." I sighed. I really wanted to break Ronald's nose.

"I don't like him either, and I really feel for Jacob, but slapping Ronald won't do anything," HK commented, glancing back at the man. "Nor would letting him shoot himself. This is the best option."

I sighed.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

With the doors locked and nothing else to do, I simply chose to lay down on one of the seats. Only that was difficult because... well, they were designed to be sat in, not to be used as bunks. So I simply sat down in one and leaned back into it as far as I could.

Thoughts swirled around inside my mind as I closed my eyes. The last time I had a nosebleed... was when I left my post on the bridge. Hell, in all honesty I never wanted a position on the bridge again anyway-I didn't even want to set foot there if I could help it. As far as I was concerned, my place on the ship was with a bucket of water and a mop. Not up there, and not on the missions.

Another thing that crossed my mind was the last time I was onboard a shuttle... when I had that talk with Thane. Part of me wondered if I would get the opportunity to speak with him again... although I had no idea what I would talk to him about if I did.

I wasn't sure how long I relaxed. But I really didn't care either. Sometimes I did enjoy time to myself, where I could just let my mind wander... even if it was a tad boring, and even if it would be better if I had my CD player with me.

I heard the doors swing open, and I looked up to see HK getting on board, with a large gash on his head. "Everyone else is still finishing up assessing everything before the Alliance gets here. They'll be here soon, though, because Shepard wants to leave quickly," he said. "How are you?"

"Good, just bored," I said. "Are you okay?" That gash looked like it HAD to hurt. "How did you get that?"

HK winced slightly, even thinking about it. "Ah, yes, well a heavy mech near Ronald Taylor's lair knocked me out with a few missiles. I'm okay, for the most part, but it did hurt quite a bit. If it wasn't for Jacob moving me to safety with biotics, I'd probably be dead," he explained. "Speaking of 'hows', I'm wondering how you got onto the shuttle without anyone noticing, and _why_."

I sighed. "I was cleaning, because Rupert asked me to. I fell asleep in the cargo area just because it was nice and quiet back there. I intended to get off before the shuttle was needed, but apparently I slept through the entire thing and... woke up here."

"Ahh, perhaps that's why EDI didn't see you," HK said. "We also learned that Petra is living in a cave and performing her experiments there. We didn't bug her or anything, we just saw in passing, and I think it's best if we just leave the woman to her work."

I rubbed my forehead warily. "Yeah, it would be." My nose and my upper lip still hurt from where she had smashed me in the face with her shoe. "Everybody else okay?" I asked.

"Shepard, uh, got shot and was pretty badly hurt, but she forged on. She'll just have to see Dr. Chakwas when we return, which makes it all the more pressing for us to get out of here," HK replied, glancing around. "And Jacob is...okay, but I think he's a little stirred up and angry at his father for all of this. His father is still alive, too. Shepard chose the Paragon way, thankfully."

I nodded and leaned back in my seat again. "Yeah, that's good." I realized my tone sounded kind of... flat. "I'm just anxious to get back home-erm, to the ship." I furrowed my brow. "Wow, since when did I start thinking of the Normandy as 'home'?" I mused out loud.

HK nodded, almost solemnly. "I think we all have, we've been there for so long, at this point. It isn't a bad thing, but it's just a little strange, and something none of us ever expected," he agreed.

I frowned and leaned forward a little, folding my hands in front of me. "Do you think anyone at home-our REAL homes, I mean-is wondering where the hell we are?" I wasn't sure how I felt about that thought. I knew that everybody we knew back home had to be beyond worried sick right now.

"Sarah, the thing is...I think our lives are going on back there, without us physically there. I mean, we've all been having these feelings of what's going on in our real lives. I think that, although we are most definitely here in the ME universe, physically, we...somehow, we're still at home too, just not quite as literally," HK said, seeming to get a bit confused as he explained it. "If that makes a lick of sense."

Somehow I ended up laughing a little. "No it doesn't... but at the same time it sorta does," I said. "If THAT makes sense," I added with a smirk.

HK chuckled himself. "Actually, I think it does, in a weird way," he said, then laughed again. "Wow, _this_ is one strange conversation."

I shrugged. "No weirder than some of our msn conversations," I pointed out.

"True," HK agreed.

"I hope the others get here soon," I murmured. "I really want to go back to the ship."

As if on cue, I heard a small bit of a commotion outside, and then Abby swung herself into the ship. She looked okay, except that her forearm was covered in dried, glossy orange medi-gel. "Hey, Sar," she said, nodding in a greeting. She glanced over her shoulder and moved over for Jacob as he entered. They sat next to each other, and Jacob looked... sad. And shaken. Miranda and Shepard followed close behind, and I gasped out loud. The Commander's shoulder looked like shredded meat despite the medi-gel that had been applied.

"Hi," I greeted her with a nod-and then I nodded toward the others, acknowledging them as well. I didn't say anything else. I guess it was definitely too late to go hide in the back, though.

Shepard shot me a look, but she seemed too emotionally and physically drained to offer anything more than a dry, "Shuttle's clean."

"Mmm-hmm," I agreed, keeping my lips pressed together. Somehow... this just didn't seem like a good time to talk to anyone.

I felt the shuttle lift off moments after the door closed. We were heading back home. Jacob's head was in his hands, massaging his temples, and tension hung thick in the air. By the time we docked on the shuttle and EDI announced that the cargo hold was pressurized again, I was just ready to get out of there. Shepard motioned for all of us to leave with one arm, which I gladly obeyed. Despite her wounds, she stayed aboard the shuttle with Jacob. As we walked away in the quiet, I strained to hear any words she was saying, but she hadn't even opened her mouth. Even Miranda was mercifully silent as we walked away and, finally, out of earshot.

"They'll all be fine," I commented out loud. I knew that that probably sounded like a cold, uncaring thing to say, especially in the tone I said it. But the fact was, I knew there was nothing I could do to make everybody feel better. And we all knew that everyone would be fine after they'd had time to process what happened during their loyalty missions anyway.

"Yeah," Abby agreed quietly. "He just needs some time. Everybody needs time once in a while."

"True," I said in agreement. I thought of Kasumi, wondering how she was doing. I glanced at my omni-tool thoughtfully. She had sent me two pictures, and well... I knew that she would probably just want to grieve her loss and then focus on the mission. It wouldn't matter if she didn't send me any more pictures. In fact... maybe it might be nice if I tried to do something nice for her.

I turned to look at Abby. "Say um... you know Kasumi better than I do. Do you know of anything she might like? Or anything nice I could do for her?" I kind of hoped Abby wouldn't press to know why. I didn't want her to know about... well, what the ninja had been doing for me. Then again... there was definitely a small part of me-the mischievious part of me-that almost wanted her to ask.

She certainly seemed surprised. Perhaps she'd expected me to ask about Jacob instead of Kasumi. Something flashed in her eyes like knowledge, and she grinned. "Well, she does like the hand-made things, but she's the type of person who will love whatever gift or help you could do for her. She'd be totally happy with anything."

I nodded a little, the wheels turning in my head. Well... I definitely had some talent and experience in crafts. I loved to sew things and I also loved working with needlepoint and yarn. Maybe if I could find some spare material or some needlepoint somewhere... I could make her something nice. I was really good at making pretty patterns on needlepoint; I could even make a box out of the stuff.

"Sounds like a good idea," I said with a nod. Part of me felt a little guilty talking about doing something nice for Kasumi while Jacob was the one hurting the most at the moment. But then again... in some ways I was kind of scared to be in the same room with Jacob, even though I had apologized to him a long time ago and he seemed to put the matter way behind him. But well... somehow, he and Miranda were just a couple of people I wasn't too comfortable around.

...And yet I had spent a bit of time here and there chit-chatting with Jack. Now THAT was a weird thought.

We boarded the elevator in silence. Miranda seemed to be absorbed in her own thoughts, and got off as soon as we reached the Crew Quarters. Abby pat my shoulder absently, and a little sadly, as she walked off to the medical bay with HK. "You're a good friend," she said to me as she left.


	28. Okay, off this subject!

**Author's Note:**

Oh my God… wait just a dang moment here… you mean… we're ALIVE? Praaaaaise the Lord! Hey guys, we miss ya! I know the chapter took forever and I apologize about that. I have some unscheduled times at school where I get online and write, and all of this is a product of small pieces of writing every day. The entire chapter probably took… well, longer than 20 pages should!

School's going great, but sleeping is going to quickly become my new hobby. Getting up at 5:30 every day loses its novelty after a while.

Enjoy!

_-Team Milky Way_

* * *

**(Sarah)**

Well that had been . . . exciting, I guess. I was just glad that nothing bad had happened to me. Thankfully I hadn't been hurt-unless you counted the spot where Petra hit me with her shoe, that still smarted at least-and at least no one was mad at me. And Rupert pretty much told me that he would handle cleaning the shuttles from now on whenever they needed it. But he also added that if, by some slim glance I did end up getting stuck with that particular duty again, I should make certain I don't fall asleep on the shuttle. He said that I could even fall asleep behind the kitchen counter for all he cared if I needed forty winks; just NOT on a shuttle.

I took his advice to heart, finished my chores, and then decided to go pay Kelly a visit. I simply asked her if she had any kind of arts and crafts supplies, or knew of anyone who had any. But apparently nobody did that kind of thing on the ship.

So I began to ponder other ideas. Well . . . maybe if I could find some needle and thread somewhere, I could make something out of one of my own shirts or something, perhaps . . . after I had washed it of course. There was one shirt in particular I didn't like much; it just wasn't very comfortable.

My crazy imagination then tried to think of other things I could possibly use to make something "homemade" for Kasumi. My mind ever-so-briefly considered making something or other out of toilet paper . . . but of course I quickly dissed that thought.

I was just heading toward the elevator when my omni-tool beeped again. I raised my eyebrows in surprise; it only made that noise when I had an email . . . and right now, Kasumi was the only one who knew it.

Was she still sending me pictures of Garrus? Well if she was . . . I certainly wasn't going to ask her to stop or anything. Who knows, maybe this was giving her something fun to do, to keep her mind off of what happened to the memories. Or at the very least, she was keeping her skills sharp . . . even if this was mere child's play for her.

I ducked into the nearest bathroom and then opened my email. Then I peered at the newest image as it appeared before my eyes.

This time there was a message attached to the picture, and I read it before even making myself look at the image. It said, _I promised some turian eye-candy. Here you go! Thanks for helping us dress up Shepard upstairs._

The picture was a shot of Garrus, as usual . . . and he looked like he had just taken a shower. The background was obviously the men's restrooms, and Garrus was standing in front of the mirror stroking his scar thoughtfully. He was bare-chested, and the angle allowed me to see his strong, alien back and his torso in the mirror's reflection. He wore a pair of pants he must have just pulled on, and I could see his undershirt folded over his left arm. Condensation from the hot showers had built around the edges of the mirror.

I found myself eyeing his chest. It definitely did not look like a human chest. Instead of chest hair or even smooth skin, I saw the curves and lines of a very alien-and very muscular-chest. It was a lot rougher-looking than a human's would be, too. It was almost as though his entire upper body was constructed out of rough lizard skin and muscle.

Still I had to admit . . . he looked nice. Better than nice, in fact.

I grinned and shut off my omni-tool. I'd definitely have to find a way to thank Kasumi.

* * *

**(HK)**

Everything on the Normandy was mostly quiet now or at least back to everyday life, whatever that was. We were supposedly heading to Tuchanka now, which was pleasing. We'd stop Grunt from having outbursts, and save Mordin's student. Well, actually, stop the tormenting at Clan Weyrloc, but that was practically the same thing.

I believed that Jacob had that whole confrontation with the IM and Miranda revealed her involvement in the entire thing, so that the aftermath of that mission was all wrapped up. I also presumed that Kasumi was back to normal after the deleting of the memories. I disagreed with deleting the memories in the game, and to an extent, I still did; however, logically, it was wise to delete them.

Two more loyalty missions had likely come up, but I wasn't sure whose, and right now, was not going to check. I needed to speak to Abby and Sarah, but Sarah was busy at the moment, so I'd have to talk to Abby. It was something very important.

I had _another_ dream, similar to the one I had right before Okeer's mission on Korlus. When I got knocked out by that mech, it was another dream that was almost like a vision, but at the same time, still like a dream. It was very hard to explain, and I needed to speak to Abby about it.

I walked into our quarters, and found her relaxing in there.

"Abby," I greeted, walking over to her. "I need to talk to you. Something is concerning me."

She glanced up from the datapad she was reading and set it aside. I sat down across from her, thankful for the tables in there. "Alright," she said. "What's wrong?"

I thought back for a moment. "Did I ever tell you about that dream I had before I went down on Korlus? About us leaving and everybody dying?"

"Yeah . . ." she said, frowning.

"When I was knocked out, I had another," I said, slowly and nervously. "It was . . .strange. Different than the last one, but still strange. This time, I didn't see everyone dying, but I did see a couple party members dying. Then, at the end, I saw two coffins, and I heard that voice again."

"People have . . . odd dreams when they're knocked out," Abby said slowly, "but the same one twice is just a bit creepy. What did the voice say?"

"It said something like . . .I don't know, if I remember right, it was something like 'Sacrifices must be made'," I said, trying to think back. These things were always a bit blurry in memory. "It's really confusing, and worrying. I prefer for everyone to live through this."

"D'you have an idea of who died?" she inquired.

I looked around, hoping Sarah wasn't in hearing distance for what I was about to say. Though, at the same time, maybe she was having dreams too. I had no clue if it was just me. "Well, I still saw Garrus being carried away by seeker swarms," I whispered. "This means that Shepard didn't pick a good biotic or the two strong ones aren't loyal. And I think I saw Zaeed or someone die in the final battle."

Abby pursed her lips and looked away. "Alright, I know that this probably sounds like I'm ripping off your idea, but, uh . . . I haven't been sleeping so well, either. And that deep voice you keep hearing . . . I dreamt of him last night, after we arrived back on the Normandy. He told me 'You cannot stray from the path you have chosen.'" She looked a little shaken. "I thought it might have just been me reacting to . . . stress, but I've never had a vivid dream like that. Ever."

She closed her eyes, remembering. "The dreams started out the way they normally do, but then it crystallized into . . . well, that. I wasn't going to mention it, but if we both had the same guy talking in our dreams . . . You don't think the Reapers know we're here, do you? Well, obviously they do, but they can't get into our minds, they just can't."

I winced at the thought. "I don't know why they would be sending us these types of dreams, though, unless it's to scare us. Most of the time I can sleep fine, but these visions are just crazy. Maybe it's just our subconscious telling us to make sure _everything_ goes off without any trouble?"

"Then my subconscious has an attitude problem," Abby said wryly. "It didn't feel like it, though. I had a feeling that I could have answered if I wanted to."

Just then I saw Sarah coming toward us. She looked at us curiously, and then approached us. "Hiya," she said. "I'm just taking a break right now," she added with a small shrug. "What's up?"

_Oh dear. Should I tell her about the dream? I don't want her to get freaked out if I mention Garrus dying . . .but what the heck, she probably needs to know. _

"Abby and I were just discussing something," I replied, glancing at Abby. "We have been having some strange dreams lately."

Sarah blinked a little. "Say um," she began quietly after a moment-then she glanced around briefly, as though making sure no one else was in ear-shot. Then she took a step closer to both of us and continued to whisper. "Well . . . I actually had a weird dream while I was asleep on the shuttle. I forgot most of it after I woke up but . . . I still remember bits and pieces. But maybe it's nothing. What kind of dreams are you guys having?"

Abby really looked shocked, now. "The suicide mission," she said. "And a deep voice telling us stuff."

Sarah glanced at me, as if wanting to hear me say something on the subject as well. Perhaps to confirm what Abby had said.

"We are hearing this voice, and I've seen some people die in my visions. During the suicide mission," I replied hesitantly, exhaling a breath afterwards.

Sarah looked thoughtful. She averted her gaze toward the floor as if she were trying to remember something. "I remember I had some sort of vivid dream," she finally told us. "But sometimes when I wake up and get really distracted-like I did on the shuttle-I forget most of it. But I do remember a deep voice, at least I THINK so. And um . . ." Suddenly she blinked and began to look uncomfortable-maybe even a little scared.

"What'd he say?" Abby asked curiously.

"I can't remember anything he said . . . but I sorta remember something I saw." Sarah narrowed her eyes and appeared to be concentrating.

"And that was . . .?" Abby sounded a little impatient.

Sarah pressed her lips together into a thin line for a moment. "You may not want to know. Um . . ." She suddenly glanced at her omni-tool as if it were a regular chronometer. "You know I really need to get back to work. I still have to clean the kitchen sink-it's got some mildew buildup on it! Excuse me please." She flashed a smile and started to move away.

"Sa-_rah_, c'mon!" Abby said. "This might be really important!"

"Well . . ." Sarah slowly turned back to look at us. "I saw somebody die."

"Who?" I asked intently.

In response her eyes locked onto Abby and then onto me, indicatively. "Both of you," she said simply, shifting her weight between her feet a little.

My eyes widened, and shock coursed through my body. "_Us_?"

She nodded, glancing between me and Abby again. "Yeah and . . . hmm," she fell silent again for a moment. "I think something else is coming back to me . . . yeah," she nodded to herself, "I think I remember what the deep voice told me."

Abby just stared at her.

"I can't remember the exact wording," Sarah went on, "but I think it said something like . . . um . . ." She scratched the back of her neck in a nervous gesture, obviously trying to remember whatever she'd heard. "I think it said something like . . . if we did our jobs right and if everything else went the right way . . . Shepard and everyone else would be fine, but you two would die. I don't know about me, but I somehow got the sense I might live." She frowned.

"That doesn't make sense," Abby contradicted. "Can you think of any Reaper that would want us to destroy that stupid base? That's . . . insane. And . . . I don't mind dying! Really, I don't, but," and she turned to me at this, "I went back to Nyxeris's base to get you out. If you die after that, I swear I'll go crazy."

"I don't want to die," I said, alarmed. It was a typical, cliché line, but it was what was on my mind. "I've tried to be so careful on every mission, I . . ..I just don't even know what to say. Though then again, maybe these dreams won't hold true. Heck, I have no idea."

"Did you see how we died?" Abby asked curiously. "Or was it basically 'Make the right choices and your friends die, but if you save them then Shepard will die?'"

"I can't remember," Sarah answered with a shake of her head. "Not really, anyway. I mean . . . it's all kind of vague and blurry."

"I understand, that's sorta how mine were," I said, looking down, not sure what to say or even think. "I just . . .wow."

"Mine were pretty sharp," Abby said conversationally, "but I didn't see half as much as stuff as you guys did. I had the vague impression we were in the Collector base, and then it went dark and the voice told me 'You cannot stray from the path you have chosen.'"

"That's . . . weird," Sarah said after a moment. "Well . . ." She shrugged, as if wanting to dismiss the entire conversation-or at least make it sound like the dreams weren't anything serious. "They might be just dreams, you know. Might just be something we ate, or just a result of all the excitement or stress we've been under lately."

Abby didn't seem so convinced, and told us so. "The same dream? Okay, I know it sounds freaky, but we have had bad feelings before, and they always come out right." Her expression was clouded over, as if she were concentrating hard on something.

Sarah opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted by a shrill beeping. She glanced sharply at her omni-tool. "Sorry, I gotta go," she said, and then began to walk hurriedly down the corridor-toward the elevator.

Abby watched as she left, her eyes unfocused. "What d'you think, HK?" she asked quietly.

I blinked at Sarah's sudden departure, but I supposed such was the life of a janitor. I was still focused on what she saw. "I-I don't know. It's really scary, because death is what we've all feared this whole time, and our feelings usually are on par. At the same time, though, I want to believe that it's just some weird bad dream. I have no clue what to think . . .we're too _young_ to die."

Abby nodded, conceding the fact. "Even if I was Yoda's age I probably still wouldn't want to die . . . but . . . HK, this mission is a one-way trip for some people if we don't pull through. And . . . we could die on missions. We could get captured. We could be killed in a freak accident on the ship that nobody in the world can prevent. I just . . . I don't even know what I'm saying. I'm hungry," she finished with a frown.

I blinked. Only Abby would be hungry in a time like this. "Maybe . . ." I began, my mind trying to come up with something. "Maybe it's a warning for us to change it. My first dream had us leaving the Normandy, and in turn, everyone dying. I think it was right when Sarah was going through that conflict over staying or leaving, but she stayed, and so did we, and it looks like some of us can live. Maybe this vision is trying to tell us that we need to change _this_ course of fate, too?"

"Possibly," she mused. "But . . . what about my dream? About keeping our course of action?"

I scratched my head. "I don't know maybe we just need to do the same stuff but keep ourselves from dying? I have no idea," I said with a heavy sigh.

"Well either way we're screwed," Abby said, though it seemed as though she were talking more to herself this time than me. "We got everything stacked against us . . . and something is looking in on us as we sleep. But I don't feel indoctrinated at all. Strange."

"I don't think it's indoctrinations, just little warnings," I told her. "But we can't give up, even if there are visions of us dying, no matter how much is stacked against us. We have to keep fighting."

"Well duh!" she said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. And to her it probably was. She had an easy, simple view on those types of things that sometimes I just couldn't get, even with all those years of being her friend . . . and quite frankly I wasn't sure if anybody else really 'got' her during those moments, either. "But if the dreams are connected, which I'm sure that they are, then that means that there's trouble, HK. Trouble we haven't, uh, seen yet."

"We know of all the trouble, though. And if you think about it, there isn't too much left. What more trouble can there _be_?" I wondered out loud.

Abby shook her head. "We have an entire legion of Reapers gunning for us after we destroy the base," she mused. "And seeing as that's where our dream ended . . ." She blinked, looking through her memories. "Damn it!" she cursed. "The only thing I'm remembering is something about Liara and the Shadow Broker coming up soon. Well, we should've gotten the memo sooner because we may not have time," she finished grumpily.

I sighed. "This is just too complicated," I commented. "Right now, we just need to focus on the loyalty missions, I guess."

"Liara can wait," Abby grumbled.

I nodded. Surely she could keep her murderous streak inside for a _little_ while longer.

"Abby, HK," a voice said, and we both looked to see EDI's blue head beside us. "Mister Taylor would like to see you on Deck Two."

Abby and I exchanged a look. "Thanks, EDI," she said. As she got up she typed furiously on her datapad, and then handed it to me. It read:_ I bet she heard our entire conversation!_

I blinked, not realizing that until just now. EDI probably heard every single thing we said. _Every_ last bit, because this was one time that we didn't bother to whisper or keep it quiet.

I stood as well, and typed something on the datapad as well, before handing it to Abby while we walked out the door.

It read: _She probably already thought we were crazy anyways._

Abby grumbled as deleted my message. "Grawr. Abby disapproves."

"Ah, the joys of having an AI," I muttered, as we headed for the elevator to Deck Two.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I made my way toward the cargo hold-not the one that Grunt was in, but the other one. However I quickly remembered at the last minute that that was Zaeed's room. I did a quick U-turn and headed downstairs into the area below. There was plenty of room down there, so it would be easy enough to find a quiet spot and avoid Jack altogether. I hoped.

Once I was down there and found an area to slip into-and positive that I had the entire area to myself-I sat down on the edge of a crate and then peered at my omni-tool. I cast another quick glance around me just to make absolutely certain no one was around, then I opened my email.

My eyes went absolutely wide at what I saw. I nearly dropped my omni-tool; it was a good thing that it was secured onto my wrist so well. I couldn't be sure but I thought maybe my face had blanched upon looking at it as well.

And yet . . . I couldn't bring myself to delete the image. It was just so . . . well. I just wonder how in the world Kasumi had managed to take this one. Then again, that was Kasumi for you.

I quickly saved the image and made a silent vow that I would guard my omni-tool with my life from now on. I swear . . . if anyone knew that I had an image like THIS on me-especially Garrus or even Shepard-they'd keel-haul me.

I glanced around again, suddenly feeling very self-conscious, and then went back up the stairs. I had to get back to work, after all.

* * *

**(HK)**

After a short trip on the elevator, we got off at Deck Two, and headed straight for the armory. We were mostly quiet, but I think we were both slightly confused on _why_ Jacob wanted to see us. He was close to Abby, I supposed, but it still was a strange move. I also wondered how he was holding up, because when we left Aeia, he didn't look happy.

I just shrugged at Abby, before the door to the armory opened and we walked inside. Jacob was at his usual console.

"Uh, hi, Jacob," I greeted slowly.

He had his arms crossed, as he always did, and for once he wasn't wearing his Cerberus uniform. Rather than that, he sported just a normal tank top and the pants of the issued Cerberus fatigues. I supposed that his other clothes must have been in the wash. "I just never got a chance to say thanks for sticking by me down there," he said. "Without you guys, Commander Shepard would have been going in blind and things might not have turned out the way they did. She told me what you two did, and I know how difficult it must've been for you guys to let her know that stuff. And I was pretty much an ass about it. You both are solid. Really, you are."

_Wow, I didn't expect that._

"Wow, thanks," I said. I almost thought he'd be mad that we told Shepard every little detail about his mission but didn't tell him one thing. "You were okay, really. We understand, and we don't like keeping all these details from everyone, but we have to."

Abby, however, was Abby-and Abby just wasn't the type of person to let an apology go without hugging somebody. And she did. I nearly rolled my eyes. "I'm just glad it's over," she said. He pat her back with an amused grin on his face. "I kind of doubted about it when Shepard got hit, HK was pummeled et cetera. But we got past it, right? Now we just need to get past everything else before we hit the IFF and we're all set."

"Sounds like the IFF is bad business," Jacob said curiously, letting her go.

I tensed slightly, thinking of how much the IFF would lock everything in, and how one of our closest friends was likely going to get snatched by the Collectors. "It is, but we'll have to see how it goes," I said. "Everything else just needs to be tied up first. Everyone's head needs to be clear. Speaking of which, how are you holding up? I know that resolution wasn't easy."

"Easier than what I was thinking of doing," Jacob said darkly. He caught Abby's solemn eyes and looked away quickly. "But I didn't. And the man who did that wasn't my father. He was just a sick . . . twisted abomination."

I nodded. "I'm sorry you had to go through that, but like Abby said, at least its over," I said. "Shepard really is a good woman for taking all these detours to help everyone."

"Yeah . . . yeah she is," Jacob said, scratching at his ear. "She's a pretty damn individual woman, too."

Abby glanced at me . . . and I suddenly knew what she was about to do right before she did it. "She thinks you're pretty good, too," she said archly.

_Oh boy._

"She is individual, and almost hard to read at times, but maybe that's a good thing," I said with a small chuckle. "And yes, I'm sure she thinks you're pretty good, too, Jacob. You've helped turn two morons into actual fighters."

"Has she said anything about it?" I could tell he was trying to be nonchalant, but the subject seemed to really concern him.

"She said you're good-looking," Abby said before I could stop her.

I almost had no clue what to say now. Shepard didn't chat about her love life to us, or at least not to me, in great detail, but it seemed that Abby had no problem telling Jacob that the two of them had something going.

"Are you two close or anything?" I asked hesitantly.

"Uh . . ." Jacob looked a little chagrined, like he'd been caught with his hand in the cookie jar. "As far as I know . . . no." His voice suddenly turned suspicious. "Why?"

"We had dreams about everything," Abby reminded him considerately. "I had a feeling you and Miranda had a thing going," she teased.

Jacob blanched. "Shepard must have told you that-"

Her grin spoke otherwise. "Oh, teasing you is going to be too easy," she taunted. "This isn't even fair."

Jacob scowled. "You're pushin' it."

"Mmmmhmm." I was suddenly afraid that she would say 'Get the prize, Jacob, get the prize!' but she stayed mercifully silent, a suppressed grin apparent on her face.

I nearly laughed, but I didn't. "Uh, sorry. We know you don't want to discuss you and Miranda," I told him. "And I guess I was just asking out of curiosity. I don't know how many people Shepard _is_ close to on this ship."

Jacob turned away, checking out the weapons on the table behind him. "She and Thane seem to be getting along well," he said.

"Oh . . . really?" I asked slowly, glancing at Abby. "I didn't know _that_."

Abby stared at me with a guilty expression. "Honestly I think Shepard's turned off by the whole alien romance thing," she said, speaking directly to me this time. "And she's definitely not bisexual."

"You guys talk about so many interesting things upstairs . . ." Jacob muttered.

"Upstairs? In Shepard's room?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. "I haven't been up there that much, though I think Abby has. But we do, um, know what Shepard's interested in. There was Kaidan, after all."

"Kaidan was nice," Abby said wistfully. "I enjoyed their conversations."

"I am NOT hearing this, am I?" Jacob asked the ceiling.

"Ugh, no. From our visions, I did not like Kaidan that much. Ashley and Liara were much better," I told Abby, then glanced to Jacob. For a moment, I forgot we were speaking to him. "Uh, sorry about that."

"Ashley was friggin' awesome, man," Abby told me. "It's too bad there wasn't a way to save them both. And I still can't believe people don't like Ashley because she was prepared to kill Wrex! I mean, c'mon, I bet Mordin himself would volunteer to shoot Grunt if there was an issue. Sheesh. And Liara is just . . . I don't know, kind of weird. Cute, but odd."

"I like Liara. She was nice back then, and is interesting now," I told Abby. I looked at Jacob again. "You don't have a clue as to what we're babbling about, do you?"

"You're talking about Ashley Williams, who was killed on Virmire, T'Soni, and Alenko," Jacob said easily. "But I don't get how they relate. Was T'Soni_ interested _in Shepard back then?"

"Yup," Abby said, nodding. "A lot of people like the Commander."

I nodded. "Yes, many people do," I said, though if Jacob liked her, it probably wasn't the best thing to say. "Liara is a bit strange, like Abby said. She is_ very _attached to Shepard, which is why she brought her to Cerberus."

"But obviously Shepard liked Alenko." There was a question in his voice, asking for more clarification.

Abby shot me a sly look, and I knew what she wanted to say. _Well he's hot!_

"She did, but I think that's in her past. Kaidan made his decision on Horizon," I said, leaving out the part about that little email, just because it sounded like Shepard was ignoring it. "I think Shepard has moved on."

Jacob turned around and looked at Abby. "You were upstairs with her talking about boys . . . I haven't heard you say anything."

"I have no input?" she asked.

"Does Shepard still like Kaidan? Uh, wait . . . you know what? I really, really don't want to know."

"You were upstairs talking to her about boys?" I repeated, blinking.

Abby looked a little guilty. "It was a girl's night!" she protested.

"I, uh, see," I said slowly, still a bit taken off guard. "Nice to know that when you all go upstairs you start talking about how all the guys look."

Abby winked. "Lucky the guys on this ship are so hot," she said.

I rolled my eyes. "You and all your hot guys . . ." I muttered.

"So are you two . . .?" Jacob asked, pointing to the both of us.

Abby caught on faster than I did. "NO!"

My jaw dropped. "Us? Are you _kidding_?" I asked in shock.

"Nooooo no no no no heck no," Abby said in shock. Jacob looked amused. "NO! Bad idea!"

"Too much water under the bridge?" Jacob guessed.

"NO! We're friends, we never have-_dated_." Her lips curved in disgust around the word.

"But you guys are ALWAYS together-"

"Ew! Nonononononono! Shut UP!"

I was still staring in shock. This might actually be funny, and it certainly was to Jacob, but I was just stunned. "Do we come off that way . . ..?" I asked him. "I mean, we're just two close friends. Just because two people spend a lot of time together doesn't mean they like each other in that way, just look at Sarah and Gaa . . .okay bad example. But you, Zaeed, and Abby have all been together quite a bit and I assume you aren't having some perverted threesome."

"EW! EW EW EW EW EW!" Abby screeched.

Jacob covered his ears. "Okay, that was loud."

"GOOD!"

I covered one ear myself. "Ow, Abby, it's a wonder you didn't trigger the alarms _again_," I remarked. "And I had to bring up some example of non-romantic good friends."

"YES but I am FOURTEEN! I DON'T WANNA HAVE SEX WITH OLD PEOPLE!"

"And you aren't, never said you were," I pointed out. "And Jacob's not old. Zaeed, maybe, but not Jacob."

She must have imagined something involving Zaeed, because she blanched. "Okay, off this subject!" she crowed.

"You don't like conversations about relationships, do you?" Jacob guessed.

"Not with _you guys_!" she whined. "The only guy I talked about relationships with was Dawson, and he's ODD!"

I shook my head. "Yes, I think Abby just doesn't like to think about being in a relationship with any of us, and understandably so," I said with a shrug.

"GRAWR."

"Well it's the truth!" I argued.

"You guys are the strangest friends I've ever seen . . ." Jacob mused, scratching his cheek. His bright white teeth were very apparent against his skin as he grinned. "So you're sure nothing . . .?"

"NO! And Dawson's weirder, trust me!" Abby exploded. "And-and you shouldn't-urgh, just remember that I can torture you and-and stuff! So SHUSH!"

"Nothing's going on, Jacob," I assured him calmly. "I still don't get how you could even think that, but whatever."

"Well, alright then," Jacob said, but he still had that that lilting smile of his on that just seemed to antagonize Abby further. "So who's this Dawson? Boyfriend?"

"I'm going to KILL you!"

I snorted. "Dawson is . . ..well, Abby can explain it better than I can," I replied, almost laughing at the thought. "But I don't think they'd_ ever _be boyfriend and girlfriend."

"He's my best friend," Abby said, defending him, "but noooo. Nonononono!"

"You really, really have an issue about this stuff, don't you?" Jacob asked curiously.

"I know where you sleep," she threatened darkly. I wondered what horrors were in store for him.

I laughed. "Nah, I think Abby just has an issue about this stuff when it comes to any of the guys she actually knows," I answered for her, smirking slightly.

"Yes!" she answered. "Is it that hard to figure out? Really?"

"Okay, okay! Relax!" Jacob was laughing now. "You better watch your back tonight, HK, I think she's getting fired up."

Abby sighed and put her face in her hands, taking a deep breath. "I overreact about that stuff because I like being friends more than having a boyfriend," she explained in a reasonable tone. "It's easier that way."

"But what if you find the right person?" Jacob asked, and I had a feeling we were off of Abby's boy issues right then.

I shrugged. "I am no love expert, but I think if you find the right person, then maybe it's just . . ._right_," I replied, hoping to be helpful somehow.

"Pretty good for a sixteen-year-old," Jacob allowed. "You two have got to be the most mature teenagers I've ever met, you know that? And not only socially, but you're tough. You have backbone. You've always had my back, and I guess everything was tested down there. Sometimes, y'know, I gotta take a step back and see how much you both have accomplished. You're teenagers, but you've survived fights that most adults run out of pissing their pants. And there's no right for me, as an adult, to make you do all of this stuff. Just . . . is this coming out right? I'm not exactly huge on the press speeches, here."

"Thanks, Jacob, it means a lot to know that someone on this ship actually likes us," I said genuinely, trying to assure him that he was making sense. "While I think we're growing on Shepard, most of the crew seems to not care about us. Even after all this time, we're still regarded as strange. It makes sense, I understand it, but I will also be glad when people stop staring at us like we're nut jobs."

"Jacob, we got your back," Abby told him, transparent honesty evident in her voice. "We actually have to thank YOU more than you have to thank us. You shaped us up, taught us how to whack people, er, safely. And there was no question of us helping out n this mission. You're not asking. It's something we have to do. It's just . . . hard to explain. But we're kind of a family now, y'know?"

"A family," he echoed. "Yeah, I guess that's a bit right. I don't think anybody really _doesn't_ like you guys, though. Even Zaeed's cooled down, believe it or not. Everybody knows how much of a help you all are. And if somebody doesn't understand, screw them, because you matter to all of us."

"Wow," I said, not expected to hear that. Especially from Jacob, who wasn't one of those talk-talk-talk guys. He admitted that to Shepard in one of their romance scenes, even. "I'm glad to know that. And I guess Abby's right . . .we should be thanking you, because you've helped us so much, and we are one big family now. Not the happiest bunch, but some sort of . . ..family nonetheless."

"_Mi familia_!" Abby said happily with a grin. She caught our look and just shrugged. "What? I'm learning Spanish."

"Good for you," Jacob said. "Mind keeping me company as I finish up here, guys? I have to do the routine stuff. Tags, you know. Anyways, I was thinking we could head downstairs after I'm done and I'll help you out. I noticed your reflexes aren't up to speed down there. That's why you both got hurt."

I nodded, smiling. "Sure, fine by me," I replied.

We sat around and talked for the longest time as Jacob finished up his work. Part of his job as armory manager was cataloguing the rounds fired on previous missions, restocking the ammo, and doing a small sensor-sweep of each floor from his terminal, making sure that the assault rifles in each emergency cache were still up and operational. As soon as he was finished, however, EDI appeared over her terminal.

"Commander Shepard would like to see Abby and HK upstairs in her quarters."

"Get going," Jacob said, waving us away as he logged out of his computer. "Don't keep her waiting."

We left, Abby pausing only long enough to throw a half-hearted salute his way. "She heard us talk about our dreams, had to," she muttered to me as we left. We boarded the elevator in silence.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I was just glad that I was done carrying the bucket of soapy sud-water and dumping it out when EDI contacted me. In my current frame of mind I might have dropped it and spilled it all over the floor if she had done it merely a few minutes sooner.

I got the message that Shepard wanted to see me in her quarters. I then quickly deduced that HK and Abby were probably up there too . . . either that or I was getting singled out for something I had done. But I couldn't think of anything I had done lately that would warrant getting me called to the captain's quarters . . .

I paled slightly when a thought occurred to me. What if she'd somehow found out about what me and Kasumi were doing? If Shepard demanded me to hand over my omni-tool so that she could see what was on it . . . I would die of embarrassment. Then I would see if I could get passage to Omega or something. Anything to steer clear of her . . . and Garrus.

Still I figured there was a good chance it wasn't that. Kasumi was slick, after all. But I did take the precaution of turning off my omni-tool so that it would not beep. Then I went aboard the elevator and rode it up to the captain's quarters.

Once there, I quickly saw that Abby and HK were already there as I entered. I felt relieved inside. Good, I wasn't getting singled out for something.

"Hi," I greeted all three of them with a smile and a wave, nodding toward each of them.

"Go ahead and take a seat," Shepard said, emerging from the office part of her room. She gestured to the sitting area in front of her bed and followed behind us . . . kind of like she was herding us. HK, Abby, and I sat together while she sat on the edge of her bed. "Tuchanka. What can you tell me about it? Besides, obviously, Wrex."

"Well, glad to know that you know you're going to see Wrex," HK muttered, seeming slightly taken off guard at her straight-forwardness, but he was also getting used to it by now, most likely. "Well, taking care of Grunt's issues should be pretty straight-forward. You'll just have to go through the Rite of Passage, which is just a krogan tradition. Not much out of the ordinary there."

Suddenly I grinned in spite of myself. "If you kill the thresher maw out there, you'll earn extra respect for you and Grunt," I couldn't help saying.

Shepard glanced towards the front door. "EDI, do you understand this?"

"Yes, Shepard," EDI answered. "The Rite of Passage they're referring to is a coming-of-age for young krogan. Unfortunately, Cerberus databases don't contain records much further than that."

"It could explain why Grunt's especially violent lately," Shepard mused. "So this Rite of Passage, it'll help Grunt?"

"Medically speaking, I do not know, Commander. However, considering that these three have not been overly worried about Grunt's health suggests that once you complete his Rite of Passage he will be, temporarily at least, docile."

"Grunt will look at you differently," Abby told Shepard. "He'll think of you as his battlemaster after you kill the thresher maw . . . which you will." She winked.

"Grunt's a krogan, so he's always going to like killing and all that, but he won't be so eager to trash everything on the ship," HK explained, then blinked slightly. "Well, sorta. He'll just want to crush our enemies."

I glanced at HK and Abby while they were each speaking, then I leaned forward a little, looking directly at Shepard. "Um, Commander? I'd like to ask something."

"Yes?" Shepard asked.

I inhaled deeply, and then asked my question. "I'd like to go with you guys when you go down to Tuchanka. Can I go?"

Shepard blinked. "Why?"

Well . . . that was a good opening, at least. I had been expecting her to say no right away, and I wouldn't blame her if she had. But she was giving me a chance to explain, which I was grateful for. "I want to meet Wrex," I told her. "And well . . . my visions tell me that so long as I stay in Urdnot camp-and probably as close to Wrex as possible-nothing bad will happen to me. I mean, the only time things will get violent there is when you go on Grunt's rite of passage, and when you go to find Mordin's student. So um . . . if I promise to stay in Urdnot camp where it's . . . pretty much safe, can I go?" I looked at her with pleading eyes.

Abby shifted a bit beside me, but when I glanced at her I realized her face was alert. I couldn't tell if she was leaning one way or another. Shepard raised one eyebrow, leaned one hand on her knee, and simply said, "Staying in a camp full of krogan is safe for you? Do you know how much trouble you can get into there?"

"I promise I'll just sit still, be quiet, and keep my hands to myself," I told her sincerely, with an expression of wide-eyed innocence.

"And yet you seem to get in the most trouble when that occurs," Shepard said archly. "Is that all you want to go to Tuchanka for? To meet Wrex?"

"Yeah," I said quickly, and then I shrugged a little. "Well that and . . . I want to see what that place looks like for myself. And I'd really like a chance to get off the ship for a while. I like to see . . . well, new places sometimes." I shrugged again. "I mean . . . I've seen the place in my visions, but it's not the same as actually being there."

"And . . ." Abby said quietly, looking sidelong at us, "Wrex will like us . . ."

"Excuse me?" Shepard asked.

"It was part of the dream," Abby answered. "Wrex loves us."

"I can't see him adoring you three at all," Shepard said honestly.

"He . . .likes us?" HK repeated, glancing at Abby. "I didn't get _that_ vision."

I glanced at Abby, waiting to see what she would say to that. Honestly . . . I couldn't really imagine Wrex adoring us . . . unless maybe it was like how humans might adore cute little puppies or something, maybe? I shoved that thought aside.

"_Remember_?" she asked pointedly. "Right before we got here, we figured things out . . . and Wrex was one of them . . . and he loves us?"

Shepard looked from each to us with her piercing brown eyes.

I didn't really remember all that well at this point and I wasn't entirely sure what Abby was referring to. But I simply chose to keep my mouth shut.

"I guess so," HK said with a nervous chuckle, looking to Shepard. "It's just all a blur after all that's happened."

"Sarah?" Abby asked, glancing over at me.

"Eh, whatever you say," I muttered simply.

"Now it sounds like you're just lying," Shepard said. "What-exactly-happened in the dream?"

Abby turned to sneeze, and HK picked it up for her:

"Bless you," I muttered under my breath in Abby's direction.

"Uh, well . . .when we meet Wrex, he's just going to get good vibes from us and go with his gut on liking us. Not to mention, we're in your crew. He wouldn't doubt people that you pick up," HK explained, scratching his chin in a slightly nervous manner in the process.

"So . . . can I go?" I looked at Shepard with a hopeful expression.

Shepard didn't look happy about it, but apparently she trusted HK and Abby's judgment. "Okay," she said finally, and I felt a leap of joy until she said, "But you're not walking around that place alone. Absolutely not. I'll find you an escort. Garrus might have some free time, but we'll see. But that means you have to be good, understand? Do not go up to Wrex and ask him about turians."

Abby coughed politely, but I swore she was laughing.

I swallowed sharply. I didn't know that everybody knew about the way I kept asking people onboard about turians. But I quickly shoved that aside. Though not before I wondered if Garrus knew that I had asked people about turians . . . though he probably did.

"I promise," I said with a nod. I was trying to ignore Abby.

"Yeah, asking a krogan about turians . . . prolly not the smartest thing," Abby muttered, casting Shepard a sideways look. "Considering they unleashed a salarian bioweapon on their population . . . waaaaait a moment. Hold up. I just thought of this: is Garrus going to be welcome on Tuchanka? Sure, if he's with the Commander, but alone and away from her protection? We might have another issue." She was asking us now, not Shepard.

HK's face said that a whole lot of realization just dawned on him. "You're right. In our visions, we hear some talk about killing turians. Garrus wouldn't be a welcome sight."

"Wrex might be able to protect him," Abby said with a frown. "The other krogan might get the message . . . but I'm pretty sure having Garrus down there alone wouldn't be great. They could jump him."

"Garrus can take care of himself," Shepard interrupted, "but I see what you mean. I'll think about it more before we head out. Mordin and Grunt will be on the ground crew, obviously. . . Tali, Samara, or Thane could do it, or Jacob, Miranda. . . Anybody could, theoretically. I'll let you know before we hit the relay."

"Please not Jack, Miranda or Jacob," I asked quietly. I didn't want to go anywhere with Jack or Miranda, and well . . . ever since I'd bitten Jacob on the finger, I wasn't too sure if it was a good idea for me to be around him. Of course I hadn't really talked to him or anything, but . . . yeah.

Shepard smirked a bit. "I'll take that into consideration," she said. "I'd probably send Thane with you, considering his skills, but I'll talk to him about it first."

Translation: she wanted to know if anybody could put up with my troublemaking habits long enough for her to complete two missions.

"Well Grunt isn't exactly going to be a welcome sight either," I pointed out.

"No, he won't," Shepard conceded. "But Grunt can take care of himself among his own people."

"Mordin might not be a welcome sight either," I blurted out. "He's a salarian after all." I wasn't sure if Shepard already knew about his work on the genophage project or not, though she probably already did by this point. She would probably be able to figure out what I was talking about . . . even if the krogans didn't necessarily know it.

I guess I just felt like trying to point out to everyone that, well . . . if they were going to make it sound like Garrus could get shot dead if he set foot on Tuchanka, then it was pretty much the same for everyone else. The only reason why we were going to be welcome, at all, was because we were with Shepard. No other reason.

"I know," Shepard replied. "But Mordin is staying with me, and so's Grunt. We'll see about who can escort you around. Also, you probably want to eat some time in the next two hours before we arrive. I don't know how much of the stuff down there would be advisable for our digestive tracks." She gave me a hard look.

Oh yeah. Of course nobody would forget my ryncol episode. "Yeah, okay," I agreed with a nod.

"That warning was from Mordin," Shepard said. "This next one is from me: no doubt you know how krogan act. All of you do. You do your best to keep your head down and your mouth shut while we're down there. You both-" she looked to the others "-you have to stay with me. And Sarah, I want you to stick close to your guard. I don't want another Illium again."

"No problem," I said with another nod. "Trust me I'll stick to whomever you send with me like superglue. Especially because I don't want to get lost." During my first week on the Normandy, I had actually gotten lost a few times. Why? Because I had a poor sense of direction and it just took me a while to acclimate myself. Going to a new world, well . . . I was definitely going to stick by my guard. Whoever it was. Otherwise I'd probably get killed, or marooned, on Tuchanka.

"So who are you going to send with me?" I asked, wondering if there was some chance she had anyone in mind yet. I didn't mean to press her-well okay, yes I did, at least a little. I just wanted to know who she had in mind to send with me, if she had anyone in particular in mind yet.

Shepard gave me The Look. "I'll let you know when I've decided," she said.

"Shep, I have a question," Abby said. "After this planet, where are we going to next?"

"Zorya, to take care of Zaeed," Shepard said. "We'll cross that bridge when the time comes, though."

"Zaeed," Abby said, looking at us. She began to count on her fingers and came up with four. "Wow."

"Interesting," HK said, slightly nodding, but I suspected that he agreed with Shepard on the 'we'll do that when the time comes' part. "So, would you like to know anything about Mordin's mission? I think Grunt's is pretty much covered."

"Okay, shoot," Shepard said, leaning backwards a bit.

"So you know about Maleon, how he was Mordin's apprentice, kind of, and how they both worked on the genophage together?" Abby asked. "Well, Maleon feels a bit bad about that. And so does Mordin, in a way. Maleon isn't captured. He's working with that krogan clan to get rid of the genophage, but he's doing bad experiments on live test subjects."

"Please don't let Mordin kill him," I murmured before I could stop myself. Hey, I figured that if Shepard saved Sidonis, she could save Maleon too.

Abby was a bit silent, then I remembered that she nearly always killed Maleon in her games. This was going to be interesting.

"What else can you tell me? Layout of the base, what enemies to expect . . .?" Shepard asked.

"Save Maelon, it's the good thing to do," HK chimed in, glancing at Abby, the corner of whose mouth twitched humorously. "And, well, you'll just be fighting a lot of Blood Pack people. Krogan and vorcha, along with some wild animals. Running throughout the base is pretty easy, too. You'll also have to kill the clan leader at the end, so be ready."

"Don't forget the scout from Clan Urdnot, he can be saved," I muttered aloud, and then I realized that Shepard would probably have no idea what I was talking about until she got there. "Eh, forget I said anything," I added with a dismissive wave of my hand.

"The base is actually a repurposed hospital," Abby said. "And since it's a krogan hospital, it's strong enough to withstand an attack. You'll take a truck-no fighting, don't worry-to . . . well, there. But we'll have to fight our way in I think. Honestly . . . Yes, I think so. I couldn't remember that part for a second. So you get in, whack a lot of people . . . There are guys there with biotics, and the clan leader is a battlemaster as well. Like Wrex. You have your basic guys with assault rifles and shotguns, too, but it'll pretty much stay on the same difficulty throughout the mission. You just have to make sure that the krogan don't get close."

"Hey I almost wonder if maybe you should bring more people with you for this," I murmured aloud. "I mean . . . if you bring more than three people, they ought to be able to watch your back better. Especially with all those . . . krogan there."

"I am bringing more than three people," Shepard stated, as if she were surprised I hadn't figured this out yet. "There are five people going and one reserve-your escort."

I nodded a little. I then decided it might be best if I just go do something else, or at least keep my mouth shut, before I end up saying something ridiculous or stupid. "Okay um . . . are we finished here? I mean, there are a couple of things I'd like to take care of before we go," I said earnestly.

Shepard blinked slowly. "Do you want to be finished?" she asked quizzically. "Is there really nothing else you can give me that may be of value to the mission?"

I slowly rose from my seat. "Well, they can probably tell you anything else you might need to know better than I can. Besides," I added with just a bit of an edge in my voice, "I'm just the cleaning person, after all." Okay, I hadn't meant to inject an attitude into this.

"I suggest you drop the hard feelings before we set out," Shepard said. Her tone also said: _Or else I won't take you to Tuchanka._ "Be ready in a couple of hours."

"Don't worry," I said in a more confident tone. "I'll be ready."

Shepard just nodded and watched me as I left.

I was then back in the elevator a few moments later, and then . . . well, for no particular reason, I found myself heading back to the deck where I spent most of my time cleaning-the same one where the crew quarters, kitchen and bathrooms were. Of course there were several things I needed to do before I went anywhere. I needed to get something to eat like Shepard suggested, I also needed to ask if there was anything Rupert needed me to do before I left, and I already knew that there was a chore or two I had left hanging. Mostly because Shepard had interrupted me and asked me to come to her quarters.

As it turned out, Rupert had everything well in hand today, and I just had to help finish up some dishes. He also wished me a "good luck" in his own way, and I couldn't help but wonder if he was half-expecting me to get killed or do something stupid while I was on Tuchanka. Wouldn't surprise me if half the crew probably thought that.

After I ate a big bowl of ramen noodles, (damn Abby, she got me hooked on those) I found myself wandering toward Kasumi's room.

I knocked on her door. "Kasumi?" I called out. I wanted to make sure she was in there . . . and if she was, I wanted to make sure I wasn't bothering her.

No answer. I was about to turn away when I felt a tap on my shoulder. "Hey there!" Kasumi said brightly.

"AH!" I squeaked, jumping a little as I turned to look at her with widened eyes. I inhaled and exhaled deeply. "H-hi," I said after a moment.

"Scare you?" Kasumi asked. "Oh, well. How do you like your new omni-tool? Rupert just told me you'd been getting a lot of messages. Wonder who'd be emailing you."

"Have you been following me or anything?" I asked, feeling curious and annoyed at the same time. Then again I doubted she would have any reason to follow me that much . . . and I was the one who'd come to her quarters on my own, after all.

"You're just as paranoid as you were the last time we had a conversation," Kasumi said. "So what do you need?"

I let out a nervous chuckle. "Um . . . can we talk in your quarters?" I didn't feel comfortable talking out in the hallway.

With a wave of her omni-tool Kasumi disengaged the locks and the doors slid open. "After you," she said with a wave of her hand.

I stepped inside, glancing over my shoulder at her as we went in. Kasumi was awesome, definitely. Though at times I felt as though she could easily vanish in the wink of an eye at any time she wanted. Because I knew that she could.

Once we were seated, I decided to start with the simplest thing I could think of to start a conversation. "Hey, thanks for the pictures. Um . . . that last you sent was really . . . um . . ." I swallowed. Really, there were no words for it.

"I told you that I needed to make it more challenging," she said. "Getting up close got boring after a while, and I just seem to have the uncanny knack for finding people in the oddest situation. I haven't been stalking him all over the ship or anything. Just regular old sight-seeing."

I chuckled a little, and then decided to drop that particular subject. "Hey um . . . actually I came in here because, well . . . I wanted to ask you something."

"I figured as much," said Kasumi. "Shoot."

"Well . . . how would you feel about going to Tuchanka?" I asked. Frankly, well . . . in some ways I wanted to-maybe-have at least SOME say in whom I went with. Especially if I would have to spend hours with the person, maybe even a couple of days, if not more. And part of me figured it might be cool to hang around with Kasumi if she wanted to go with me. After all . . . it wasn't like I'd seen a whole lot of her, even though I had been in her quarters once before and I had helped her doll up Shepard in the captain's quarters.

"Tuchanka?" Kasumi asked, surprised. "Why, does Shep need me down there?"

"Uh well . . . I don't know if she's going to pick you or not," I told her honestly. "I was just wondering if maybe you'd like to go with me or anything. See, Shepard said I could go there, but someone has to go with me as an . . . escort."

"Because you can't go anywhere without finding some sort of trouble to get into, right," Kasumi said, nodding. "Yeah, I don't mind, bring on the krogan! Just make sure it's okay with Shepard, though. I don't want to get on her bad side."

I grinned at her. "Thanks, Kasumi," I told her cheerfully. I knew one thing was for sure; I wasn't going to make her-or Shepard, either-regret this.


	29. Tuchanka

**Author's Note:**

Hey, guys, guess what? This chapter was finished in only two days! :D

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* * *

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**(Abby)**

I finally took Jacob up on his offer for some practice before heading out. Instead of my usual bubbly self I was quiet and serious, and just told him to go with what I did from different attacks. I was concentrating on my current memories from Earth, learning along with my Earth-self during the eight-hour Aikido seminar I'd apparently gotten a full scholarship for. There was no way I was going to be able to do all eight hours worth since we were arriving in four, but I would just look through the rest of the memories at a later date.

Near the end of our training session, I was beginning to think that Jacob was starting to really, really hate being my test dummy.

"Okay," I told him, my gaze defocusing as I ran through the latest technique I was shown in my head. I did the motion with my body, trying to glide smoothly between positions until I felt comfortable enough to say, "Cross-hand grab."

Jacob, who was used to this by now, grabbed my right hand with his own right and gripped hard. The technique wasn't kotegaeshi, but it was some kind of breath-extension throw-kokyuho-that seemed similar. Right now the Sensei was saying it was a type of iriminage... but I wasn't seeing iriminage in there. Anywhere.

I moved quickly, twisting my thumb towards my belly button as I stepped to the side, grabbing the top of his hand with my left, and set up for the kotegaeshi. Then, as my own Sensei, who was being my uke back on Earth, pointed out a flaw in my technique, I switched my hands, slid back smoothly, and slammed Jacob into the mat.

I stood up and straightened out my back, presenting my left hand this time. Jacob took his time picking himself off of the floor, but I had no patience for it. I had to get this right somehow...

I went smoother this time, faster, and Jacob was on the ground before two seconds were up. I could see Zaeed and Jack watching from the upper catwalk, but I didn't really pay attention to them. "Are you good?" I asked, almost as an afterthought as I retrieved my bottle of water.

"What, am I allowed to talk now?" Jacob asked grumpily as he picked himself off of the floor for the umpteenth time.

"Sorry about that, I'm back to normal now." I was lying, but he didn't need to know that. The Aikido seminar was too interesting to miss right now. "Thank you."

Jacob didn't answer and just knelt down to grab his sweat towel and water bottle. Without another word we started to the elevators. I was going to change into something suitable for Tuchanka, rendezvous with HK and Sarah, and get weaponed-up before we hit Krogan World.

I nodded to Sarah in the corner of the bedroom as I entered, still concentrating intently on the seminar. She was sitting at the table, dressed, drumming her fingers impatiently on the surface. I took out a shirt and a pair of tear-resistant pants from my duffel-bag and, making sure the door behind me was still closed, took off the outfit I was currently wearing and changed as quickly as possible. After sharing locker rooms with girls for basketball and in Aikido, stripping down in front of females didn't really bother me, and Sarah was a friend. I wouldn't feel nearly as comfortable stripping down in front of Samara or somebody.

There was an entire process of placing my shields over my body as the key points via small receptor I was meaning to get embedded in my clothes soon. After syncing up with my omni-tool, I went to the adjoining bathroom, brushed the tangles out of my hair and washed my face, then came over to Sarah with a bunch of rubber bands. I pulled my hair into a high ponytail, then handed her two of the bands. "Can you braid up the rest of it?"

Sarah raised her eyebrows and looked a bit hesitant. "Um, sure. Is there... any particular way you want it braided up?" She glanced at the bands in her hand thoughtfully for a moment.

"Just a regular braid," I told her. "I'm tired of having to redo the ponytail three times or so during a fight, and hairspray just doesn't work. The Lion's Mane can only be tamed with a French braid, but a regular one can do, too. I could braid your hair if you'd like me to!" I grinned, trying to be helpful. I was in a really, really good mood.

Sarah eyed the bands in her hand again, and then she simply stood up and set them aside. "Hey, I got a better idea, if you're willing." Then she began to rummage around inside of one of the drawers in the desk.

"What is it?"

As if on cue, Sarah found what she was looking for and pulled it out of the drawer. She raised a large pair of scissors, holding them up. "How about a haircut?"

"When hell freezes over!" I exclaimed, my eyes going wide. "Put those back!" I began to run through all of the knife-disarming techniques in my head.

Sarah made no move-although she did lower the scissors a little. "Come on, just a little bit, maybe?" she asked with an innocent expression-one that looked like a shield for mischief.

"No," I said flatly.

She shrugged and put the scissors in her pocket. They were large scissors; the handle stuck out of her pocket. She then snatched the bands off of the table and began to come toward me. "Okay, I'll braid your hair," she said.

I refused to move close to her. "Give me the scissors," I told her.

She frowned, and then looked a little offended. "I'm not gonna do anything," she stated firmly.

I merely held out my hand expectantly. "I'll sleep better at night," I said.

She rolled her eyes a little, then removed the scissors from her pocket and smacked them against my palm. "Happy?"

"The Abby is now happy," I said, and put the scissors in my duffle bag. Hey, you never knew when you might need them. I walked over and took a seat in the chair. "So what've you been up to?"

Sarah walked up just behind me and began to run her fingers through my hair, as if trying to figure out how she was going to braid it. "Oh not much," she said. "The usual... cleaning, cooking..." She paused. "Getting occasional emails." Was she grinning? I couldn't tell from this angle. "How about you?"

"Whacked Jacob downstairs. There's an Aikido seminar going down back on Earth that won't end for another four hours, but I tried to get as much learning in as possible," I said. "Who are you getting all of these emails from, anyway? 'Cos I've been doing some observing, and Rupert doesn't exactly carry an omni-tool with him."

"Oh um..." Sarah hesitated, and I could feel her braiding my hair-a little bit too tightly. "I've just been exchanging emails with someone, that's all."

I could've sighed, but I didn't. Something was going down, as I suspected. "And...?"

"And what?" I could tell Sarah was working on the second braid-a little too loosely, perhaps.

"Sarah, whenever you drop the hints I can tell you want me to know," I said, grinning a little despite myself. "Did you finally get Garrus's email?"

She finished doing my braids and then took a step back. "Nooo," she said shaking her head. "And uh, I hope that's okay," she added quickly, nodding toward my hair.

I just decided to let it go for now. The series of events would play out like this, anyway: she would think about telling me, decide to tell me, drop some hints, and then, when I couldn't stand it anymore, she would tell me. I loved my friends.

I felt my hair with my hands. I'd only put my hair into one ponytail, not two, and having two braids coming out of there felt a bit strange. "Feels good!" I said. I took an extra rubber band lying over and gathered the two braids together into a knot and made a braided bun. "That's definitely going to hold now."

Sarah grinned. "Great! So um..." She slowly extended her hand. "Can I have the scissors back, for just a moment? I'll give them back in a minute."

I went to my bag and tossed them to her (yup, no concern about safety there!) and sat on my bed. I wasn't concerned with her cutting my hair now, anyway. I just needed to keep her in front of me in case she got a bit... overzealous. "Maaaan I can't wait until we get to the end of this thing," I said, lying down.

"I can't wait to get there," Sarah said out loud, moving toward the bedroom mirror. She held the scissors in one hand as she eyed her reflection intently. She began to run a hand through her hair and she grabbed her hairbrush, brushing it thoroughly.

"Giving yourself a haircut?" I asked, marginally surprised by this.

She cast a brief glance over her shoulder at me. "Maybe," she said as she turned back to her reflection. "Thinking about it, at least."

I got up and approached her. Her hair was just brushing past her shoulders, thick and brown. I'd probably guess the length better if it was wet, but I could see where the dead ends were beginning to form. "Need about a half-inch off. I could do it for you."

I, however, did NOT want a haircut. During the Nyxeris fiasco Tali had to cut my hair loose from the strange torture table I was on with her boot knife, and Kelly had fixed it up for me to even out the length a bit once I'd gotten back. It was growing back faster than usual, which I loved, and now hung maybe a bit further down than Sarah's did. I loved my brownish-blonde hair, the curls it had, and the texture. It was a goal of mine to grow it down to my waist, despite how hard it would be to practice martial arts.

"Well... I was thinking about taking more off than an inch," Sarah said, still looking at the mirror thoughtfully. "I'm getting tired of having to put my hair back whenever I clean, and it takes forever to shampoo and dry it. Short hair is much easier to maintain."

"Chin length?" I asked, trapping a thick strand of hair between my two fingers to indicate the length.

"Yeah, about like that," she nodded.

"We have about fifteen minutes before we have to be downstairs," I said. "I could do it now if you want." I was kind of excited about the prospect, as well.

"Eh, go ahead if you really want to," Sarah said, smiling a bit. "Besides... if I got sloppy with the scissors I might end up looking like Jack." She winced at the prospect.

"Wouldn't want that," I muttered archly. I led her into the bathroom and wet the brush in some water. After making her hair damp enough to work well with, I held the length between my fingers again. "Now, are you SURE?"

"As long as you keep it all even, yep," Sarah said with a nod-then immediately stilled her head, obviously realizing it would not be wise to move during this.

My cousin had gotten his ear sliced open by scissors once, so I was careful to cut evenly and carefully, keeping the length extremely straight and not choppy-looking. The hair fell to the ground in large clumps. "And we're done!" I said about a minute or two later. "You like?"

She peered at her reflection for a long moment, and then nodded a little. "It'll do fine," she said simply with a little shrug.

I nodded. I wasn't expecting a standing ovation or anything, and, really, it had just been a pretty simple thing to do. I went into the closet and retrieved a small broom and dustpan-yes, they even had these ordinary items on the Normandy-and began to clean up the hair, humming a song.

"Thank you," Sarah said. Then she glanced down at herself. "Hey, do you think there is enough time for a shower? I mean... I've got little bits of hair all over my shirt and on the back of my neck now. If I go out like this, I'm gonna itch all day."

"Ah, just change the shirt, no time now," I said. I threw the hair in the trash and stretched out my back.

Sarah didn't look like she liked that idea very much. "Can you maybe help me rinse my hair and neck in the sink real quick?" she asked. "That way I wouldn't have to take a full shower."

"Actually, most of the hair is wet still," I said, coming up behind her. I began to pick some off of her shoulder. They stuck together, as wet clumps of hair did, and it was mercifully easily to pick them off. "There, that should be most of it," I said about a minute later.

"Hey thanks," Sarah said with a grateful grin. "Say... do you think anyone will notice my hair?" She looked in the mirror again, running a couple of fingers through her hair thoughtfully.

"Yeah, it's shorter," I said, stating the obvious. Okay, maybe that wasn't the best thing to say. "I think it frames your face better. It really suits you." I grinned and left the bathroom to lay on my bed a bit more. I'd probably head upstairs to the armory in three to four minutes for my weapons, then head back down to the Kodiak shuttle.

"Say if you're gonna get some rest for a few minutes, mind if I go... show off my haircut?" Sarah asked, already moving toward the door. "I just want to see if anyone notices."

By 'anyone' I was guessing Garrus. "Naw, go ahead," I said, gesturing to the door. "I'll be out in a second."

With that, Sarah headed out of the room. I began to run through the recent memories of the seminar in my mind, wishing with all my heart that I was there...

I was also taking my 3rd Kyu test soon as well... on the 17th of this month of September, a week before I generally would. Even now, in a whole different reality, I was nervous and happy at the same time.

There wasn't any time to stop and take stock of that, though. The suicide mission was coming closer every signals day, and I had to be prepared. I had to be ready.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I wasn't entirely sure where everyone was, but I figured they were probably at their usual posts. Or in their quarters. Or maybe getting something to eat.

But hey, usually I was stuck with cleaning and whatnot. Or I seemed to have a knack for causing trouble. At least this time I was doing something pretty harmless. I just wanted to see if anyone would notice my haircut without me saying a word.

I decided to start with the easiest. I walked down the hallway and headed straight for the kitchen area; sure enough, Rupert was there.

I walked up toward the counter. I was more or less "off duty", at least where my cleaning duties were concerned, because he knew I was going down to Tuchanka. "Hiya," I greeted him with a smile, hoping he would notice.

Rupert was cooking something for the crew's lunch. From the smell, it was French Onion soup. Ever since Shepard had gotten him those supplies on the Citadel his cooking had improved dramatically. "Hey, there, kiddo," he said in his rough, generally positive voice. "You ready to hit the road?"

"Yep," I said with a nod. I then ran a hand through my hair-a casual, but pointed gesture, hoping he would notice. "It'll be fun," I added with a grin.

"Hey, you got your hair cut!" he said, and then his eyes narrowed. "Now don't come over here. It don't look like you have hair on your shoulders, but I can't have anything falling into the soup, now. Looks good on you, though."

I grinned. "Thanks-and don't worry I'll stay away from the food!" I had no intention of going behind the counter or anything anyway. "I want to see if anyone else notices." With that I turned and began to head toward the weaponry-a room that... I actually hadn't been in for a considerable amount of time.

"Hey, watch out for pyjacks!" Rupert said loudly, causing many heads to turn in our direction.

Oh yeah, those little monkey food-thief things, right? I grimaced a little. Sometimes I wished he wouldn't do that-it was a little embarrassing when he shouted at me from across the deck. But I simply nodded in his direction, giving him a little wave to let him know I'd heard him. Then I hurried up the corridor toward the weaponry.

Then when I reached the door to my destination, I hesitated for a brief moment. I wanted to make sure my omni-tool was off, even though I was pretty sure that Kasumi was getting ready to go and so she was nowhere near Garrus right now. Yet for all I knew, maybe she would try to be bold and get a snapshot of me and Garrus near each other just for the hell of it. Okay, maybe I was being paranoid. But I just wanted to be safe than sorry; I didn't want that thing to beep when I was standing close to him.

Then I went inside. As usual he was standing over the console, no doubt working on "calibrations" or whatever it was he did in there. I think I saw him glance briefly in my direction as I walked in-perhaps he'd heard the door open. Wouldn't surprise me, considering turians had good hearing.

"Hi," I said simply. "I um... haven't been by here for a while, so I thought I'd say howdy."

"I hear you're heading to Tuchanka," Garrus said. "Good luck down there. Those krogan can be a handful."

He did glance in my direction while he spoke, but he didn't turn around or anything. And then he continued to look at his console. Well... maybe this was just a bad time. Maybe he was right smack in the middle of doing something. Still... I kind of wanted to see if he had actually noticed or not. For all I knew though, maybe turians didn't care, or didn't really notice, if a human cut her hair.

"Thanks," I said. "But I'll be okay as long as I stay close to Wrex down there." Come on, I thought. Just turn around and get a good look at me. Please?

"Yeah, uh... you might want to be careful around Wrex," he said, scratching his chin thoughtfully. He glanced at me, not long enough to get a good look, and turned back to his computer. "He's not like the rest of us. He won't put up with a lot of foolishness. Stay close to Shepard and do what she says. She actually came in here a while ago and asked me if I'd like to accompany you down there-" my heart skipped a beat "-but she cancelled it a few minutes ago so Kasumi could have a chance outside."

So Shepard DID ask Garrus if he may have wanted to go. I felt a tad disappointed, but still... Kasumi was a cool person, even if she made me nervous. And... well maybe there would still be time to hang around with Garrus, somehow or other. "Just curious," I found myself asking, "if Kasumi wasn't going, would you have gone?" It was pointless to ask, I know. I simply had to know.

"Shepard asked," he said, shrugging. "So yeah, I would have. I'd like to see Wrex again, see how he's doing. And somebody needs to keep you out of trouble," he pointed out.

"Maybe you could come with us, if Shepard will allow it," I suggested casually. Hey, part of me could hope, right?

Garrus snorted. "No, thanks. As much as I want to see Wrex, I wouldn't exactly be welcome on Tuchanka."

"Heh, I guess you have a point there," I added with a nod. "Well... want me to pass on any messages for Wrex or anything?" I had momentarily forgotten all about my hair, and the fact that he hadn't noticed it.

"Just tell him I said hello. I'm surprised that Shepard isn't even bringing Tali down." Now he looked. "Hey, did you do something to your hair?" he asked quizzically. "It's shorter."

I beamed. "Yep," I said brightly. I ran my fingers through it a little. "I figured, well... you know, with all the cleaning I do-and if I go somewhere-it's just easier to have it short. It doesn't get tangled and there's less chance of it getting dirty, not to mention it takes less time to wash..." Okay, I was rambling now. "Besides, Shepard keeps hers short," I added quickly.

"Yeah, but Shepard's a military woman at heart," Garrus said. "Regs say you can't have it past your chin... but yours looks good."

"Thanks," I said with a little girlish giggle-and I felt stupid afterwards. "So um... how're things going in here?" I asked quickly.

"Boring," he answered. "I'm getting tense. Things are about to come to a head soon. I can feel it coming." He sighed. "But we still have things to do before we hit the IFF, so I suppose I should be happy for the boredom. Right?"

"Yeah," I agreed. "Heh sometimes I get bored when I'm doing a lot of cleaning or whatever, but... after we get the IFF, things are gonna heat up really fast, trust me." I swallowed, thinking about the Collector attack on the Normandy that would be coming up after that. I still wondered if I was going to get captured or not... or if I was going to die.

"I had a feeling," he said with another long sigh. "Nothing's ever easy."

"Yeah... I still wonder if I'm gonna die or not," I muttered aloud before I could stop myself. Hey, the prospect of one's mortality was something that could weigh heavily on the mind.

Garrus chuckled. "I think we're all wondering that. But you probably won't. You know everything that happens, don't forget. Besides, I'm looking forward to some shore leave some time soon. I know the Yeoman is going to book us a hotel spot on the Citadel to celebrate after we're done."

He looked a bit sad, though. "The fact of the matter is, we're going to lose people, there's no way around it. I don't want to lose my friends again, and this crew, well... it's become more of a family than my own is now."

That made me think a little, too. Would I see my family, or my home again, after all of this was done?

Well... even if I didn't... at least I would be able to say that I was a part of this crew. And that I got to serve on the Normandy herself, and probably one of the most awesome commanders in video game history. That is every fan's dream come alive, and in many ways I have been blessed to be a part of this, right along with HK and Abby. There were probably millions of other fans who would never ever get this opportunity in their lifetime.

"Hey," I said with a small exhale of breath, moving to sit down on the edge of one of the crates. "You know, well... I've really had a hard time fitting in around here sometimes; at least it's felt like that. And um... sometimes I've been scared out of my wits. But I just want to say, well... I really loved meeting all of you and getting a chance to be with everyone, and I'm really honored to serve on the Normandy." I wasn't quite looking at Garrus; I was looking at the wall. I had a trouble looking people in the face when I was making cheesy speeches where I expressed my feelings. "And um... I was wondering if maybe you could tell Shepard I said that. I don't think I could say that to her face, not without getting tongue-tied."

"We've all enjoyed serving with you, too," Garrus said, sounding somewhat surprised. "Okay, well, most of the time." He chuckled to let me know he was joking. "But I think you should say that to Shepard herself. It would really mean a lot to her."

"Heh, maybe I should try saying it... after the Tuchanka mission," I said. Then I frowned. "Hey, come to think of it I wonder if it's time to go yet." I had lost all track of time.

Garrus checked the time. "Get going. Now, before Shepard leaves you here." He shooed me out. "Tell me how it goes, good luck."

I muttered a quick "Thanks!" before I ran out of the weaponry-the door barely had enough time to open before I slammed into it. I raced down the corridor toward the elevator.

* * *

**(HK)**

Shepard had called us all into the docking bay on Deck Five soon enough. I arrived down there with Miranda, who was going to see us off, and Abby was already down there. Grunt was, too, and Mordin arrived shortly after we did.

"Be careful," Miranda told Shepard. "Tuchanka is not welcoming to aliens. Even if you have a friend down there, it's not a civilized place."

"We'll be fine," Shepard assured her.

Miranda glanced at me. "And don't get tackled by another krogan. With both you and Sarah down there, there's a good chance to make an enemy out of the whole planet."

I rolled my eyes. I'd probably never live the krogan incident down. "Both Sarah and I will be alright, you don't have to stand down here and go over everything with us. That's Shepard's job," I told the second-in-command. "Soon enough you'll be saying 'Eat your vegetables, people, or I'll come for you'."

Miranda scowled. "Just get in the damn shuttle."

I chuckled, and as I climbed in, I notice the elevator open up again, and Sarah emerged.

Miranda looked back to Shepard. "We'll be on standby if _anything_ goes wrong."

Sarah waved a little as she moved toward the shuttle. "Hi guys!" she said simply as she climbed aboard. She was either tuning out Miranda or didn't hear what she said.

"Hola," Abby said. She wasn't sitting down yet, but peeking out the front door to watch our conversation. "Hey, Miranda, no worries. We got this."

"Well, there are no fire alarms on Tuchanka, so you should," Miranda told her, and I couldn't tell if it was an attempt at a joke or a serious remark. Probably the latter.

I looked at Sarah. I raised an eyebrow once I saw her hair. "Wow, you got a haircut."

"Yep I did," she said simply as she sat down. She glanced briefly at Abby, and then strapped herself in.

Abby's answering smile to Miranda's remark was icy. "We all set, guys?" she asked the room at large.

"Strap in, we're leaving now," Shepard said, moving to the seat in the far corner. Abby took hers next to Mordin and struck up a conversation with him. The doors closed. "Be ready," was all Shepard said, and then fell silent.

The only seat left was the one next to Grunt, which unfortunately, I had to take. I slowly sat down beside him, and strapped myself in. I only hoped that he could hold his murderous urge in for a little while. He'd get to slaughter everyone and everything soon enough.

"This better work, Shepard," Grunt commented. "I'm getting sick of this."

_Soon, Grunt, you'll love this._

Shepard glanced at us. "It will," she simply said.

Sarah was looking at Shepard intently, almost to the point of staring. She looked as though she might have something she wanted to say, but was hesitating.

"-and my dad told me that as you choke them you bring their back across your knee, you know, taking their balance, pulling them deeper into the garrote. I was wondering, does that work with salarians, too?"

"Yes," Mordin replied. "Salarian trachea marginally softer than human or asari. You would have a much more difficult time with a turian."

"And don't even try krogan, right?" Abby asked.

"Krogan trachea can withstand twenty pounds of pressure, unlike humans. Human can only withstand eight, turians can withstand ten. Salarians-five. Comes with muscular structure, you see. Salarians are more flexible than asari, however. Each species has its merits, different ways for quicker assassinations. For example, with krogan, stabbing a knife through the side of their neck would not work as well as stabbing their eyes-if you can get that close. Most likely that the krogan will bite you or charge you. Their humpbacks are very sensitive, too, which is why krogan do not generally go around without their armor on."

"Hey," Sarah chimed in just then, leaning forward a little. "One of my friends on DA-I mean, back home-once told me that it's possible to rip out someone's esophagus with their hand, from the outside of the throat. Have you ever heard of this...technique?"

Grunt cackled. "Yes."

Abby nodded, grinning. "I don't think I'd do that one, though. That's too Dark Side for me."

"Messy, with inconsistent results," Mordin said, shaking his head. "One would have to have the victim in a subdued position. Much easier to break neck, solves all problems."

"What about you, Commander?" Abby asked Shepard curiously. "Any weirdo kill techniques you've come across?"

Shepard just stared at us with an unamused expression. "It would probably have to be Admiral Kahoku's death," she said bluntly.

That shut us up.

The silence continued for a few seconds. Then Sarah cleared her throat softly, as though she wanted to say something-or was at least thinking about it. She was staring at Shepard again.

Shepard turned away and began to made adjustments to her omni-tool. Grunt was moving around impatiently in his too-small seat. "I want to kill something," he growled in frustration. We felt the pop of the shuttle slipping through the cargo hold floor, and then the engines took over and guided us out. "This better work or I'm going to be pissed."

Sarah leaned back in her seat and proceeded to gaze out the side window. She seemed to be losing herself in her own thoughts, tuning the rest of us out.

I sighed. In a way, I knew what Sarah was doing: She wasn't taking the first initiative, and just making small notions for someone to say something first. She'd done it before sometimes, on MSN, I'd noticed. It was something that most of us did at some point in life; I had done it in my day as well.

I decided to take the bait. "Something to say, Sarah?" I asked.

She glanced at me sharply, as if surprised. I could guess that she hadn't been expecting me to say anything to her. "Oh, um..." She sat up straighter in her seat. Now she actually looked... sheepish. She glanced around herself, as if taking in the fact that there were so many people around her, and in relatively confined space at that. "Well I sorta had something on my mind that I wanted to say, to Shepard at least, but I'm not sure if this is the right time or place," she said. She then turned away, looking out the window again.

"Yes?" Shepard said.

Well, whether she liked it or not, Sarah was in the spotlight now, more or less. I saw her looking at Kasumi for a moment, almost as if she was... pleading for help, perhaps? But Kasumi did and said nothing, and Sarah quickly turned to look at Shepard before things could get much more awkward.

"Well I was talking to Garrus before we left, and I told him something... and uh, he said that I should tell it to you personally," Sarah began, obviously stumbling with her words a bit.

"Yes?" Shepard asked again, staring at Sarah. When Sarah hesitated again, she said, "Just tell me."

"Well... basically I told Garrus that... despite the stupid things that have happened involving me sometimes-and I know I've had a hard time fitting in sometimes, well... I'm deeply honored to be part of this crew. And I think you're the best Commander in this dang universe." Sarah then turned away, at least partially. She looked sincere, but sheepish.

Shepard blinked. She certainly hadn't been expecting that, I could tell. Probably another "So I met Jack in the bathrooms and..." story. "I appreciate it, Sarah," she said after a moment of digesting this. "You've come far since you've arrived."

"Thanks," Sarah said, looking at Shepard. This time she actually made eye-contact. "Just wanted you to know that... um... in case I die or something." She lowered her gaze.

"What makes you think you're going to die?" Shepard asked.

Sarah glanced away, looking toward the floor. "Oh no reason. Don't worry or anything... I'll be perfectly fine on Tuchanka." That was her way of trying to drop the subject and clam up about it.

Shepard just sighed. "Okay, then."

"Predictable in some ways," Mordin said. "Simplify absolutes, make us think of when, and of where. Might as well just come out and say it unless it reveals too much light on future events."

"Everything's gonna die," Grunt said, though I wasn't even sure if he was just speaking his thoughts out loud or actually trying to chime in on the conversation.

Sarah simply blurted out, "Well either I'm gonna die, or just get captured and rescued, or be okay. I don't see any other way around it." Then she shrugged, almost as if she was trying to make it seem like no big deal.

_Sarah, you big mouth!_

Abby sighed audibly. "Okay, can we all just stop the conversation now?" she asked pointedly. She looked at Sarah. "We can continue the conversation in private."

"Fine by me," Sarah murmured. Her eyes looked thoughtful though; as if she was considering different scenarios or possibilities of future events, and what she might be able to do or not do, through her mind.

Abby sighed again. "Okay, so about garrotes and the awesome things about them..." she was directing this towards Grunt, now, and obvious ploy to get him talking. "What's the best way to take out a krogan? In your opinion."

And so the conversation went on and on until we, finally, landed on Tuchanka.

I sighed. Although I hated to make those comments about Sarah, even in private, the woman kept revealing facts a bit too early, but ah well. Maybe it was for the best, who knew. Or, hopefully, Shepard would just brush it off.

Shepard opened the hatch, and we all stepped off the shuttle, one by one. Tuchanka looked more interesting, and a lot more rundown, in reality than it did in a game.

"Well, here we are," I muttered.

Sarah stayed right where she was, although she unfastened her seat restraints. She stared out the doorway with widened eyes. Indeed she hadn't really had a chance to go out and explore a planet since Haestrom. She had been on Aeia, but she had stayed on the shuttle the entire time. "Looks... windy out there," she commented.

Abby seemed excited, and Grunt had an air of hardness about him I'd never seen before. "This... is my homeworld," he said, stepping out. He took a deep whiff of the air. "It's a pisshole, but it'll do. I want to see Urdnot Wrex."

Sarah inched herself toward the edge of her seat, but didn't stand up yet. It almost looked like she wanted to be the last one to exit the shuttle. She continued to stare out the open door.

"I want to see Wrex, too," I said, trying to sound confident, but I still didn't know what Wrex would truly think of us. Abby went on about him liking us, but Wrex didn't seem like the type to randomly like anyone.

"Hey I have a question," Sarah called out suddenly, getting everyone's attention. She then stood from her seat and slowly moved toward the doorway, placing her hand on the edge of it. "Um... do krogans ever eat humans?"

"I'd eat you if I were starving," Grunt said, "but only if there's no other meat left. Okeer's implants tell me that you're too salty. You'd only dehydrate us."

"I'm sure you won't be hungry enough to eat a human, Grunt," Kasumi said calmingly.

He shrugged. "Never know. Thought about it once, when the cook was taking too long."

Sarah had finally stepped out of the shuttle... but she seemed to be staying behind Kasumi, keeping close to her-and keeping the woman between herself and the young krogan.

I glanced around, and saw a couple of the krogan on the side of the landing pad giving us weird looks. Aliens on Tuchanka were a very rare sight, even Wrex himself commented on that. I also spotted that poetic krogan and his asari lover, who Shepard must have reunited back on Illium.

I was glad to see that, for two reasons: They got to be happy, and Shepard had more Paragon points. I was still unsure as to whether the 'points' actually existed now, since this was real. However, if they did, she'd need them real soon.

"Can we go find Wrex?" I asked, looking to everyone else.

"That's on the agenda," Shepard said, taking a quick look around. "Stay close."

One of the krogan just glared at us as we passed, fingering his assault rifle as though it was a dear wish of his to take it and shoot us all down. Another group met us at the bottom of the small landing pad, armored and dangerous. "Commander Shepard," said their leader in a rough, aggressive voice. "Don't you cause trouble here, or we'll take care of you. Understand, human?"

"I'm here to see Urdnot Wrex, the clan leader of this area," Shepard said coolly. "I suggest you let me pass."

"Wrex wants to see you," he grumbled, "but we're watching you. The ripples of what happened on Virmire are still felt harshly here."

"Understood. I won't cause any trouble for Clan Urdnot," Shepard said. She motioned to the door they were blocking with her hand. "Any more warnings you want to hand out on a silver platter, or can we get this thing moving?"

The krogan merely glared at her and took a step back, allowing her to pass.

Sarah looked a bit nervous as she passed by all of the krogan. As we all passed through the entrance of the long corridor that would take us toward Wrex, I noticed she was tentatively reaching for Kasumi's hand-perhaps wanting to make sure they didn't get separated. Or maybe she just wanted to clutch onto her "protector" somehow or other.

We took a left at the next hall, and heard those krogan babbling on about killing turians. As they did, I hoped that Sarah wasn't getting too alarmed at the thought of her beloved turians getting slaughtered by krogan.

"He should be past this door up ahead, and up a little ways," I told Shepard.

Shepard merely nodded and continued onwards, Grunt right behind her. The doors opened, exposing the krogan landscape. It smelled strange, just... alien. The distinct smell of fried food, pheromones, and an ammonia-based scent seemed to cloud the air in front of us. I pointed towards Wrex's general podium and Shepard followed my lead, speeding up.

Sarah began to quicken her pace, hurrying to keep up with all of us. And that's when her foot caught on a piece of rock or debris that was sticking up out of the ground. She fell flat on her face, sprawling out on the ground, into the dusty soil.

"Sarah!" I shouted instinctively, darting out of the line towards Wrex's throne and rushing to her side. I glanced to Abby for a moment, before looking down at our friend. "Are you alright?"

Sarah pushed herself up out of the dirt. She swiped some dust out of her eyes. "Ow," she grumbled out loud. "Yeah I'm fine... help me up before a krogan comes along and steps on me."

"Whoops." Abby went over to help me get her up. "You good?"

Once Sarah was back on her feet she placed her hand on her forehead, and then winced. "I think I have a bruise, but I feel okay," she said simply.

"Ugh, I'm sorry," I told her with a frown, before looking back to Shepard. I hoped that she wasn't frustrated with us and our antics already. "Uh, I think we can continue now."

Sarah muttered a "yeah" and hastily straightened out her shirt, and then she marched on ahead of us, straight toward Shepard. Kasumi was standing nearby, peering at us; apparently she was taking her responsibility to heart.

Shepard simply nodded, and we all headed up the small ramp-type path to Wrex's little area. However, two guards turned to us, and immediately stepped in front of Shepard.

"Halt! You must wait till the clan leader summons you. He...is in talks," the guard said, looking back to Wrex.

And there was the guy that was going to be a big thorn in Grunt's side within several minutes: Uvenk. He was arguing with Wrex, like always.

"...Clan Urdnot must respond," he continued. "Your reforms will not go unopposed. You risk appearing weak at a critical time."

Wrex seemed even more bored by what Uvenk was saying than he did in the game. And rightfully so: Uvenk just babbled on and on about krogan traditions. I tended to like re-formers like Wrex more than krogan traditionalists.

Wrex glanced at us, and immediately rose to his feet. "Shepard!" he simply said, starting to approach us.

"Good enough?" Shepard asked the guard, brushing past him. I smirked slightly. "Excuse me."

Shepard and Wrex both seemed rather happy to see each other, rushing towards one another. "Shepard! My friend," Wrex said, immediately giving her hand a good shake. "You look well for dead, Shepard. Should've known the void couldn't hold you."

Sarah was standing very close to Kasumi, unsure how the large krogan was going to react when he saw us-or got introduced to us. She stared at the Urdnot leader with a combination of awe and fear in her eyes. After all, this was Wrex-one of the most awesome krogans in the Mass Effect series.

"Looks like helping me destroy Saren and the geth has worked out for you," Shepard said, and she sounded happier than I had heard her in a long time. "I'm glad we didn't have to kill each other on Virmire."

"Ha! You made possible the rise of clan Urdnot. It was a turning point for the krogan, though not everybody was happy about it." He shot a significant glare towards Uvenk. "Destroying Saren's genophage cure helped free us from his manipulation. I used tat to spur the clans to unify under Urdnot."

"You abandoned many traditions to get your way," Uvenk growled. "Dangerous."

Wrex merely looked at him. He recoiled a bit and struck hard with his head. The sound of both skulls colliding was loud and sharp, making every non-krogan member of our party wince. "You will speak when spoken to, Uvenk," said Wrex as Uvenk slinked away. "I will drag your clan to glory whether it likes it or not."

Shepard shot a slight smile Uvenk's way, who was rubbing his head, as Wrex took a seat on his stone throne. "Now, Shepard, what brings you here? How is the Normandy?" he asked.

"Destroyed in a Collector surprise attack," Shepard replied. "I ended up getting spaced."

"Well, you look good," Wrex said. "Ah, the benefits of a redundant nervous system."

"Yeah, humans don't have that."

"Oh, it must have been painful, then," said Wrex. "But you're standing here now and you've got a strong new ship. Takes me back to the old days. Us against the unknown... killing it with big guns."

Shepard turned around and motioned to us. "Go take a look around for a while," she said. "I'll call you back in a while. Kasumi, Mordin, Grunt-watch after them."

Sarah glanced around herself. "Guess we should watch our step," she murmured, rubbing the bruise on her forehead thoughtfully.

Abby was bouncing up and down as we descended. "Ohhhh I wanna talk to Wrex," she all but cried.

"I would like to talk to that krogan doctor," Sarah commented, glancing around again as though trying to figure out which direction would lead her to him.

"I do too, but I guess we can in a bit," I said, looking to my companions. I looked around the trashed world. "So, what _should_ we do?"

Sarah glanced at me and Abby, then at Kasumi. "Well... could we go look around?" She glanced at Mordin and Grunt as well.

"I'm gonna go play with Urz," Abby said, and bounced away before we could stop her.

"Oh no you don't!" Kasumi said, reaching out to grab her hand. "Who's Urz?"

"I don't know what he is, but he's cute and he reminds me of a dog," Abby said. "Pleeeeease can I go play with him?"

"Not... advisable," Mordin said, looking around. "Not in this climate."

Abby put out her lower lip.

Sarah was still looking around a bit. "Hey is it okay if I go that way, just for a little bit? I'll be right back, I promise," she said. Obviously she wanted to go check out something, and didn't feel like just standing around here.

"Oh no. We're going places as a group or not at all," Kasumi said seriously. "Where do you want to go?"

"Pleeease can I go see Urz?" Abby asked.

"Later, we'll go see Urz later!"

"But when Shepard gets back she's going to want to head out for Mordin and Grunt, and I'm going with her. Come on, Kasumi, I won't get in any trouble, I promise."

Kasumi sighed. "What did I get myself into?" she asked out loud. "Fine, go, but be back soon!" Abby took off. "Now, Sarah, where do YOU want to go?"

"I'd like to go meet a krogan doctor," Sarah said. "I believe he's right up that way, up there and inside that building." She pointed to an area where the ground rose steadily, almost like the cross between of a natural ramp and a small hillside. I recognized it from the game; that was where the shaman would be, along with the emissary for the female camp, and a few other krogan.

After a moment, Sarah seemed to rethink this a bit. "Wait a minute, actually I think he's THAT way," she said quickly, pointing in the opposite direction.

_Thank goodness, she probably would have run up to some random krogan, asking if they were the doctor, and would've gotten a punch in the face._

"He's down by the truck," I told Sarah, gesturing in that direction as well.

"Then let's go!" Sarah said, already moving. She obviously wanted to get moving, hoping that no one would change their minds. I also knew that this would take us by Abby, too, because they would take us right by Urz. Sarah still glanced over her shoulder as she walked, though; she didn't want to lose sight of the rest of us.

I shrugged at the others, and followed Sarah. I tried not to look at the other krogan, but any alien walking freely without Shepard probably made them blink even more than Shepard walking around here. However, I tried to act non-chalant about it, and hoped the others did the same.

At one point, Sarah apparently became a little more confident that she knew the area-perhaps she was remembering the details of Tuchanka from the game. She began to quicken her pace, moving a little bit ahead of the rest of us.

We continued to follow Sarah, Grunt uttering a few words about murder that I tuned out, because I had grown accustomed to Grunt's random cravings for action by now. We were approaching the truck, when we walked past that krogan with the varren.

Out of nowhere, the varren lunged at us, causing me to jump slightly. "Sheesh," I muttered under my breath.

"Some upperclassmen I've known tame varren... they also get very nasty bites. I'd suggest you stay away from them," Kasumi said.

We pressed on until we entered a building where the krogan doctor was. There were several makeshift beds upon which a few krogan lay, and there was also a lot of equipment within the room. The krogan doctor stood on the far side of the room.

And this was where Sarah began to act more nervous. She actually fell behind us a bit as we all entered.

I raised an eyebrow, looking to Sarah. "_You _were the one who wanted to speak to him," I whispered.

"Yeah I know," Sarah whispered back. "Can somebody else get his attention first?"

"Nope," Kasumi answered, pushing her forward. "You're up to bat."

Sarah looked a little startled, and then she shot Kasumi a look. However she did proceed toward the krogan doctor... slowly.

She finally stopped just behind him. Well, about five feet behind him. For her that was probably extremely gutsy. "Hi," she finally spoke up-and then I could almost swear I heard her throat shut down with an almost audible "click".

"Yes, what? What do you want?" the krogan asked, irritated. "I have better things to do than put up with you."

Sarah took a step backward. "Um... I guess you're busy?" She winced, apparently realizing how stupid that probably sounded.

I watched curiously, and began to wonder why Sarah liked the krogan doctor so much. Out of all the people that she liked, I didn't recall her mentioning _him_.

"Yes, I am busy, obviously. If you're going to stand around stating the obvious then I'll throw you out despite the Chief's orders."

"I was... just curious if you knew anything about humans," Sarah spit out hesitantly. "I mean... human genes, human biology, and whatnot."

"No, and I don't care. Is there something specific you wanted, human?" He checked the readings of an unconscious krogan patient, forcibly opened his mouth, and tilted a bottle of liquid down his throat. The krogan coughed, revealing that he'd only been sleeping. "You're going to drink that and like it," said the doctor, walking away.

Sarah seemed to change her mind about whatever she had wanted to talk to him about... at least mostly. But then she blurted out a question. "Hey do you know anything about implants?"

Behind us, I heard Mordin sigh.

"Yes, I do," said the doctor. "I know a lot of things. Is there a specific reason why you're asking me this, or are you just going to stand there sputtering all over my floor?"

"Well..." Sarah cast a wary glance toward Mordin, and then focused on the krogan doctor. "I was just wondering if you knew about any... unique or useful ones. I have credits..." She shrugged in what she probably hoped was a non-chalant gesture.

"Yes, I do," said the krogan, looking my way. He seemed genuinely interested now. "No. No. Go ask one of your own doctors. I only perform the procedures on krogan. Your body is too tiny to handle my care."

"Well... I was wondering if you still might have something, though. Or know where I might be able to get something? You wouldn't have to operate on me... I could just ask someone else to do it," Sarah insisted quietly.

"This isn't a good idea, Sarah," Kasumi said in a low voice. "Forget about it."

"Agreed," said Mordin. "Made that clear last time."

The doctor only shook his head. "No. Go ask a fancy human doctor. I'm here trying to save the krogan race, not to help the friend of the woman who destroyed the Virmire base and the genophage cure!"

Sarah made a long face. "Saren had to be stopped," she said simply, taking a couple of steps back. "Shepard would say the same thing if she was here."

"No, I understand why she destroyed it, but that doesn't make me happy," he said. "Go away. I'm not going to help you."

"What if I gave you... ten thousand credits?" Sarah asked persuasively.

"I am Lord High Researcher Fortack of Clan Urdnot-I do not waste time on humans. Urdnot Wrex has me researching things too important to drop for even ten-thousand credits. The answer is no."

"You seemed interested a second ago... twenty-thousand?" Okay that had to be her final offer; she didn't have much more than that.

Kasumi placed a hand on her shoulder. "We'll be going now," she said.

"Don't bother coming back unless you're dying," Fortack mumbled, turning away from us. "Don't count on much then, either."

Once we were all outside of the building, I saw Sarah glance toward Mordin. There was a stubborn glint in her eyes. "Hey, Mordin..." she began.

"No, I am not doing it, and it would be wise to stop asking!" Mordin snapped.

"Okay," Sarah said with a shrug. But that look in her eyes didn't leave. "I just won't ask_ you_ again." She began to walk forward, beginning to lead the way in the direction where we'd come from-back toward Shepard and Wrex, and hopefully Abby.

I blinked. I knew of Sarah's constant pushing to become a biotic, and in reality, who could blame her? Although we were all facing death, Sarah knew that more than likely, she would be captured. And if we didn't get there fast enough, there was a good chance that she would die.

I highly doubted that Abby or I would let that happen, though. Especially not Abby. Not that she loved Sarah anymore than I did; I loved her to death. Abby was just a lot more defiant and persistent. She'd probably go hi-jack the cockpit from her _favorite_ character and get us to the Omega 4 Relay herself if it meant Sarah lived.

However, the fact was, nothing was 100% guaranteed, so you could definitely understand why Sarah wanted biotics so badly. I just hoped that it was getting through her head that she wasn't getting any, because _no one _was willing to do it.

I just looked at the others. "So, what now?" I asked, rubbing the back of my neck.

"Hey," Sarah spoke up, stopping and looking at each of us. "Would it be possible for me to speak directly to the Illusive Man as soon as we get back to the ship, or maybe a little while after we get back?"

My jaw dropped, and I almost wished that Abby was here, wondering what she would say to _this_ chain of events.

"Umm, well, I guess it's always worth a shot," I started, not wanting to shoot Sarah down immediately. However, I also did need to keep everything a bit _real_. "But several problems: I am not sure if you can speak with him yourself. The only time we've seen anyone other than Shepard do it is when Jacob asked about his father. Not to mention, if you want biotic implants...I'm not sure he'd go for it. It sounds like a big investment, and I have no doubt that Miranda has been giving him thorough updates on what all three of us have been up to. He may not be our biggest fans, depending on what he's heard."

"Like I said though," Sarah insisted, "I think it's worth a try, at least. I won't know anything if I don't try."

"Sarah, it's a horrible idea," Kasumi said seriously. "First of all, you aren't even eligible. At all. You haven't been exposed to eezo in the womb, which would give you that potential in the first place and we would all know it. All an implant does is boost whatever talent you _already have_. You can't be a biotic, and trust me, Cerberus has been trying to control biotics but it just isn't working out for them. It's the reason they're regarded as terrorists in the galaxy. All the Illusive Man can do is take you from the ship and use you as another body to test. Do you really want that?"

Sarah seemed to think about that for a moment. Then she finally said, "No... I don't want to be a lab rat or anything like that." She was silent for a moment. "Well, what about other ideas? Like... cybernetics, or an adrenaline boost or something?"

I looked to Mordin. This was his area of expertise.

"You'd need a brain surgeon back on Earth," Kasumi said gently.

"As I already told you," said Mordin. "That, and months of recovery time."

"I'd listen to Mordin if I was you-he knows his stuff."

"So you're telling me there's nothing can be implemented and work fine after just a few days or weeks?" Sarah persisted. "Nothing at all?" She was looking directly at Mordin now.

"No!" Mordin said again, for what sounded, to me, like the umpteenth time. "Researched after you came to me and told you we couldn't do it. Don't see why you continue to ask and ask. Use your natural resources, why supplement them with technology? Illogical."

"Well, it's just a nice thought at least," Sarah shrugged. "I mean... sometimes technology can make things stronger and better. At least it seems that way in some books and movies."

"Books and movies irrelevant," Mordin said. "Fool to think you can make yourself better by relying on technological upgrades that are just as likely to work correctly as not. Also, genetic mutations are against Citadel law."

"Yeah, Miranda, Jack, and Grunt weren't exactly created legally," Kasumi pointed out.

Grunt snorted.

"Don't the asari have some kind of legalized genetic modifications?" Sarah was obviously trying to chase after any possibility she could think of.

"Biotic amps," Kasumi said patiently. "Technically, even medi-gel isn't legal, but since it does so much good it's still in production. You can make your eyesight 20/20, you can cure slight genetic abnormalities like cancer or scoliosis, but modifying a perfectly fine human to be some kind of super-soldier is wrong. Miranda's very unhappy about her past, and so is Jack, to give some two human examples. There is nothing-anywhere-that says genetic modifications are good."

"Well," Sarah argued, "I know that's true about both of them, but I also know that the reverse can be true as well. Some perfectly normal people can be unhappy with themselves."

"Wonder who the hell that is," Grunt grumbled.

"The answer is no, Sarah," Kasumi said firmly. "No implants."

Sarah looked at each of us, but said nothing. She simply shrugged and seemed to let the subject drop. At least for now. There was no telling when or if she might try to bring it up again, though.

I nodded in agreement, but it was disappointing. I couldn't help but feel bad for Sarah: It seemed like she was just out of luck. At this point, all she could do was hope that we-or rather, Shepard-came through and got her out of the Collector base in time.

Suddenly, our omni tools buzzed, and Shepard informed us that she was ready for us to return. Apparently, she had gone over everything with Wrex, and had news for both Grunt and Mordin...and we could also meet Wrex.

As we headed back towards her, I felt a bit nervous, but at the same time, a bit excited. Wrex was one of my favorite characters, and I downright refused to let him die at any time in ME1. However, to actually meet the krogan was a bit...scary. Would he like us?

We walked back up to where he resided, and he sat on his 'throne', watching us, while Shepard stood in front of him.

Abby appeared at my shoulder almost out of thin air. I nearly expected her to announce 'I'm here!' as she often did, but to my relief she didn't.

Wrex studied all three of us intently from his throne, and then abruptly let out a bark of laughter. "And these three have tagged along with you since the beginning, Shepard?" he asked. "I'm surprised. You've gone a bit soft."

"It's a long story," Shepard said, "and you wouldn't believe the half of it. Short version: they've earned their keep on the new ship. HK and Abby-" she pointed us out to him "-are innovative fighters. I've never seen somebody guess an enemy's tactics correctly one-hundred percent before. Sarah is also an instrumental aid on the Normandy, and a brilliant tactician."

"Hmm." Wrex motioned us closer to him, and we all took a few hesitant steps in. "Not bad," he said after a few careful moments of observation. "No fear of me. No fear of the others. Sharp minds. Agile. And you've impressed Shepard. Not an easy feat. Are you going to talk, or what?"

"I just want to say you're a credit to the krogan race, Wrex," Abby said respectfully. "They need you. You're on the exact right track."

Sarah waved shyly but with confidence. "Hi, Wrex," she grinned.

"Yes, you're a great krogan. The perfect leader for clan Urdnot and everyone else," I told him, trying to keep a steady tone to my voice. I was also lightly smiling, trying not to break out into some huge grin.

Wrex snorted. "So, you know about the shitty situation here. Hah, it's hard to miss." He reached out and pushed Abby's shoulder roughly, causing her to back up several steps. Shepard watched us intently from the sidelines. "I can't imagine how you humans fight the way you are. Now tell me, are you prepared to die for Shepard?"

I blinked, taken off guard by the question. However, I supposed it was a valid one. "Yes...yes we are," I replied quietly.

Wrex turned his vivid red eyes on Abby, who nodded. "I haven't come all this way just to watch the Commander die. We'll make sure _everybody_ gets out alive."

Sarah's eyes widened a little when the krogan leader to gaze at her, obviously expecting an answer from her as well. I could tell that the fact that she could die or get captured by Collectors was still fresh on her mind, especially in light of the discussion we'd had just a few minutes ago. She opened her mouth and closed it. She looked like she was unsure how to answer... or perhaps she was trying to figure out how to phrase her answer.

Wrex merely looked at her, and then snorted. "Well, it's probably a good thing you aren't ground crew, then," he rumbled. He motioned for us to go back to our original spots, and then told Shepard, "They'll do."

Before Sarah moved, she finally blurted out her answer. "If I die, I at least want a death I can be proud of." She seemed... mostly satisfied with her answer as she returned to her original spot.

"Dying for Shepard isn't something to be proud of?" he asked crossly. "Go back home, live a good human life, and die in your sleep for all I care. Or, better yet, be the hunter instead of the prey. Either way, nobody cares about your death except you and the ones who want to kill you." He chuckled. "Isn't that right?" he asked the Commander.

"My death is something for somebody else to worry about," Shepard said with a tight smile.

"That line was from 'Star Wars: Dark Rendezvous,'" Abby whispered to me with a light cackle.

"What?" Shepard asked, looking at us.

"I said 'I think he wants to rendezvous,'" Abby lied, gesturing to Mordin. He was standing a ways away, beyond the small guard, alongside Grunt and Kasumi. "With the guard over there who knows about his student."

Wrex and Shepard exchanged a look. "Bring me the salarian and Grunt," Wrex said suddenly.

"You three go get them," Shepard said. "And then stay there with Kasumi until we're done."

I nodded, and we all turned away. I was still glad to see Wrex, but it seemed that Sarah had gotten on his bad side. The poor girl had a real hard time making any friends in the ME universe, but we probably shouldn't focus on that right now.

"So, we'll have two loyalty quests down, soon," I murmured to them.

"Nearly, nearly," Abby replied, nodding. "I think Wrex likes us. He's so cool!"

"Yeah, at least he likes you guys," Sarah murmured.

I sighed. "Yes, I love Wrex. I'd never let him die, and I am glad that he does like us," I said, glancing to Sarah. "And I'm sure he doesn't mind you, Sarah. Maybe he even likes you in his own way."

"Maybe," was all Sarah said.

"Hey, Wrex wants to see you two," Abby said as we approached Grunt and Mordin. "Go on."

"So how'd the meeting go?" Kasumi asked anxiously as the two walked past us without another word.

"Uh... interestingly," was all Abby would say.

Sarah looked like she was almost going to say something, but she kept her mouth shut.

It may be best to just not pursue that right now. "Yes, it went okay. It was nice to meet Wrex in person, he's always been a favorite of ours," I replied. "But now I think Shepard's ready to get down to business. I imagine the other two are, too."

"I wish Wrex could come with us," Abby sighed. "Oh... uh, do you think Shepard is going to take us with her to take care of Grunt's issues?"

I raised an eyebrow. "I'm, uh, not sure...she'll need a lot of firepower, but on the other side of the coin, she may want us to stay here for our own sakes," I replied thoughtfully.

"Wonderful." Abby winced.

It wasn't long before the Commander was done talking with Wrex. She approached us five minutes later with Mordin and Grunt at her heels. "Get ready, we need to go talk to the shaman."

"Grunt's up first?" Abby asked.

Shepard merely nodded. Grunt was uncharacteristically silent, glaring around the Urdnot camp as though committing the place to memory.


	30. The Krogan Berserker

**(HK)**

"If only they made school buses like this back on Earth," Abby said wryly, bouncing up and down in her seat. Not because she was hyper, which she certainly was, but because the truck we were taking hit so many potholes that it would just make a mechanic blanch. A harness kept us humans from hitting the top of the vehicle and bouncing around, which we certainly could have done. "Mind your head. . . hehe," she said darkly.

Yes, of course Abby seemed to be enjoying this. Truck rides on Tuchanka were more uncomfortable than anything else I had ridden during my time in the Mass Effect universe. There was far more than enough room in it, but the rough ground of Tuchanka put down the idea of a nice ride before we dive in to fighting varren and other wild life. I wondered how we'd be able to do this again when we headed to Clan Weyrloc.

However, I had gotten used to it after the first couple of minutes, and was focusing on what was ahead: Grunt's mission. In theory, it shouldn't be too difficult, because we had gotten through plenty of barrage of enemies before, but at the same time, it was different. I vividly remembered always being on the move in the game, because the varren and klixen literally came at you from all angles. It wasn't like getting behind a crate, hiding, and shooting when you got a moment. And we weren't going anywhere; we were just staying and fighting for survival.

_You know, I'm getting pretty sick of saying survival all the time. Is that all my life is going to be about from here on out? Surviving while serving on the Normandy? Though, all life is like that, in a way. But every other day we've got a new near-death situation on our hands._

However, I was confident that we could handle the klixen and varren; it would just be a little tricky. What concerned me more than anything was the thresher maw. There were only three things in the game that could kill me: The wave of mercenaries through the right door at Garrus's base, the Praetorian, and the thresher maw. We never had to deal with the first two, but we would be facing the thresher maw. In the actual game, it took out Shepard's shields with one shot. Three shots and she would have been dead. Who knew how little it would take to kill Abby and I?

We didn't even have to kill the thresher maw. I liked killing it all the time in the game, just because it brings you so much more respect around Tuchanka. Respect doesn't matter quite as much know, though killing it would relieve a lot of my anxiety earlier than it would if we didn't.

Then there was Uvenk, but in all honesty, he and his krogan seemed like a piece of cake after the thresher maw.

I looked around the truck, which was mostly silent. Abby was hyper but wasn't saying much, and Grunt seemed anxious and curious, but he was mostly quiet, too. All that I heard from Mordin was little scientific notes about Tuchanka at times. Shepard, like usual, was quiet.

"Any idea when we'll be there?" I asked no one in particular.

Abby shrugged, and we both looked to Shepard. "Patience," she told us. She was bouncing up and down in her seat as well, but she didn't make it look nearly as much fun as Abby did. "Soon."

I simply nodded, and silence covered the truck again. My mind drifted; somewhat to the combat, and how I hoped that we would all be alright. In a way, I almost didn't know why Shepard had brought Mordin on _this_ mission. I loved Mordin, and he was a great fighter, but it seemed like we'd need someone better for this. But you take what you get, I suppose.

I also thought about Sarah. She had Kasumi with her back at Clan Urdnot, but I hoped that she wasn't getting into any trouble. We couldn't have Wrex giving us a call and saying that he had to shoot her because she started rambling on about the greatness of turians.

And if she did anything that disturbed the camp, Wrex _would_ shoot her, too.

Also, I felt information smoothly flowing into my mind. Information from the real world, information about the universe we were currently living in. It was about Liara and the Shadow Broker. Abby and I had discussed this already, but it sounded like that the DLC had been released, and I had played it. Sarah and Abby hadn't, not yet, but I was pushing for them to and had already told them some details, so they should know by now, as well.

It sounded quite interesting: Liara and Shepard did team up to go after the Shadow Broker, and it was a long and chaotic mission. They finally found out that he was part of some pre-space flight species, and that he had killed the original Shadow Broker years ago and taken his place. Liara and Shepard proceeded to kill him, and Liara took his place, which would provide. . .interesting results for ME3.

I wondered if we'd ever go on that mission, if it would suddenly pop up here, because it could at any time. Though, the dialogue in the game seemed to imply that it was after the suicide mission, so that meant that it would probably be after it here, too.

I still didn't know what would happen to us after the suicide mission. We had a lot to do now, so it had rarely been discussed, but my mind still wandered to it sometimes. Would the suicide mission go well? What choices would Shepard make? Would we still be around after the suicide mission, and actually see what happens between ME2 and ME3? It was all. . ._very_ complex.

But we would deal with that when the time came. For now, we just had to do these loyalty missions, and Grunt's would be another one that we could mark off. We still needed Samara's, Jack's, and Tali's to pop up, though. As well as Legion, once we got him.

Also, I realized that I had played that 'Overlord' DLC in my other life. It seemed interesting. . ..it'd be even more interesting if we had to do it in this actual universe. Right now, though, the loyalty missions deserved the main focus.

About ten more minutes passed, and the ride got more bumpy and intense along the way. Finally, the truck came to a quick halt, and we all disembarked. Two krogan troops were at the front of the pack, and behind them was the shaman and Grunt. Behind those two was Shepard, then the three of us.

"This is Tuchanka's most recent scar," the shaman explained, giving a bit of history on where the Rite of Passage would take place. "The last surface city to fall in the rebellions. The keystone was at the heart."

We brushed past the two krogan warriors, and began to ascend up some type of tunnel-like passage way. "It has survived wars and the passage of centuries. It endures-like the krogan."

We then entered the main area; the one that Abby and I recognized all too well. We continued to approach the keystone, and I saw Grunt eagerly looking around, taking all of it in. He was getting closer and closer to his krogan ways with every second that passed.

"If you wish to join Clan Urdnot, you must contemplate the keystone and its trials," the shaman finished.

"What will happen?" Grunt asked curiously.

"Who knows?" the shaman asked back, very passively. "You must adapt. You must _thrive_, no matter the situation! Any true krogan will."

The shaman then took his exit, something that we never got to see onscreen during the game. We all took out our weapons and loaded them, preparing for the fight that would undoubtedly come after Shepard hit the keystone.

"This will be interesting," I muttered to Abby.

"Yup," she muttered, nodding. "Ooooh crap. This'll be fun."

"Just now realizing that?" I remarked, almost chuckling. I finished loading my rifle, before holding it in the usual stance, if I could call it that: Pointing it outwards and being ready for anything that might come out at us.

All five of us were ready, and Shepard simply gave a nod at Grunt. He nodded back. "Let's get started, Shepard. Hit the keystone."

Shepard didn't say a word, but just turned around and activated it. Then, like always, the first krogan history lesson began broadcasting.

"First, the krogan conquered Tuchanka, and mastered a natural world that only we are fit to hold," the voice explained. I was never sure if it was the actual shaman who had recorded that, or someone else from many, many years ago.

That strange noise that you always heard when a new phase of the Rite was starting, that always sounded like someone throwing a flash grenade, came through our ears, and varren roars were heard mere seconds afterwards. We all looked forward to see them hopping into the area, and charging towards us.

"Here they come, I'm ready!" Grunt proclaimed.

Shots rang out almost immediately, as we all opened fire on the varren. Grunt wasn't wasting any time, already devouring the things, and Shepard was pretty much doing the same, just in a calmer manner. I was shooting repeatedly at a few myself, who were coming towards me.

I backed up as fast as I could, not wanting them to get anywhere near me. I certainly didn't want to be the cause of that scale itch breaking out on the Normandy, if/when it did.

Two were coming at me, and I didn't stop shooting at them. One finally collapsed on the ground about half-way, but the other kept coming. I nearly tripped a few times, over random rocks lying around, but still managed to keep my balance. All the while, I was still shooting at the varren, quickly throwing thermal clips out and into my gun.

The varren was getting closer and closer, and finally, decided to literally jump at me. My eyes went wide with fear, but I had to remember what Garrus, Jacob, and others had taught me. Keeping my focus, I kept shooting, and the bullets pierced the varren's neck and chest. At last, it fell to the ground before it could tackle me.

Abby backed up near to the keystone and stayed close to it while peering inside the small structure beside it. I didn't pay her too much attention, because she had good coverage and was helping us take out the enemies from a distance.

Mordin's tactic seemed similar to Abby's, only he was closer to us. He was out, fighting, but was taking the varren out from a distance, as well. And both methods were working: I could see them both shoot some varren dead.

I took out another before it could get to me, and glanced around to see what Shepard and Grunt were up to. Unsurprisingly, they were taking out more than anyone, and quicker, too. I saw one manage to hop right up to Shepard, but she gave it a very hard punch in the face. It immediately fell to the ground.

I'd better tell Jacob or whoever she's romancing to never, ever get on her bad side, because that's one good right hook.

"There!" Grunt shouted, another varren dying at his feet. "These beasts will _know_ I am worthy!"

"HK, fall back, I have something to tell you," Abby said over the radio.

I raised an eyebrow, wondering what Abby had to tell me in a time like this. But that was Abby for you: Strangest things at the strangest times. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw more vorcha on the approach, but I was sure that the other three could take them.

I edged away from the area, so that they wouldn't notice my sudden departure, and once I was sure that they couldn't see me, I rushed to Abby. "What is it?" I asked curiously.

Abby turned off her radio and knelt down next to the Keystone, motioning for me to do so as well. "Okay, there's a glitch in the game that makes you nearly invincible here," she told me. "You climb next to the keystone, into this walled off thing, and the thresher maw can't get you."

I blinked. Never heard of this one. "Can I get it. . .?" I inquired.

"We should be able to, but I'm not sure," Abby confided in me. "And I wouldn't come in at first, either. We nearly need another biotic like Liara or Jack here with us." She had just played the Liara DLC, my mind registered vaguely.

"Liara's great, too bad she didn't stick around permanently. Either way, I guess we have to just go with what we've got at the moment," I told her with a slight sigh. "But thanks. For now, I should get back to the battle."

I stood, and turned to head back to the others. Abby followed close behind, reaffirming her radio contact with the rest of the squad. "You going to tell us what the conference was about?" Shepard asked, picking up three varren with her biotic abilities and slamming them into the ground hard enough to crush their skulls.

"Don't worry," Abby soothed. "Tell you later."

"Wonderful," I heard Shepard mutter.

"Klixen incoming!" Mordin shouted, pointing his finger at a large, dragon-like creature soaring above the battlefield.

"What the hell is that?" Shepard demanded.

"Hostile, shoot it!"

_So much for pressing the keystone again._

The dragon-like creature landed, and immediately released the klixen. Mass Effect had some weird creatures, that was for sure. . .I had never heard of some huge dragon carrying over-sized fire-breathing spiders around inside of it's. . .whatever they were inside.

The klixen came at all of us as quickly as possible, and we all opened fire. A couple of klixen immediately darted for Abby and myself, and started to shoot out its own brand of fire. We both immediately dodged the attack, rolling in opposite directions. We then fired at the klixen again, and they both screamed out as the bullets pierced into their rough skin.

I was moving now more than I was with the varren. One wrong or delayed move and I could go up in flames. So far, I was doing well. When it did spit out the flames, they only came up close to me. All the while, I was still firing at the weird beasts.

I kept moving back and forth, in a left-right direction. It was working for a good while, but as I moved to the left and took another shot at the klixen, I realized that it had caught on to my tactic. Before I could do a thing, it fired at me.

Flames came at me, and I leapt back as fast as humanly possible. I nearly breathed in relief when I didn't feel my head being BBQ'd, but all I had to do was look down to see the fire trying to cut into my arm.

"Blast!" I yelled, trying not to freak out and keep shooting at the klixen, but at the same time, not wanting my arm to burn to a crisp.

"I'll cover you, I'll cover you!" Abby snapped, pushing my gun to the side so I could concentrate on putting out the fire. She darted to the side and jumped on the thing's back, placing the muzzle of the assault rifle against its fleshy neck. She squeezed off a few rounds and jumped off, rolling to safety right before the chemicals within the creature caused it to explode in giant fleshy goo.

I remembered being taught that if you suppressed flames before they spread too much, depriving them of all air, that they would go out. My hands were gloved, too, so hopefully it'd be a little bit harder to catch them on fire. I wasn't sure, but I'd chance it.

Bringing up my right arm, the one that wasn't on fire, I immediately clamped down on my left arm, pushing down on it _hard_. I'd never pressed down so hard on something in my sixteen years of living, and I was surprised at how much strength I had when push came to shove.

It felt like the whole world around me had just collapsed. I could vaguely hear all the fighting around me, and I knew that there was loads of it going on right now. However, it was like it was off in the distance, and right now, my only priority was getting that flame gone.

After a good amount of seconds, I finally took my hand off of my arm, and relief filled me inside when I saw that the flames had died down, and only small inklings of smoke remained. My arm didn't feel that bad, either, it may just need to quickly get looked at _after_ all of this.

I turned back to the battlefield, and saw klixen spread out everywhere. Rushing to Abby's side and immediately opening fire on them again, I muttered to her, "Thank you."

She nodded sharply. Grunt was opening fire with no remorse with his shotgun, spraying the blood and guts everywhere. "Yes," he was saying. "Yes, yes, yes!"

Shepard was suddenly beside us, breathing hard. Sweat plastered her red hair to her forehead. "Grunt, fall back," she ordered. "Don't go too far."

Grunt made no answer, but at least he stopped advancing. Abby and I exchanged a grim look. "So when does the thresher maw pop up again?" Abby asked flippantly.

"I have a bone for it when it does," Shepard retorted.

"Sometime soon, after we finish off the klixen," I replied, noticing Mordin killing yet another. Right as he did though, that dragon-like creature showed up once again, dropping more klixen off for us to play with.

We all resumed our fighting positions, using whatever methods we could to take them out. There were about five this time, and Mordin and Shepard were both using a mix of biotics and bullets to take them out. Grunt was just tearing them up left and right, and it made me hope that we never had to spar with him again on Deck Five.

Another klixen began to approach me, and I did the exact same thing as last time to penetrate it, which was pretty much the only thing I could do. However, I was running a lot faster now, trying to evade it in a variety of ways so that it wouldn't figure out just one tactic.

That seemed to work, and it spat out some flames a few times that managed to hit me, but they bounced off of my chest armor. I was still in danger, but a small crackle of fire couldn't get through it.

I continued to do this until it was taken down. It fell to the ground, and I looked around to see everyone else finishing up the other ones, too. I wiped some sweat from my forehead, slightly relieved, but knew that we had not seen the worst yet.

We all looked at the keystone again, and the green light was back on it. I was glad to have the klixen gone, but the thresher maw was going to be here within a minute or so, and that would be worse than varren or klixen. Shepard wasted no time in going up and pushing it.

"Now, all krogan bear the genophage," the voice said. "Our reward, our curse! It's a fight where the only goal is survival."

The ground began to get unsteady, and Grunt immediately spoke. "Feel that? Everything is. . .shaking. I am ready!"

_Of course you are._

I slowly headed up to that area that Abby had told me about. I glanced at her for a brief moment. "Sure this'll work?"

"Uh. . . hopefully?" she asked. She nodded towards Grunt. "Am I the only one who gets dirty thoughts when I hear him say that?"

I was silent for a moment. "Um, yes, but now you're not. Thank you so much for putting that into my head before we dive right into a large battle."

I looked at the area that Abby had shown me earlier, and began to climb into it. I partially felt like a coward for doing this, for not being out on the battlefield at a time like this, but the goal was survival, like the krogan said.

I looked at Abby. "You coming?" I asked somberly.

"Yo, SHEPARD!" Abby yelled. "Get in here. . . it's kind of safe."

Shepard obeyed us without hesitation. Mordin climbed in behind her, and Grunt simply stood in front of it. I could see his skin flushing with ecstasy-okay, now I REALLY needed to get my mind out of the gutter. "Thresher maw," he said, right before the ground opened up all around us, spouting out the thresher's feelers.

"Get your heavy weapons out, if you have any," I instructed the others, taking out my own sniper rifle. It was time to put it to good use, and I didn't have any other powerful weapons, aside from the SMG, to use on the thresher maw right now.

I began to examine the weapon a bit, though I had already done that before. I could probably use it pretty well. . .or at least, I hoped I could. I glanced back out onto the battlefield, and sure enough, the feelers vanished and the huge thresher maw's head came up.

Grunt immediately began shooting at it. "Finally, an enemy worth fighting!"

Shepard held out one hand, her body trembling with biotic power, and she punched the air. A rippling effect crossed the open air and hit the thresher maw right in the throat, causing it to recoil in shock and anger. Grunt just laughed and began to charge, away from us, towards a pillar for cover.

And then Abby grabbed Shepard's grenade launcher off of her back. Mordin took one look at the arising situation, motioned for Abby to step aside, and handed it back to Shepard. "No," he simply said.

_Probably for the best._

I looked back at my sniper rifle, and got a good hold of it, before taking aim at the maw. It wasn't a hard target, considering how huge it was, but I wanted to hit it just righ-

Just in that instant, it fired at us, and we all scrambled to duck. The shot of whatever came out of that thing's mouth grazed right over our heads, barely missing us. It crashed not too far off, and screamed in our ears.

I looked at Shepard and Mordin. "Stay down," I instructed. "He's probably going to fire another one, before moving to another location."

They did so, and we heard another one crash, this one probably heading for Grunt. I glanced back up to see Grunt alive and well, enjoying this match as much as he could. The maw then ducked, and began to move through the ground. I carefully watched its path.

It popped up again, this time to the left, and I quickly pointed my sniper rifle at it. I took a few seconds getting a good aim, but knew that there was no time to waste now. Once I figured that I had a good enough shot, I fired.

It managed to hit it right near the mouth, and it seemed to groan slightly in pain. I almost wanted to cheer.

Shepard grabbed the grenade launcher and pulled the trigger, launching five grenades into the air. The thresher maw squealed in horrific agony as they exploded against its face, then retreated underneath the ground once more. "Going to circle around for another attack-be ready!" Mordin snapped, readying his omni-tool.

Grunt was still as eager as ever, and the seconds that had passed felt like long minutes. It popped up again, this time right across from us, and we all ducked once again as it took another shot at us. Luckily, again, it missed. Our heads snapped up, and I wasted no time in firing several more shots from the sniper rifle at it.

"We'd probably be dead if you hadn't found this spot," I whispered to Abby.

"We'd sure as heck be a lot smellier," she noted, giving a large, slimy pile of acidic spit next to her a disgusted look. It was currently eating through the metal floor beside us at a slow but steady pace. "And we'd probably look like Swiss Cheese."

What a delightful thought.

Shepard and Grunt were both pelting the thresher maw with attacks when they could, and Mordin also threw in a few of his own. It ducked and crawled around, then came back, several times over, and I got in some shots as well. We almost got hit once, and Grunt actually did get hit, but managed to survive.

"Think it's anywhere close to being done for?" I asked no one in particular.

"Uh. . ." Abby swallowed and ducked down quickly as another acidic streak passed close by. "I think we ticked it off!"

"Gee, you think?" I shouted sarcastically, peeking up. The others did as well, and Shepard fired several more grenades at it. I hoped that she had a lot more, but she was probably starting to run low.

I took a deep breath and simply fired another sniper shot at it.

"It's not going to get up close and take a bite, will it?" Shepard asked.

"Not that I know of," Abby answered honestly. "But those things are even bigger underneath the surface. I hope it doesn't start using its brain and realizes it."

"No," Mordin replied. "Did thresher maw research before arrival here. Generally do not ascend higher than 150 meters. . . give or take."

"Generally?" Abby asked in a high-pitched voice.

"Suggest you shoot and do research later!"

"Fine by me!" I happily obliged, shooting at it again right before it ducked down into the ground and started to crawl around again. I sighed, leaning down and looking around me. It looked like there was waste all around us. . .Abby was right, we probably would look like Swiss Cheese.

I heard it come out of the ground once again, and it took another shot at us. It missed, and I knew that we had to get this over with soon, so I looked up and prepared to fire.

However, I quickly learned that was the biggest possible mistake I could make.

I felt something large hit me right in the face, and I yelled out, feeling myself going flying backwards. I hit the hard wall, and even though everything was now blurry and distorted, I knew I was slumping down. Abby screamed.

A heavy object was suddenly covering me and I felt my body being moved around towards better cover. I opened my eyes are saw Mordin. "Shields down," he reported. "Nicked armor. You'll be fine."

Meanwhile, Abby was behind me, panting heavily for breath. "Owwww-ow-ow-ow-ow-ow!" she was gasping.

"Hold still, damn it!" Shepard was saying.

"It hurts! Why does stuff always happen to THIS WRIST?"

If this situation weren't so dire right now, I probably would have laughed at Abby's last sentence. My vision was clearing now, and I stood up. I felt a little shaky, but like Mordin said, I would be fine. I could see Shepard and Grunt hitting the maw with everything they had, and it looked to be in great pain. I just hoped it would die soon. Abby was sitting in a corner, abandoned by Shepard as she sat there and tried to put on a base salve to neutralize the acidic properties. "Friggin' asari kidnaps us-fine, no problem," she was grumbling. "Zaeed whamming me into a crate-suuuure, happens all the time." She looked up. "You good?" she demanded grumpily, pain very apparent on her face.

"I'm fine, I think," I assured her with a nod.

"All out of grenades," Shepard announced to us.

I felt my heart drop-_again_. All we had to do was survive, but I wasn't sure how close we were to being able to leave. We were all running low on ammo and effort, so we were becoming sitting duck-

"RAAHH!" Grunt suddenly yelled, and we all looked at him to see him fire a huge barrage of shots at the thresher maw. The maw screamed out, and started to slowly swing its head around. For a moment, I thought it was just going to go underground again, but instead it fell right over. Dead.

There was silence for a moment, and then Grunt began to chuckle. Shepard and Mordin didn't laugh, though they did look relieved as they holstered their weapons. Abby was chuckling, and she stood up to stand next to me, her hand covered in glossy orange medi-gel. Shepard came over to check her out, but Abby assured her that she was fine. "Now we just have to wait for that other guy," she remarked.

"I totally forgot about Uvenk," I muttered, not feeling in the mood at all to deal with him right now.

We all began to hop out of that convenient little hiding place, and I ran a hand through my hair. "Good job, Grunt, that was real good," I told the krogan, rather impressed, even though I knew he was powerful. "Uvenk will be here soon, though. Don't listen to him."

"Uvenk's a jerk," Abby said, which was her all-encompassing word for anybody who both killed and ate babies to somebody who cheated off of her in History class. "Better look around for some ammo before he arrives, he's brought a lot of people."

For a minute or so, we all re-loaded our weapons. There was quite a lot of ammo lying around, either randomly tossed out by krogan or old stuff from other krogan who didn't survive the Rite. I was almost amazed that anyone could, though krogan were very tough.

Finally, as we all were about ready, the ship flew over us, as if on cue.

"There they are," Grunt said, his dialogue slightly altered from the game, likely due to us telling him about Uvenk's timely arrival. "Good. I want more."

The ship landed, and Uvenk and his krogan piled out, their rifles armed and ready. We all silently stood, watching him carefully, as Uvenk climbed on a fallen pillar, or some kind of large, collapsed rock.

"You live, and you brought down the thresher maw. No krogan has done that in generations. Urdnot Wrex was the last. Sister Ethea Seer was the only human to ever kill one," Uvenk said.

I blinked. _Um. . .I won't ask._

"My krantt gave me strength beyond my genes," Grunt said, gesturing to us all, but especially Shepard. "Which are damned good."

Uvenk hopped off of the pillar, and walked right up to Grunt. "This will cause discussion. I wonder. . .you say you are pure? No alien meddling in your construction? Just the warlord Okeer?"

"The best krogan traits are distilled into Grunt. He's designed to be perfect," Shepard explained to Uvenk.

"_Being designed _is the problem," Uvenk argued calmly. Much calmer than he was at clan Urdnot. "But not made by aliens. And he is truly powerful. That is a tolerable loophole."

"A what?" Grunt growled, frustration growing, no doubt.

"A reason to accept you. You are mistake, but your potential could tip the current balance of the clans."

"You spit on my father's name!" Grunt exclaimed angrily. "On _Shepard's_ name! But now you start ranting because I'm strong?"

"With restrictions. You could not breed, of course. Or serve on an alien ship. But you'd be clan in name," Uvenk told Grunt.

"Your choice, Grunt. Sounds like an easy job," Shepard simply said.

"That's the problem," Grunt explained to our commander. "I'm pure krogan. Uvenk, _you_ are the pretender!"

Uvenk scowled. "You're head is valuable whether you're alive or dead!"

"Just try to take it," Grunt challenged, as we all drew our weapons.

"Time for _another_ fight," I muttered, jumping backwards with the other four of us as Uvenk and his cronies attacked.

Shepard pushed me down behind cover with her biotics and made an upward motion with her hand, throwing debris and rubble into the oncoming krogan. I ended up beside Abby, who was taking a bead on Uvenk with her sniper rifle. "Just a bit to the left," she muttered. She depressed the trigger, rocking back slightly with the recoil. She stared through the sights a second longer than she needed to before ducking down to reload.

Grunt, however, wasn't going to have any of that sniper nonsense. He and another krogan let out bloodcurdling yells and ran at each other at full tilt, heads forward and prepared for serious skull fractures.

_CRACK!_

Grunt charged right over the older, more war-weary krogan and knocked him on to his back-a vulnerable position. The krogan screamed out an obscenity just as Grunt's boot contacted with his throat, ending all further noises besides croaking and gurgling.

The krogan, still alive, was suddenly pulled from underneath the massive Grunt with an unseeable force. It rose in the air, still moving limply, and shot like a missile towards Shepard. Shepard counteracted it with her own biotics, raising both hands and stopping the thing's motion. Bullets tore into her shields as she, straining with the effort, fought Uvenk's power with her own. The krogan between them was soon turned into grinding mush.

The krogan's dead carcass suddenly shot away from Shepard as Uvenk's defenses gave, and I heard Abby say, quite clearly, "Nailed Uvenk!"

Grunt roared in approval.

"Still alive, just need one more shot!" Mordin yelled to us, glancing to Uvenk as he finished off one of the last krogan of Uvenk's group.

"I've got it," I assured them all, pointing my SMG at him, and seconds later, I sent an array of bullets his way. They all went right through the clan leader, and you could hear him groan in agony, before finally shutting up entirely.

_Finally, it's done. This entire mission is done._

And then a cold dose of reality set in-we wouldn't be done until we killed the rest of the krogan. Abby got up, having switched the sniper rifle for an assault rifle, and took her place next to Grunt at the head of our little krantt. Methodically they cut down the ones closest towards us as Shepard, Mordin, and I took care of the ones taking cover further behind.

"Left!" Mordin shouted. . . but not to us.

Abby glanced left a millisecond before a krogan charged into her, barreling her over with his unsurpassed weight. As they hit the ground I was about to fire, but Grunt beat me to the shot-with one single shot of his Claymore the young krogan ended the older one's life.

There were no more. It was over.

"Uuggggh! Somebody get this damn thing off of me!" Abby demanded, attempting to wriggle her way out from its mass.

Shepard and Grunt pulled the alien off of her and she gasped in a fresh lungful of air. A knife had been shoved into the krogan's jugular all the way up to the hilt. Grunt retrieved it and handed it to her. He was quivering with excitement. "Now that," he said softly, "was a fight." He looked out into the horizon with a hard, satisfied gaze.

"I agree," Shepard said. She gave both Abby and I strange, compassionate looks-something very uncommon for a woman like her. "You all did well. Let's head back." She held out her hand for Abby's knife, cleaned the blade on the krogan's clothes, and gave it back to her. "Pick up your weapons and move out!"

We all followed our orders, and I felt relief wash over me. I glanced at Abby. "Know how it feels to get tackled now, hmm?" I asked, a grin forming on my face.

"Hey, I found that out on Omega, remember?" she asked playfully, laughing. "I never want to go against Grunt, though-he's definitely the strongest krogan I've ever seen. Glad he's on our side. You did great."

"Uhh, yes, let's stick to everyone except him, or Shepard, for sparring back on the Normandy, and thanks. You did, too. Now let's get out of here," I told her, happily turning around and walking towards the others.

We all walked away and lived happily ever after until our next near-death experience.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

Only ten minutes after Abby, HK, Shepard, Mordin and Grunt left Urdnot camp in one of the trucks did I realize that I was bored. Completely and thoroughly bored. . . well, almost.

There was just absolutely nothing for me to do. Most of the krogan were either ignoring me or giving me looks that could kill. I couldn't really think of much to chit-chat about with Kasumi, and I felt too nervous to approach Wrex again. I had a feeling that I had sort of. . . gotten on his bad side, at least a little.

Still. . . I figured that it couldn't be too bad, since Shepard had vouched for me. But the fact that the krogan were only tolerating my presence because the famous (or infamous, in their case?) Shepard spoke on my behalf, didn't exactly make me feel warm and welcome here.

I was also pretty bored because there wasn't even anything I could do to help out around here, really. If I were on the Normandy I could have easily found something to do. Or if nothing else, Rupert would have told me to go do something if I was really looking for something to do with my hands. Around here I figured that many of the krogan would not be willing to accept my help for anything. And what could I do that they couldn't do themselves anyway?

After a few minutes of pondering, I suddenly got an idea. It was a long shot, and I would probably suck at it. . . but hey, anything was worth a try.

I smiled a little as I thought about what I was going to do. I slowly rose off of the metallic chunk of debris I had been sitting on-what it was, or what it was from, I had no way to guess-and began to slowly walk forward, a specific destination in mind.

I was vaguely aware that Kasumi had noticed me starting to walk, and she was beginning to follow. She matched my pace easily-especially since I was moving a tad sluggishly, uncertain about my destination.

I moved warily in the direction of the krogan with the feisty varren-the one that looked as though it wanted to rip any stranger who walked by to shreds, especially humans. Or maybe that was just my imagination.

"Watch it, human," its krogan master growled as he tightened his grip on the varren's collar, stopping it just before it could lunge at me. I found myself taking a hasty step back-and I stepped on the toe of Kasumi's shoe. I hadn't realized I was that close to her. "Sorry," I muttered.

"Where are we going?" she asked.

I forgot my momentary sheepishness when that mean varren snarled again. "Eyes straight ahead," the krogan holding onto it growled. I forced myself to turn away from them and I dashed forward, moving past them both.

"Of course," Kasumi said cheerfully, and saluted him.

I shook my head slightly at Kasumi as I continued walking. After going another few meters, I approached krogan who stood near a large, mounted gun and a console to control it.

I walked up slowly and cautiously behind him. . . taking care to make sure I didn't get too close. I made sure there was about six or seven feet between me and him before I spoke. "Um. . . hello?" I said in a loud, clear voice-if a bit timid.

The large, towering krogan slowly turned to regard me. He squinted at me through narrowed eyes. "Bah, it's one of Shepard's underlings," he rumbled. "Look, human. I only tolerate your presence because Urdnot Wrex has ordered me to. That doesn't mean I have to speak to you." He pointedly turned to face the console again-whatever he was doing.

"Hey, you're having trouble with those monkey things, aren't you? They're getting into your food, right?" I asked.

The krogan captain glanced at me again, then seemed to shrug indifferently. "Yes, we are." I knew that he wasn't indifferent about the problem. It was just that my knowing about the problem, and stating it aloud, did not help or change anything about the said problem. At least to him.

"Maybe I could help," I said with a little shrug of my own. Hey, so I had trouble hitting targets on the Normandy and I nearly got killed on Haestrom. Surely there was no way I could do any harm here-except to those pesky monkeys.

"Oh here we go," Kasumi muttered.

I ignored Kasumi. I kept my eyes focused on the krogan captain. "What do you say?"

He looked me over as though sizing me up-or perhaps trying to determine if he really wanted to let a human woman touch the controls. Finally he stepped aside. "Well, Urdnot Wrex told me that you're an excellent tactician. I'm not sure if a human can hit a target that small, but. . ." he snorted. "If you want to try, be my guest."

I flashed him a grin and then stepped up to the controls. Apparently Shepard's little exaggeration about my abilities had scored me some points somewhere, at the very least. I just hoped I wouldn't screw this up.

Of course the first thing I had to do was get the captain to show me how to operate the console. This seemed to annoy him, but mostly he seemed to pass it off as the fact that I've never touched a krogan console before. . . which was true enough.

Finally I felt I was ready. . . more or less. I then peered into the targeting thingy and made my fingers hover over the controls, waiting for one of those monkey things to appear into my scope. If I could hit at least one of them, well. . . I'm sure that would be great.

"Looks. . . interesting," Kasumi allowed.

Finally one of those critters came into my view through the scope. My fingers twitched, getting ready to press the firing control. . . but then I hesitated.

I could see the monkey-creature very clearly through the scope. Every detail of its furry little body, its long tail curled up behind it, its cute little face with large eyes and round ears that enhanced its face. . . This was nothing like what I had seen in the Mass Effect game. There, they looked kind of bland and "meh" to me. But here. . . I swear they were as adorable as kittens.

How could anyone possibly have the heart to kill one of these?

The little creature seemed to stare at me through the scope for a moment-even though I knew for a fact that it really couldn't see me. I swear it locked eyes for me a moment, putting me under a spell with its adorableness, then it scurried on toward its destination.

I pulled back from the console and shook my head, looking toward the krogan captain. "Sorry, I just can't do it," I finally said. "They are too cute!"

Kasumi placed a hand on my shoulder and guided me away from the systems. She gave the krogan a meaningful look, like 'I get this every day.' "Come on, Sarah, let's go wait for your friends," she said.

I allowed her to guide me away from the console and the big gun. But after we'd gone a short ways away I turned to look at her. "I want one of those monkeys," I said with a grin growing across my face. "They are SO cute! I'll take good care of it, I promise!"

"Uh, that's going to be a no," Kasumi said. "I know they're cute and all, but we're not having one of those on a ship."

I turned to look at Kasumi with a small frown. "I'll take care of it and look after it," I told her. Of course, I knew that I should probably be pleading with Shepard if I was going to plead with anyone at all. But Shepard wasn't here right now. Besides. . . I figured that maybe if I could convince Kasumi, I might also have a chance of convincing Shepard. Because then I'd have the ninja-woman on my side.

"I had a pet back home," I told her. "I still do, in fact-he's probably waiting for me even as we speak. But I'd really like to have a pet again. Please?"

"This isn't up to me, but I don't think Shepard would be on board with that," Kasumi told me, not looking very fond of my little idea. "I know I've made my own quarters more homely than anyone, but this is a ship that's fighting a war. Not a relaxing house."

Well I couldn't exactly argue with her there. Although sometimes-especially since I spent most of my time cleaning, cooking, and talking to people-well. . . it was actually easy for me to forget sometimes that people actually went out and put their lives at risk on a regular basis.

Especially since. . . like I had told Thane, they always came back. It was easy to take that for granted. . . and it was less of an emotional strain to simply push the bad stuff out of my mind, like what happened on Haestrom. And to just focus on the ship and believe that everything was just hunky-dory.

Maybe I just wanted a pet because. . . well, it would help enhance the illusion that everything was just carefree and easy, as if the universe only revolved around me, the people I chit-chatted with, and my duties as janitor and assistant cook.

"Maybe the crew would like it," I said with a small shrug. "Besides, it would be easier than a varren, I bet."

"A thresher maw is better than a Reaper, but would you get it as a pet?" Kasumi asked simply.

I blinked. "Um. . . no," I said simply. "But hey a monkey wouldn't be all THAT bad. . . would it?"

"Well, it would be wild. You may not be able to keep it under control like you would a simple cat or dog," Kasumi explained to me. "It could run around wildly, and if it causes trouble for _krogan_, what kind of trouble could it cause for the crew on the Normandy? And if it did cause trouble, who would get blamed for it?"

Well. . . she had me there. "Okay," I said with a reluctant shrug, looking down toward the ground. "Forget I said anything, okay?"

"I'm sorry, Sarah," Kasumi told me, a sincerity definitely in her voice. "But there are just some things that we can't have, or do. Not at a time like this."

I nodded in her direction. "Yeah I know, trust me." I shoved my hands into my pockets and began to walk forward in the direction we were facing. I was so lost in my own thoughts-just thinking about the subject of pets, and my mind bouncing between thoughts of the Reapers and Collectors-when suddenly a fierce growl caused me to snap back to an awareness of my surroundings. I hadn't even realized I'd gotten near that growling varren, and now his krogan master was snapping at me to stay back.

I took a hasty step backward-a bit too hastily. I ended up stumbling over my own foot and I fell down on the ground. I grimaced as I felt the impact absorbed through my tailbone. Ow.

Kasumi rushed to my side, crouching down beside me. "Sarah, are you alright?" she asked, alarmed.

"What a disgrace," the krogan growled. "We hear about Shepard and her greatness, and this is what she brings on her team? What position do you have on her crew, you bumbling idiot?"

I grabbed onto Kasumi's arm with my hand, half-hauling myself up, half-allowing her to pull me up. I then brushed the dusty sand off of my pants, patting at the material to get as much of it off as I could.

Then I turned to scowl at the krogan. I knew I wasn't exactly the most competent fighter or whatever, but I was getting tired of being looked down on by some people. Or maybe I was just getting tired of feeling like the only things I was good at were housework type things.

"Hey I have my place on Shepard's crew," I snapped.

"Let's not get into this," Kasumi muttered to me.

"As what? The _janitor_?" the krogan snorted.

That was when I lost my temper. And it was probably the worst possible moment for me to lose it, as I would definitely realize and acknowledge later. I took a step toward the krogan and made myself ignore the fierce snarl from the vicious varren that wanted nothing more than to take a chomp out of me-and worse.

I said nothing-I simply picked up a handful of sand and threw it at the krogan's face-right into his eyes.

"Okay, Sarah, it's time to leave!" Kasumi yelled, immediately grabbing my hand.

However, before we could go anywhere, the krogan immediately roared in fury, grabbing his gun out, and he charged at me, running straight towards me. The varren was also now loose, and was charging at me at full speed, as well.

I cried out-the sound that escaped my throat was something between a scream and a yelp. I thought I saw Kasumi moving out of the corner of my eye-then I didn't see her anywhere. I didn't know where she went.

I turned around and began to run, knowing that my pursuers were right on my tail, so to speak. I heard a yell behind me accompanied by what sounded like a shout from Kasumi-it sounded like she was dealing with the krogan. Later, when I had more time to think about this, I would deduce that she had used her cloaking device to sneak up on him and tackle him. But right now I couldn't think-I was too busy running and breathing hard.

Thanks to Kasumi the krogan did not catch up to me, but the ferocious varren did. Its jaws snapped at me from behind-though thankfully it missed my leg. The edge of his teeth slashed across the very back of my leg, simply tearing through the skin just a little and ripping off a piece of fabric.

Then in the next instant, the jaws hit their mark-the back of my boot. It clamped down on my ankle and yanked with enough effort to cause me to stumble and fall into the dirt. I had to spit dust out of my mouth and wipe some of it out of my eyes.

The varren tightened his grip on my boot then made a ripping motion with his head, obviously intent on taking a chunk on me. Well, at least these were very thick boots. And thankfully, I didn't need the boot as much as I needed my foot anyway. This allowed me to slip my foot out of the boot-not an easy thing to do-and leave Fido with it hanging in his mouth as I scrambled to my feet.

It took him only a split-second to realize what had happened and he lunged at me again. Somehow I managed to react quickly enough so that I was able to jump to one side-and then I did the only thing I could think to do. As he jumped forward-toward the spot where I had been a second ago-I simply twisted around and lunged at him. I wasn't quite sure what I was doing-I was just trying to keep away from that snapping mouth of his. I ended up somehow falling onto his back, flinging my arms around his neck, and hanging on for dear life. I also let myself go as limp as possible, hoping to weigh him down with my full body weight.

"ENOUGH!" a voice boomed, and before anything more could happen, I looked up to see Urdnot Wrex himself standing before all four of us, his rifle in hand. A few krogan stood behind him. "You'll all be dead if this doesn't end right now."

I was so startled I nearly lost my grip on the varren. It seemed to be partially hindered by my weight, though I was still having a hard time keeping its teeth away from my person. "Well tell that to him!" I half shouted, half squeaked as the varren swung his head around, trying to take a chomp out of my shoulder.

A few of the krogan behind Wrex came over, and one literally kicked me off of the varren, and then they proceeded to get him under control, while the krogan that had charged at me came over, Kasumi at his side.

"All of this is over," Wrex said. He looked at me and Kasumi. "You two, come with me. The rest of you go back to your daily duties."

Ow. Now I no longer cared about the bruise I'd gotten on my forehead earlier or my sore. . . backside. Now all I cared about was the pain in my side where I'd been kicked. I could tell nothing was broken-at least I was pretty sure nothing was broken-but I was definitely going to have a big bruise there. I grimaced as I pushed myself up on all fours-Kasumi had to help me up. The odd angle I had landed has apparently caused me to twist my ankle as well; I could still walk, just with a bit of a limp.

Still, it wasn't as bad as it would have been if I had let that varren get a hold of me with its teeth.

I looked at Kasumi as we followed Wrex back toward his throne-thingy. "Um. . . what do you think will happen?" I asked her in a whisper.

"I'm not sure, I've never dealt with a krogan clan leader before, but hopefully Shepard returns soon," Kasumi whispered back to me, rather calmly. "Oh, and a piece of advice: Don't upset anyone, much less a krogan."

Wrex sat down on his throne, and we were now right in front of him, like Shepard usually was when she was in front of him. He looked at me curiously. "I don't see how anyone can be on Shepard's team but have such a lack of smarts," he commented.

"I'm unique," I said simply. Well, THAT was true enough. Under normal circumstances, someone like me would never be on the Normandy at all. I absent-mindedly wipe some more grit out of my face.

"There's a difference between being unique and just plain stupid," Wrex retorted. "If Shepard was around, you could take him and the varren. But to do that all alone, except for one person? You need to learn some more about krogan and Tuchanka. He must have pissed you off real good."

"Well he insulted me," I said. "And all I did was throw dirt in his face. Was that any reason for him to charge at me?" Maybe I could simply try and turn the tables here and get off easily, hopefully.

"He's a krogan. It's what krogan do," Wrex explained to me. "I'd think that if you knew Grunt, then you would know that most krogan that have hit puberty are like him. That's what makes throwing dirt in his face such a stupid thing to do."

I shrugged a little. Hey, I was safe-for the moment, at least-and I was alive. I could feel my side hurting, my ankle, and the back of my leg where the varren had hit me-and my clothes were tattered, dirty, and had a few rips and tears. I also still had dirt in my eyes and up my nose as well. I just wanted to go sit down somewhere and stay out of sight.

"Point taken," I finally said. "So. . . um, is there anything else?" I forced myself to look him directly in the eyes. And I noticed how big. . . and dark red. . . his eyes really were.

"I'll let you off the hook because you are part of Shepard's team, and she must see something in you that causes her to keep you around," Wrex told me firmly. "But if you cause any more trouble, you won't make it off of Tuchanka."

I nodded a little. "Yeah well. . . I figure I already look like something the varren dragged in," I said, attempting to inject a little humor into the situation. Of course, I didn't feel like laughing.

Wrex didn't laugh, either.

I took a step back. I had to look away-that intense gaze of his was too much for me. "So uh. . ." What was I supposed to say? "I'm sorry," I finally blurted out. Hey, it was better than nothing.

Wrex did laugh, that time. "You don't need to apologize. Just watch yourself, or you'll be dead. That's a guarantee."

I bobbed my head again. "Can I go now? I. . . need to call Shepard," I said. I was using that as an excuse to try and end this conversation. . . and I figured that if I called the Commander on my omni-tool and told her at least a little about this. . . maybe, um, she wouldn't be QUITE as angry when she and the others got back.

I assumed that the Rite of Passage was hopefully over by now. . . at least almost over, perhaps. Part of my mind flashed to HK and Abby, hoping they were alright. Then again, they were always alright, so I was confident that they were.

If anything I was more worried about what they all would think when they got back. What would they say? What would Shepard say? I knew she was going to give me a lecture. Then of course. . . well, what would Mordin say?

Well. . . maybe I could talk Mordin into give me a quick exam or something after they all got back. Maybe that would buy me a little time. Besides. . . I wanted to make sure I was truly okay. And the varren DID bite me on the back of my left leg. . . I wanted to make sure I wouldn't get sick with varren germs or something.

Wrex nodded slowly. "Just don't cause any more trouble."

Kasumi looked at me. "Call Shepard? Are you sure about that? She's not going to be happy about this, and she may be in the middle of the Rite of Passage, and that sounds deadly," she pointed out.

"I'll just. . . try to signal her. If she doesn't answer after five seconds, I'll just assume she's busy," I said. Then I raised my omni-tool and attempted to make the call.

"Shepard," Shepard's voice said after a couple seconds.

Suddenly I wasn't sure whether to be relieved or really scared. And I wasn't even face-to-face with her yet. I think I felt my face blanch.

"Uh. . . how are you? Everybody okay?" Sure, Sarah, make this sound like a social call at first. At least it would make you feel better.

"We just got done with Grunt's mission. We're on our back way now, is everything alright at Clan Urdnot?" Shepard asked, very straight-forward.

I gulped. And I was grateful the sound was inaudible. Well, at least everybody was okay. . . though I knew in my gut they would be anyway. For some reason I felt confident that everybody and everything would be okay up until the suicide mission. Maybe it was due to those strange dreams I'd been having sometimes, but. . . for some reason it just seemed like that was kind of iffy.

"Uh. . .." My throat closed up. I was certain that this was exactly how a little kid on the way to the principal's office felt.

I heard an audible sigh. "What did you do?"

I cleared my throat and coughed. "Nothing much, I just uh. . . threw some dirt at a krogan." I stopped.

There was a brief pause. ". . .and what did this krogan do to you?"

Even if it wasn't such a good idea. . . I decided to try my stupid attempt at humor again. "Well. . .. let's just say that I look like something the varren dragged in." I forced a chuckle-it sounded more like a cough than anything.

"And just how bad do you look?" Shepard inquired, emotionless.

If this had been a more casual time and place, I might have thought that she probably would have impressed a Vulcan with that tone. "Well. . . I have a few injuries, but I think I'm okay. I might have varren germs, though."

"Mordin will examine you once we return," Shepard simply told me. "For now, report to the shuttle and don't leave."

I actually felt my heart sink a little. I was glad she wasn't yelling at me or giving me a stern lecture-yet, anyway-but I didn't really want to stay on the shuttle for the rest of this mission. "Can't I just wait here? I'm near Wrex's throne," I pleaded quietly.

"No."

. . .How was it that that one monosyllable could send a shiver down my spine?

"Okay," I said simply. I glanced at Kasumi. "Um, can Kasumi come with me at least?"

"Yes, you both can return to the shuttle until further notice. Just don't do anything else. . .we still have one mission to complete here, and I'd rather not get Tuchanka too pissed at us beforehand," Shepard explained to me, and I wasn't sure whether it was a joke or her being serious.

"I'll stay in the shuttle, promise." I terminated the connection-and I hoped that that wouldn't be deemed as rude. I found myself glancing toward Kasumi, suddenly feeling a little paranoid. "Do you think that was rude of me? Or too abrupt? Will she be upset?"

. . .Why was I babbling?

"Sarah, I think Shepard will just be glad to have you in the shuttle," Kasumi told me, a small smile forming on her face as she gestured for us to start walking.

"Yeah," I muttered as we started to walk. "Well," I said out loud with a sigh, "I think I know one thing for certain, right now."

"And that is?" Kasumi asked.

"Shepard is NEVER going to let me off the ship again, for anything at all, after this."

"Can't argue with that logic," Kasumi admitted, nodding slightly. "But ah well, at least you'll always have the Normandy, and were there really anymore interesting places that we'd be visiting? Ones that you'd want to explore, I mean."

I had to think about that. "Not really," I finally said, narrowing my eyes as I thought it over. Besides. . . anyone I wanted to talk to, I could just talk to them on the ship. I wanted to meet Legion, but I could easily wait until Shepard activated him, once we got him.

"Good, then at least you got to see one last piece of scenery," Kasumi said happily.

"Yep," I said. Well, I had that, at least. Besides, the Normandy was the safest place, overall. . . at least until the Collector attack happened.

I decided to shove that thought aside, at least for now. I'd been dwelling on it too much lately anyway. Instead I asked Kasumi something that just popped into my head. "Hey. . . when Mordin examines me. . . is he gonna make me take off my clothes?"

"I am no scientist, but I wouldn't know. But varren bites can be a big deal," Kasumi replied. "I've heard that they can release an odd scale itch to everyone in an infected person's vicinity. . ."

"Ewwwww," I said, scrunching my eyes shut in a deep wince.

"Ah well. Unless one of your visions included a scale itch being spread around on the Normandy, I'm sure you'll be fine," Kasumi assured me.

We were nearing the shuttle. I tried to ignore the looks of the krogans as we walked up to it. A couple minutes later we were inside. I plopped myself down on one of the seats and rolled up my pant leg to look at the bite. Okay, so it was a little worse than I'd thought. . . or maybe it was just the blood mixed with a caked later of dirt that made it look icky.

"I wonder how I'd look in a mirror right now," I muttered.

"You don't look that bad," Kasumi told me.

I looked at her. "Thanks, I guess," I said. Then I pointed at the small wound on the back of my leg. "What about this, though?" I asked, looking for a second opinion.

"Doesn't look good, but I am sure Mordin or someone can get it fixed up. Really, it is the kind of stuff that everyone else on the ground crew gets on every mission that they go on. It's bound to happen, even to a ship crew member, at some point."

"Hmm, yeah."

All conversation simply died there. I leaned back against the backrest of the seat and half-closed my eyes, trying to relax and allow the time to slip by more quickly.

I wasn't sure how much time passed when I suddenly heard footsteps coming into the shuttle, and Kasumi offering a greeting-or an acknowledgement-to a newcomer's presence. I was too zoned out to understand the words. I snapped my eyes open and saw that Mordin had entered. This caused me to sit up straighter. He looked a little worse for the wear, but okay, as always.

"Hi Mordin," I greeted quietly. My voice sounded raspy and I realized that my throat was a little dry. I hadn't realized I was so thirsty.

"Hello. Must hurry, may head out for own mission too, but should have enough time to tend to wound," Mordin said cheerily, leaning down beside me. He looked at the wound on the back of my leg. "Will start here. Any other injuries not visible?"

"Well my side still hurts like hell," I said, indicating my left side. "A krogan kicked me," I added with a hint of indignation.

"Ah, understand pain," Mordin said, grabbing a kit and immediately taking out disinfection spray. He started spraying it on the wound on my leg, beginning to work on cleaning it up.

"So. . . I'm gonna live, right?" I just hoped he wouldn't make me take off my clothes. I still had bad memories of what happened after I drank that ryncol. Kelly had seen me topless, not to mention Joker and EDI. Well, at least I was wearing decent underwear this time.

"Of course! Perhaps small side effects, but overall will be fine. Just be more careful in future, if you ever leave Normandy again," Mordin replied with a chuckle.

"Thanks," I muttered. "As soon as you're done. . . I think I'll just go to sleep for a while," I added. It would definitely help pass the time more quickly.


	31. The Salarian Scientist

**(Sarah)**

I had to admit that I felt much better after Mordin cleaned up my leg injury and gave me some painkillers. Then Kasumi helped me get cleaned up a little, and after that I simply dozed off for a while.

I woke up sometime later. When I glanced at my omni-tool I realized that I had been sleeping for a little over an hour. Well, at least I felt better rested... and my side didn't hurt quite as badly. I still felt it, especially when I touched the tender area. But whatever medicine Mordin had given me had apparently worked.

I sat up, yawned, and stretched. Then I looked around. To my surprise the shuttle seemed to be completely empty. I blinked a few times, wondering if I was dreaming or simply seeing things. Where was Kasumi? Or anyone, really? Surely Shepard would have left someone in the shuttle with me.

I slowly stood and glanced around again. Then I checked the back of the shuttle, and then the cockpit, but I saw no one. Well, I guess Kasumi just had to go see Shepard about something-or maybe Shepard decided I wouldn't leave the shuttle at all, and had summoned Kasumi to be with her or something. I couldn't be sure.

At first I simply returned to my seat and sat down, taking care not to make my bruises hurt anymore than they already did. Despite the pain medication-which was helping a great deal-they still stung a bit.

But sitting there staring at the opposite wall-or out the windows of the boring, unless wasteland of Tuchanka's dirt and dust, or the docking port which could be seen out the opposite window-got very boring very fast. And I didn't even have my CD player with me.

Come to think of it, I hadn't even used that thing in eons... which was weird, considering how much I loved music, and how much it helped me relax.

Finally I stood up and glanced around again. Once I double-checked-and triple-checked-to make certain that no one was around, I decided to chance it. I opened the door and stepped out, setting my feet on the ground. A harsh but chilling breeze whipped across me, sending sand swirling around me and making my clothes all the more dirty. As if they weren't dust-covered enough.

I squinted my eyes shut and waited for the wind to ease down. Then I pressed forward, moving away from the shuttle and focusing straight ahead. I refused to make eye-contact with any of the krogans and I did my best to ignore them thoroughly. That seemed to work best.

As I walked, I began to think. Hey, I did some of my best thinking while I was walking or cleaning. I began to think... well, after all of this was over, Shepard was probably never going to let me off the ship again. And part of me still wanted to try and prove myself... somehow or other. Sure I was a dandy janitor and cleaner, but... surely there was something else I could be good at as well.

Not fighting, though. Let's face it; I sucked at it. Big time. But... surely there were other ways to try and get things done besides helping out around the ship with duties that basically included doing anything that fell between the cracks, as Rupert put it.

But what, exactly? What was it that Shepard did, besides fighting, that made people follow her and admire her?

Then it came to me. And of course it was oh-so-simple, and totally obvious. She was a keen diplomat. She had a way of understanding people-even people outside her own race-and convincing them to do the right thing. Sometimes she did it through charming people, sometimes by being blunt or firm. Maybe even intimidating.

Well, I had no doubt that I was NOT intimidating. Especially not after what happened earlier. But... maybe I could try my hand at charming a krogan, or at least being diplomatic? Hell... maybe if I could try do to something right, just once... maybe I could actually try and make things easier for Shepard and the others instead of making them more difficult.

Maybe... I could offer the one thing I did have to offer-information-in exchange for a way to soften the way toward where Mordin's former student was being held. Of course I wasn't stupid; I would try my best to leave Mordin's student for Shepard and Mordin to deal with themselves. After all... I had to leave some things for them to deal with.

I just knew that I would have to move quickly... and I would have to make certain Shepard, HK, Abby, Kasumi, Grunt and Mordin did not spot me.

I did my best to sneak my way through the building to the other side of it. I then saw the little rise in the distance where I knew Wrex's throne was, but that was the very last place I wanted to go. Because for all I knew, Shepard might be there, or at the very least Wrex might mention to Shepard that he'd seen me out.

So instead I headed off in another direction-I decided to look for that merchant krogan whom I remembered from the game. The one with the friendly varren whose name I couldn't remember. Eh, for that matter I couldn't remember the krogan's name either.

I recognized them both when I saw what appeared to be a kiosk and a console sitting at the back of a little area behind a krogan and a friendly-looking varren. I hesitated at first, especially since I had been attacked by a varren not long ago. But in the end I found myself bending down and petting the friendly varren on the head, even talking to it in the cutesy way I talked to my cat back home sometimes.

"Do you need to buy something, human?" the krogan asked curiously.

I glanced up. I suddenly felt a little embarrassed for talking to the varren in such a silly manner in front of him; but I quickly brushed it aside as I stood up.

"Hi," I said, taking a step toward the krogan. I knew I'd done the right thing in approaching this krogan. I didn't remember much about this guy, but I did know that he was friendlier toward aliens because he hoped to sell things to anyone. "Yeah I might be interested in something, depending on what you have," I said thoughtfully. "And then I might be able to offer you something."

"Better be credits," he muttered. "I don't have much for aliens, but I guess there's always something around."

"Tell me what you have in the way of weapons," I requested with a smile. I figured if I bought something myself, I'd have an excuse to keep it on my person. Hey, the worst that would happen was that Shepard would just take it away from me later.

"Aren't you the janitor?"

I managed not to grimace. I kept the smile on my face instead, with some effort. "Yeah, so?" I said it in what I hoped was a "What's your point?" tone of voice.

The krogan shrugged. "Not what I'd expect from someone like you, but hell, if your creds are good, I've got a couple things you might like," he replied.

"Got any grenades?"

He shook his head. "Sorry, not right now. That's for heavy weaponry that I don't have, anyway."

I sighed inwardly. Well, there went that idea. "Okay... what do you have?"

"A few standard rifles and pistols. Nothing special, but your average, everyday weapons that'll keep you alive on Tuchanka. If you know how to work 'em."

"I'll take the smallest pistol you have... and give me some extra ammo as well," I said. Hey, it was better than nothing. And maybe I would figure out how to use it. "Um, how much is this all going to cost?" I asked, digging out my credit chit.

"375," the krogan replied simply.

Well considering I still had a considerable amount of credits that was almost like paying pocket change. "Okay I'll pay it," I said, but then I hesitated. "Hey, do you have anything along the lines of knives or swords?"

"A standard knife, yeah," he told me, holding his hand out for the credits.

"How much will the total be, if you give me a knife as well?" I asked, tightening my grip on my chit.

"400."

"Fine," I nodded, and handed over the credit chit. "In fact, just because I'm feeling generous... go ahead and take 500." Hey, I figured if couldn't hurt to try and get on his good side.

"Okay," he said simply, seeming a bit surprised, but he took it anyway. He then began to hand over my new belongings. "Thanks for your purchases today."

"No thank you," I said, feeling a bit giddy at the prospect of owning my own weapons. The knife was a bit big by human standards, obviously meant for a krogan to use. But hey, the bigger the better. I was able to hang it from my belt, and then I simply slipped the pistol in one pocket and the ammo in another.

"Hey I don't suppose you have any human armor?" I asked suddenly. Of course, I already expected the answer to be no; they didn't exactly make it a habit to cater to aliens here.

"This is Tuchanka, not the damn Citadel," the krogan replied with a snort.

"I figured," I said with a nod. "Okay, thank you." I slipped my credit chit back into my pocket, double-checked to make sure my purchases were secure, and then I looked at him again. "Okay... now I have something I want to offer you, and I'd like to make a deal if we can." Somehow I was starting to feel more comfortable around this krogan-more so than I did around any other krogan, at least.

The krogan gave me a strange and confused look. "What? I'm not making armor for you, human. I've got better crap to do."

"No I don't want armor," I said with a gesture of dismissal at the idea. Well, actually I would have preferred to have some armor, of course. But that wasn't what I wanted to talk to him about.

I made a show of looking all around, partly to make absolutely certain that Shepard and the others were nowhere in sight, and partly because I wanted to try and pique his interest. Then I took a step toward him and leaned forward, toward his ear-or where I thought his ear was, at least. "I have... information that you might find interesting."

He snorted. "What information would _I_ find interesting?"

I decided to say just enough to get straight to the point, yet only whet his appetite to hear more of what I had to say at the same time. "I know that clan Weyrloc is working on a cure for the genophage, and when they succeed, they're gonna overthrow all of the other clans... including Urdnot."

The krogan was silent for a quick moment, but he did speak again. "So go to Wrex about that."

I shook my head, eager to press the issue. "No, because I want YOUR help."

"You really must be a dumbass. You throw dirt into a krogan's face, and then you come to a _shopkeeper _asking him to help you bring down another clan. Stop bullshitting me, what do you really want?" the krogan asked, sounding slightly irritated.

I took a step back, and then I took a moment to carefully consider my next words. I was going to try and play the diplomat or whatever, right? I wanted to be persuasive with my words. So I had to sound intelligent... and I had to make sure I sounded like I knew what I was talking about.

"Well for one thing," I said as I folded my arms, "I figured that you were a krogan no matter what your job is. I thought that that meant you knew how to fight and how to make a difference like any other krogan... unless the only thing you know how to do is stand around and exchange things for credits." I forced myself to look him in the eye, silently demanding an answer to that.

I thought I heard a small noise behind me, but I was too focused on convincing him to pay attention, and it was probably nothing.

"So you're telling me you want me to break your neck, right?" the krogan asked.

That wasn't exactly what I wanted him to say, but at least I knew I had his attention... I just had to make sure we were on the right track. I took a moment to consider my next words. "Heh," I finally said. "You know all about what happened back there, between me and that varren. If you're really a fighter-and if you're as tough and capable as I think you are-breaking my bones would probably be as satisfying as breaking a broomstick in two."

I paused, letting those words sink in for a moment, and then I went on before he could speak. "Come on, think about it. If you help out your clan, you'll gain a lot of respect... and so will I." Now I decided to risk things a bit and throw in a bit of honesty, because I knew he still wanted to know what I wanted out of this. "I need some way to show Shepard I can still help and get things done, one way or another. That I'm not just a trouble-maker or a janitor."

The krogan groaned. "You know what? Fine. If it will get you to shut up and stop whining about not having any damn respect, then I'll help you. And if they take out clan Urdnot, my business is done, so I'll do it."

I couldn't help but grin. "Do you have a krantt?" I asked hopefully.

The krogan pointed at the varren.

...Why was I not surprised?

"Well, now you've got me too," I said, squaring my shoulders. "I'm sure I can... help out a bit. If nothing else, um... I can play decoy, maybe?" I hated the uncertainty and tepidness I suddenly heard in my voice. But I couldn't help it; I still had bad, vivid memories of Haestrom.

"Wait just a damn minute here," the krogan grumbled. "Do you want me to go out and fight Clan Weyrloc while you sit and eat popcorn?"

I stiffened. I forced myself to think hard about what it would mean if I managed to do something right for once, somehow-it might make everyone forget that stupid incident where I left the bridge with a nosebleed during a crucial moment... among other things. I then forced myself to show some spunk.

"No," I said, making myself take a step toward him. "In fact I'll lead the way into the place, and I'll take point all the way." I jabbed a finger against his chest plate to emphasize my words.

...And then I swallowed when it sunk in what I had just promised.

The krogan laughed. "A janitor, a krogan, and a varren taking on an entire clan on some random human's claims. It'll sure be a sight, so let's not waste any more time and haul our asses out of here."

"Let's go," I huffed, making a show of brushing past him. I began to march my way in the direction of the trucks.

Okay... just stay calm, I told myself. Somehow... I was sort of finding it a little easier, at least for the moment. I simply allowed myself to slip into sort of a... careless mentality. The kind of mind frame I slipped into when I was performing mundane tasks-the same mind frame I'd trained myself to slip into over the past few months while my friends went out into danger. Just sort of a "nothing bad will happen" kind of willful ignorance.

...I just seriously hoped I would be able to keep it up. No don't think about that... just stay in it, I told myself. That way... maybe I could actually pull this off and keep my promise. And if I went down... maybe I wouldn't care.

We all boarded his truck. He stepped in first, and then let the varren and myself on. He sat down in the driver's seat, and gestured for me to take a seat in a passenger's seat.

I had to sort of swing myself up into the seat he indicated, and then I strapped myself in. I was trying to make myself not care about anything, but some sense of self-preservation seemed to kick in just a little. After all... my desire to survive the Collectors kept bugging me consistently; so my worry over surviving this would bug me no matter what in this case too, at least somewhat.

"You got something I can use for armor, or at least a shield?" I found myself asking as I settled into the seat. "Maybe even just a chunk of debris I can hold in front of myself as a small shield?"

"Nope. What you have is what you get," the krogan replied, shaking his head as he began to activate the truck's engines.

Before I could have any sort of reaction, out of the blue, the krogan's varren jumped up into my seat and decided to plop himself on top of me.

I grunted a bit-a varren was a bit heavy to sit on a mere human's lap. But... he wasn't all that heavy... I supposed. I simply allowed myself to be squished back in the seat and I put my arms around the scaly critter to try and keep him still. "Okay," I said in a strained tone, "we're looking for a hospital building, I believe. If you're not sure where it is, I think the captain might know where it is. He'll know what you're talking about if you mention a captured salarian, and his missing scout."

"...you're even crazier than I thought. We're driving out of Urdnot in a truck, not right back into it."

"Just look for the hospital," I grunted-then I couldn't talk anymore. The varren pressed himself against me, apparently trying to get comfortable.

The truck ride seemed to take forever. I knew I was getting a cramp in my injured leg, and the stupid varren was making it hard to breathe at times. If I could have yelped for joy when we finally came to a stop, I totally would have. If the creature's shoulder wasn't pressed against my windpipe.

"Here we go. Come on," the krogan motioned to both of us, standing. The varren finally jumped off of me, following as he opened the exit to the truck. The exit that would send us out on the battlefield.

I took a deep breath and stepped out. I had to massage my leg a little to ease the cramp-and then my other leg was protesting because my circulation had been cut off. It took me another few moments to wait for the feeling of pins and needles to subside. And I was aware of the krogan looking at me impatiently. I wondered when he was going to tell me to keep my promise and take point... although part of me hoped he wouldn't.

"You really are a janitor," he remarked with a snort.

I glared at him. "I'm gonna show I'm more than that, one way or another," I muttered as I began to move forward, forcing my legs to cooperate. I was limping a little, but it eased quite a bit as I kept going. I took my pistol from my pocket and looked at it. Then I grabbed a thermal clip from my pocket and examined it carefully.

"Okay, I think it just slides in here like this-OW!" I almost dropped the clip when it pinched against my fingers as I attempted to shove it into the gun.

The krogan laughed, and then stared at me for a long moment. "Okay, listen: Do you really wanna do this? You are going up against an entire clan of krogan...if you get hurt just putting a clip in your gun, then this won't be good for you."

"No I wanna do this," I said through gritted teeth. I NEEDED to do this. This was going to be my final test for myself, to see if I would stand a chance when the Collectors attacked the Normandy. I forced myself to be stubborn about it. I promised myself that I would get through this and if I did survive and manage to do at least some good... maybe it would prove that I stood something of a fighting chance, no matter how... distant of a chance.

Somehow I actually managed to get the clip into the gun when I tried again. Well... maybe I was sorta getting the hang of it. Or maybe I just got lucky this time. I smiled in triumph, and pointedly took the lead. "Careful," I called out. "There are crawlers up ahead-I know it."

The krogan simply nodded, and out they came. The klixen, those red, fire-breathing animals, immediately came charging towards us. The krogan began to fire at them.

"I'll keep them distracted!" I yelled-and I hoped that this was a good idea. I hesitated for a moment-those monsters were BIG. But... I had to prove myself, just once.

I forced myself to move toward the nearest one. It was receiving fire from the krogan, but it would take several more rounds to take it down. I managed to avoid its fiery breath by dropping to the ground and rolling to one side, and then I brought up my gun and fired. Thankfully me and the creature were close enough to each other that it was almost impossible for me to miss; flesh and blood exploded from an area behind its head after I fired. The creature screamed-then made one last defiant act before the krogan took it down; it spewed fire in my direction.

I yelled out as fire came straight at me, but I kept my head and face safe by reacting on impulse and ducking my head under my arm, against the ground. The fire scorched my shoulder and arm and a bit of my back-around my shoulder blade. Then I heard a scream from the second crawler.

"There, they're done. Alright job," the krogan congratulated, walking up to me.

"Yeah," I groaned as I forced myself into a sitting position. My side was starting to hurt again, along with my leg, and now my shoulder felt like it was still on fire even though the fiery breath had died out. I grimaced. But I knew I couldn't stay down here no matter how crappy I felt. The krogan was NOT going to help me; and I couldn't accept any help anyway, could I? The point of all this was to prove that I could pull my own weight for once.

Just then the varren trotted in my direction and looked me straight in the eye for a moment. Then he licked my face. "Ewwww," I moaned, wiping my dirty sleeve against my face to swipe the slobber off-which turned out to be a mistake. This only caused dust to mix with the slobber, making mud on my face.

The krogan actually laughed, and motioned for me to follow him. I did so, the varren at our side, but then as we rounded the corner, more wildlife came our way: Enemy varren.

I suddenly had a vivid flash of memory-of that vicious varren I'd been attacked by back in Urdnot camp. Only now there were at least half a dozen. And there would be no stopping them.

The krogan was already firing and I saw the friendly varren charge at the nearest one. I took a hasty step back and raised my pistol, trying to aim it. But it was hard to aim at things that just weren't going to sit still.

One of the varren came straight at me-somehow it seemed to line itself up in the target of my pistol, and as it came almost close enough to bite me, a bullet erupted from my weapon and thrust into the creature's head, causing its brains to explode all over the place.

I stumbled a little and fell backward, dropping the gun as a result of the recoil. I also realized that I'd gotten some blood spattered on me. Double ew.

The krogan had taken out three of the other varren and his pet varren was wrestling another one to the ground. That left one more to come at me.

I threw dirt into its eyes. It growled angrily and hesitated, shaking its head in an effort to get the grit out of its face, and then it turned to snarl at me. Before it could make a move, its head exploded. And not because of me; my pistol was still on the ground.

"You are probably the most interesting janitor I've ever met, I'll give you that," the krogan said, he and his varren standing behind the now-dead enemy varren. "Grab your gun and let's push forward."

"Careful... there's gonna be vorcha and enemy krogan up ahead, I think," I said as I fumbled for my gun. I picked it up and stuck it into my pocket. Then I glanced down at the dead varren, giving it a thoughtful look.

Then an idea came to me. Okay, so it was kinda gross, but... hey, beggers couldn't be choosey. And well... maybe it would show I knew how to be adaptable. I stooped down and, ignoring the protests from the sore parts of my body, I grabbed the body. Then with effort I managed to hoist it into the air, holding it lengthwise in front of me with my arms wrapped around its body, beneath its forward legs.

Okay, this was awkward... not to mention disgusting.

"What the shit are you doing?" the krogan asked, blinking. Even the varren looked confused.

I narrowed my eyes. "What does it look like? It's a makeshift shield!"

"You think the body of a dead varren will help you?" the krogan asked, still surprised. "But whatever you prefer...as long as it gets shit done..."

"Yeah," I agreed and began to move forward. I found that carrying the dead, limp body of the varren was slowing me down a tad, but I forced myself to press on.

It wasn't long before vorcha started shooting at us, and more varren charged forward. The krogan and our own varren began battling them immediately, but out of the corner of my eye, I could also see another krogan approaching, gun in hand.

"Oh no!" I tried my best to keep my "shield" in front of me as I made my way toward cover-I managed to duck behind a rock. But before I could get fully behind it, a bullet hit its mark. Thankfully it simply went into the dead varren I was holding. This resulting in a large impact that caused the flesh to explode into bloody hamburger against me... drenching the front of my clothes in blood.

I dropped the now useless varren body as I entered cover. But all of the blood on the front of me gave me an idea; maybe I could pretend to be injured... or better yet, dead, wait for a foe to get up close, and then I could fire my pistol.

So I dropped down against the ground, trying to look as harmless as possible.

While my two allies were distracted, that same enemy krogan continued to approach me, assault rifle in hand. He was charging, like many krogan did.

I eyed him carefully, trying to play possum. When he got a bit too close for comfort-I fired, aiming straight for his head.

A few bullets hit him, and he groaned in pain, but he didn't die. Instead, it just seemed to make him angrier. He roared out and charged towards me at full speed, slamming his foot into my head.

THAT hurt even more than being kicked in the side did back in Urdnot camp. I thought I could feel my brain rattling as I was flung from the impact, crashing into the ground. My neck and shoulders also protested at the angle in which I landed.

My vision swam as I tried to focus. I could hear a vocal roar but it sounded like it was far away-and the accompanying footsteps sounded vague and distant, as if I was hearing everything through water.

I did manage to make out what sounded like a feminine shout-and the krogan roared... but I couldn't quite identify the emotion that fueled the sound... anger? Pain? Outrage?

The next thing I knew, I heard someone saying my name. It sounded far away, like someone was speaking from the inside of a cave. Then the voice said my name again, more clearly this time but still distant.

Then I heard it quite clearly... right in my ear. My head throbbed and I realized I had one hell of a headache.

It took me a moment to open my eyes. It took me a moment longer to realize I must have blacked out for a few moments. How long, I wasn't sure. But I saw a familiar figure hovering above me... at least, it seemed familiar. A hooded face, black outfit...

"...Huh?" I finally managed.

"You really need to stop getting yourselves into these situations. Didn't you know this would happen?" Kasumi Goto asked me, a pistol in her hand. She just shook her head at me, before extending her hand to pull me up.

She reached for my hand but I simply withdrew my own hand. I forced myself to sit up on my own-trying to ignore my horrible headache. Easier said than done. I winced and touched it gingerly-oh that was definitely going to leave a bruise. I was half-amazed that my skull hadn't been cracked... at least I hoped it wasn't cracked or anything. Though my head would probably feel worse than this if it had.

"Just... give me a minute," I quietly pleaded.

"Who the hell are you?" the krogan merchant asked, after everyone else was finished off, as he and his varren walked over.

"A friend of Sarah's. I secretly trailed you here...don't ask any more questions, and please give us a few minutes," Kasumi told him.

The krogan moaned. "Oh, what the hell? Fine."

He left, and Kasumi looked at me. "So, what were you thinking?"

I didn't look at her. I inhaled deeply-then broke into a coughing fit. Damn this place was dusty-and I think I've already inhaled a lot of it. My mouth was caked with a layer of dirt and my throat was bone dry. Not to mention I knew I looked like a mess. There was no doubt a bruise forming on my head, and my clothes were ripped and tattered, not to mention covered with dirt and blood. I probably looked like a corpse.

I spit out some of the dirt and managed to get enough moisture in my mouth to swallow. After a few tries I managed to speak, even if my voice sounded raspy. "Not important," I simply said, wanting to evade the subject. The very last thing I wanted was a lecture... even though I knew I'd be getting one from Shepard later anyway.

"No, it _is_ important," Kasumi told me, shaking her head slightly. "I'm not going to throw you into the fire, Sarah, that's Shepard's job, but I want to know why. You surely must have known what you were doing out here."

I inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly. My head still hurt, but at least the effects of being knocked out seemed to be wearing off a bit. I knew that it would probably be wise to stay still... or leave and go back to Urdnot.

But... I had come this far. And I'd actually killed a target. And at least I wasn't dead or dying. For once... one of my quests actually seemed to be working out, at least sorta.

I just shook my head and shoved myself to my feet, even if I was a little unsteady for a moment. "Just let me go," I said simply, not looking at her. Then I looked around, trying to locate my pistol.

"Shepard's probably going to be here soon, anyway, so you'll have to explain yourself sometime. Why can't you just tell me?" Kasumi asked me curiously, in a peaceful, but concerned, tone.

I sighed. Frankly... if she just started yelling at me, I would have felt justified-or defiant, perhaps-and simply kept on marching. But why did she have to speak in that damned soft voice of hers? It was very hard to maintain my resolve thanks to her mannerism.

"Because I need to know I won't get killed when this happens on the Normandy," I blurted out. Okay, it's a good thing Abby wasn't here... she'd probably kill me. Then again, Shepard was probably going to kill me anyway.

"Something happens on the Normandy?" Kasumi asked curiously. "And how will _this_ fix it?"

I raised my hands and shook my head-which made it throb again. "Please just let me continue," I said a bit more harshly than I'd intended. Damn my aches and pains. I then looked around for the krogan. "Hey," I yelled out, "let's move!"

"_No_," Kasumi said, still very calmly, but still firmly, as well. "We need to discuss this."

Part of my mind wondered what in the world had gotten into me all of a sudden. I was standing here arguing, and actually pushing to go back into danger. But hey, I'd been the useless janitor and even the squeamish person long enough. I thought back to the words Thane had told me back on that shuttle after Abby and HK had been rescued... and I thought about my newfound resolve to see this task through.

The fact was I was going to face Collectors at some point, whether I liked it or not. And my hands were tied. Abby, HK and I had agreed not to say a word... and it was for the best. We had to let things play out as they normally would have.

But that meant that I HAD to see if I could survive something like this... even if I wound up looking like Swiss cheese by the end of it. I had to see if... I could do it. Otherwise I might as well just surrender myself to the Collectors.

I gritted my teeth and pressed my lips into a thin line so hard that my jaw hurt. I turned away from Kasumi and marched in the direction of the krogan-it looked like he was playing fetch with his varren in the distance... with a piece of vorcha arm. I determinedly began to move toward him, trying to tune out Kasumi.

"Sarah, get a hold of yourself," Kasumi encouraged, turning to follow me. "You really just want to walk straight into death? Really?"

I didn't answer. How could I explain it to her? Death was going to come straight to me on the Normandy eventually-at least it was a possibility. Was it so wrong to test myself? To face it on my terms, to see if I could best it?

I neared the krogan and his varren. "Ready to go?" I asked him. My voice was still raspy, but determined.

He looked at me, and then glanced at Kasumi. He gave a simple nod.

"So you're going to do this, try to become something you are clearly _not_, just to evade some terror that comes to the Normandy eventually? Just because you're scared of what could happen to you if you aren't out fighting?" Kasumi asked, still calm, but her voice loud and clear. "So you're letting _fear_ compromise who you _are_?"

"Doesn't matter-I mean, what's it matter if I might end up dead either way?" I refused to look at her. I looked at the krogan. "Can you help me find my pistol?" I asked him.

"At least you'd die knowing that you were being yourself, not making some attempt to be something that just isn't for you. At least you'd die knowing that you didn't succumb to fear," Kasumi explained to me. "But instead, you want to die making yet another attempt at doing something that just isn't right for you!"

My head was still pounding and I heard my pulse throbbing in my ears. I... well, what she was saying made sense. But... well, I was already too deep into this. I couldn't back out now, could I? Shepard was going to be mad either way. Maybe she wouldn't make as big of a deal about all of this if I managed to do something right, though.

It then dawned me that maybe... I should have talked to HK and Abby more about my feelings instead of keeping it all bottled up. But it was just my nature to keep some things to myself... especially when I knew there was nothing that could be done about it. Besides, what was the alternative? Should I have ranted HK's and Abby's ears off about my fears and worries? No, because they had enough to deal with, plus I was pretty busy with my own duties aboard the ship.

Some things were certainly a welcome diversion... like the talks I'd had with some of the crew, and the occasional talks and fun times I still had with HK and Abby. Not to mention those pictures Kasumi had managed to get for me on occasion. But in the end... none of it could change what was eventually coming.

"Help me find my pistol," I snapped at the krogan, and I began to look around for it myself as well.

"Sarah, what are you planning to accomplish? Do you really think you can get anywhere if that got you down so quickly?" Kasumi asked, alarmed, but still calm.

I managed to spot my pistol a few feet away. I walked over and snatched it up, stuffing the nozzle into my pocket. I checked to make sure I still had my knife and the extra ammo on my person, and then I pointedly turned away. I gestured toward the krogan to follow, and I pressed onward-in the direction of the hospital.

Kasumi sighed. "I at least thought you were more mature than this," she called. "Mature enough to actually speak to me."

NOW I turned to look at her. "I'm not trying to be childish," I shouted back-raising my voice as much as my dry throat would let me. "It's just my way of saying that I'm not going to change my mind!"

"I don't think you're thinking straight right now. You need to just calm down and really go over this. Do you really think you will be able to get anything accomplished by storming into that hospital and causing chaos?"

"Shepard is going to do the exact same thing! I'm just trying to clear the way for her!" I shot back.

"Sarah, I don't like saying this, but you aren't clearing anyone's way! Shepard will do this and live, because that's her area of expertise. This just isn't yours. You have to accept that," Kasumi said to me.

I held up a hand. "I'm done with this conversation. Just go back to the Urdnot camp or follow me, but just let me get on with this, PLEASE." I turned around and began to walk again. The krogan looked both bored and irritated with the ongoing argument-he and the varren seemed happy just to start moving again.

"Sarah, I can't let you walk into certain death. You are not thinking right now, you need to stop focusing so much on what's going to happen and just think about the here, the now. More so, think about yourself. Do you want to die? Do you want to die _today_?"

"Okay, what the hell is going on? Are we going to storm this place or not? I didn't come with you so you could have all this stupid personal drama," the krogan growled.

"I want to," I said to the krogan. "Look um... oh I don't know!" I exclaimed, starting to feel really flustered. "Kasumi... what do you want?"

"I want you to stop all of this and realize how crazy you are acting," Kasumi pleaded. "Forget about Shepard chewing you out and the Normandy being in danger and just think about you. I highly doubt you want to die here."

My fingers tightened around my pistol. I had to think of something. This was my final chance... wasn't it?

Then I got an idea. Maybe I could just get it across to her how damn serious I was about doing this-to show her I wasn't going to back down. And that I wanted her to back off. I did not want to harm her and I never would, not in a million years-I cared about Kasumi, and I considered her a friend. But I needed to get her to back off.

I pointed my pistol in her direction-but I kept my finger away from the trigger. I was simply trying to emphasize my point, not really threaten her life. "Please just go back to the Urdnot camp," I told her.

Kasumi didn't move or show any emotional reaction. "Sarah, you really need to take a minute and sort all of this out within yourself."

"Okay, look," the krogan interrupted. "I'm all for being reckless, but I'm not going to raid a huge camp with a lunatic at my side. You're getting too insane for me."

I lowered the gun. "I'm not being insane, I'm being..."

I was being what, exactly? After a moment... the word just sort of spilled out of my mouth. "Desperate."

"Yeah, I think it's time for us to go," the krogan said with a growl, motioning for his varren to follow him in the direction of which we came.

Kasumi slowly approached me. "I know why you are so scared and desperate, I understand it, but you have to get control of yourself," she said gently.

I shook my head a little, taking a few steps back from her. I glanced toward the krogan-he was definitely walking away with his varren trailing along happily behind him. They'd probably be back at the truck in no time. Meaning that Kasumi and I would be stranded here until Shepard arrived.

I kept a firm grip on my pistol, but I kept it aimed at the ground, near my feet. "Ugh," I grumbled, turning away. My head still pounded inside my temples. "Everybody back on the ship is going to think I've finally lost it, completely," I muttered.

Kasumi shook her head. "Oh, Sarah, you've done so much already, I'm not sure how they'd view this, and all in all, who cares what they think? They aren't really that judgmental, and they'll get over it."

I narrowed my eyes. To me, it always mattered one way or another what others thought of me. Always. I'd been that way for a long time. And I didn't know how to change that part of me.

I gazed stubbornly in the direction of the hospital-where I, the krogan and the varren were supposed to go before I got knocked out... and before Kasumi interceded. Even if she did save my life. I said nothing; I simply stared.

"Let it go, Sarah," Kasumi whispered into my ear.

I flinched slightly. She could always make me jump when she got that close.

My mind was racing a mile a minute. I've known ever since this crazy adventure started that I had issues I needed to deal with. Well, maybe I was sick of letting stuff haunt me. Maybe I needed to take some sort of reckless, drastic action just to try and work through things. Because it seemed like nothing else was working.

Talking didn't work. At least not in some cases. Didn't seem to, at least.

I took a stubborn, determined step forward, and then stopped. I still continued to stare straight ahead. "Can't," I said hoarsely.

"You have to, or else you _will_ die."

I wish she would stop saying that. Why couldn't she understand that I might be as good as dead anyway, when the Collectors attacked?

"Leave me alone, please." I squeezed my eyes shut. Ugh, I still had some grit in them, apparently.

"What do you want me to tell Shepard, when she gets here, Sarah?" Kasumi asked. "What do you want me to tell your two friends? That one of their best friends just willingly threw herself to her death? That she didn't press on, she just gave up right here?"

"They will understand my reasons if I explain it to them afterwards," I said. Of course... that did depend on whether or not I survived...

"You won't be able to. Sarah, we have to be real here: You will die if you go into that base. Your two allies already left. Can you face krogan all on your own? The Clan Leader, even?" Kasumi asked me.

I found myself lowering to the ground until I was half-sitting, half-crouched. Exhaustion began to settle over me; I was getting tired of listening to her, and I was running out of ways to keep rationalizing my motivations. Not to mention that my head, my side, and both of my legs were now killing me. I was mildly surprised that I'd managed to remain standing and moving as long as I had.

I lowered my head a bit, squeezing my eyes shut and trying to think.

"I think we should go. At least leave this area." Kasumi softly advised.

I dropped the pistol. It just seemed to slip out of my hands. But I didn't bother to try to pick it up. I simply looked up at Kasumi from my sitting position. "Maybe," I muttered. I had lost a lot of my resolve.

Kasumi gently grabbed my arm. "Come on," she whispered.

I let her pull me up to my feet. Then before I even realized what I was doing I suddenly gushed with emotion and simply threw my arms around her.

Kasumi embraced me. "It will be okay, Sarah. It will be...you just have to accept that this isn't your place. Your place may just be on the Normandy, being a janitor...and that should be good enough. I know it's good enough for everyone else, even Shepard."

I clung to her for a moment longer, and then I tugged myself out of her grasp. It kinda hurt to be hugged right now anyway-physically, at least. "What if I die on the Normandy?" I couldn't help but ask aloud.

"Who says you will?" Kasumi shot back. "And even if you do, I think it'd be a lot better than this. You can face that when the time comes...face it with bravery and courage."

"Yeah, right." I turned away from her and once again began to walk away-only this time I wasn't heading in the direction of the hospital. I was headed in the direction we'd originally come from.

"It's true, you know, but that can be dealt with when it happens...it doesn't need to be dealt with now," Kasumi explained, following along.

I began to quicken my pace, trying to leave her behind-even if it was just a few feet behind me. My legs protested and so did my head but I tried to ignore it. I wanted to prove, at least to myself, that I was somewhat tough. That I could endure walking despite my... discomforts. "You don't know anything, I can't tell you."

"I don't have to know, but I know that right now, we have much more to worry about. We must focus on the here and now, not what happens then."

"Easy for you to say," I snipped. I stumbled a little but I managed to catch my balance. This, however, forced me to slow my pace considerably.

"Sarah, Keiji died. And I got through that... if I can get through that, then you can get through this. You just have to have faith in yourself," Kasumi said with a shrug.

"I need to rest for a minute," I said, neither acknowledging nor dismissing what she'd said as I sat down on a nearby rock. My body was getting too tired and aching too much; I just couldn't keep walking. I coughed a couple of times-I really needed a drink of water.

I then glanced up ahead and noticed a truck pulling up, parking exactly where the krogan's truck had been just a couple of minutes ago. My felt my heart sink a little, yet I felt a twinge of relief at the same time. I knew who was probably in that truck... and who I'd probably be seeing in just a few minutes.

"Wonderful," I muttered.

Suddenly I turned and looked back in the direction of the hospital. Okay so... which would be worse, seriously? Facing Shepard in a few minutes, or... taking my chances with that crazy scheme?

"Sarah, stop. You need to stay here and face this," Kasumi told me, almost reading my mind. "Running will get you nowhere."

I frowned. I was still... considering my options. And I knew that I had to decide quickly-Shepard and the others would be coming out any moment. And then I would have to face Shepard lecturing me, Grunt and Mordin commenting on how stupid I am because of this, and perhaps shock from HK and maybe even an Abby-lecture...

"Maybe I should take my chances," I muttered meaningfully. I began to stand.

Kasumi sighed. "Sarah, if you go, I'm not going to try to stop you. If you go, they will all come out and find out that you've taken off and I will have to explain all of this to them. If you go, there's no turning back."

"No turning back from what?" I asked in spite of myself.

"Your choice. In doing this, you have to realize that you are choosing death over life."

I stared at her for a long moment. "I think... I just want to see how close I can get," I finally murmured.

Kasumi just looked away. "Bye."

I took about three more steps... then apparently all of the physical duress I'd endured-accompanied with my exhaustion-caught up with me. I was vaguely aware of myself falling toward the ground when the world went black.

"Sarah," a voice was saying. It wasn't harsh or stern, as I was somewhat expecting, but soft and quiet. A hand was shaking my shoulder just enough to annoy me. The hand disappeared, and then a canteen full of nice, ice cold water was placed against my lips. I drank, thirsty as hell, and felt myself beginning to come to. I could hear the quiet murmur of voices from the back of the truck. "Sar, c'mon, you gotta wake up," Abby said after I'd finished the last of her water. I noticed, somewhat chagrined, that my weapons had been taken away.

"Ugh," I groaned. I still felt a bit drained, but at least it was good to have a drink of water. My throat and mouth no longer felt quite so dry, and it was a little easier to talk. "Where I am?" I seemed to be inside the truck but... well, I wanted to know where everybody else was, more specifically.

"In the truck," Abby informed me. She sat back on her heels and just looked at me, her face impassive. "Shepard and the others are having a conference outside. HK's out there, too. You're supposed to stay in the truck now."

Yeah I figured as much. Not that that stopped me back on the shuttle... but I was really not in much condition to move at the moment. "Well thanks for seeing me," I told her out loud. "Um, did Shepard leave you to keep an eye on me?"

"I volunteered," Abby said dryly.

Of course she would. I also felt I might have offended her by suggesting that Shepard had ordered her to stay with me. "Thanks," I simply blurted. I did feel grateful for her being here, though at the same time I just wanted this conversation to end.

She nodded shortly and sat back until her back was next to the wall. Her right wrist was covered in medi-gel and blood spatters decorated her new clothes, none of which seemed to be hers. "So," she said, "you gonna talk about it or are you gonna just give me the silent treatment? 'Cos if you got something bothering you, you tell your friends about it, normally."

I was silent for a moment-not giving her the "silent treatment", just considering her words. What happened still weighed heavily on my mind. It also showed that apparently I couldn't handle it when I was in a life-or-death situation. I wasn't in critical condition this time, but I had still blacked out.

I almost wondered if maybe Kasumi had been simply waiting for me to pass out. Did she know I was going to? Or was she seriously going to let me walk off? I shoved those thoughts aside-they didn't matter.

In some ways I really did not want to talk. But... I figured there were at least a couple of things I should talk about.

"How mad is Shepard?" I finally asked.

"Very angry," Abby said. Her mouth was mashed into a thin line, showing her disapproval with the entire situation. "Not only did you disobey a direct order from her, you put Kasumi and another krogan in danger." Her voice was quiet, just stating simple facts instead of lecturing me about it. "You alerted Clan Weyrloc to our presence, and EDI is picking up a horde of them moving our way to reinforce their positions. If we don't move soon they're going to start using the long-range stuff. If we leave they're going to be sure to put an extra guard around Maelon. If we continue, it'll still be harder. And if we call in the drop shuttle to take you back to the Normandy, they'll know our exact position. We might get Mordin killed at the final mission because of this."

I leaned back against the wall and closed my eyes. So I hadn't really helped at all. I hadn't even softened the way at all-the only thing I'd done was make it even harder for Shepard and the others.

"Didn't mean to... cause trouble," I finally said. That sounded lame even to my own ears.

Apparently Abby thought so, too. "That's why you talk to us," she snapped, low enough for the others not to hear. "Contrary to your belief, we can't read your mind. If you have a problem, you should spit it out instead of nearly getting yourself killed to make a damn point." I could feel my hackles start to rise, and perhaps Abby realized that because she said, "Now don't go getting defensive. You should go apologize to Kasumi, Shepard, and Mordin when we get on the ship. We can't really spare the time for long, drawn-out emotional conversations right now."

"I'll think about it," I finally stated. "Seems I'll have plenty of time to think about things now." Indeed I did have a lot to think about. And I didn't really feel like talking.

Abby just shook her head and stood. Her knee made a pop that sounded painful to my ears, and she went to the controls of the truck. She took the keys out of the ignition and went down the small ramp to join in the conversation down there.

"If I get out of here alive," I muttered out loud, "I hope I don't stay around for Mass Effect 3!"

It took a while, but finally an agreement seemed to have been made between all of them. I heard the sound of an approaching vehicle, and then Abby popped her head into the truck to say, "Joker's here with the shuttle. Come on."

I glanced up at her. I made no move to stand. "What, I'm going back to the Normandy?" I asked.

"Yes, and quickly!" Abby said, motioning with her hand. "EDI can't block their sensors all day."

Well, there was nothing more I could do or say. I sighed audibly and hauled myself up-painfully. I figured if I was a good girl and went back to the ship, well... at the very least, I could go someplace safe and stay out of sight. Like, maybe the women's restroom. It would probably be a while before someone came to look for me.

Of course I would also need to get out of these clothes...

"Lead the way," I murmured as I took a painful step forward.

The group of them were out there standing in a circle, obviously breaking out of a deep discussion. Shepard's face was covered by her N7 helmet, which she must have retrieved from the drop shuttle when it landed. Her face just turned in my direction, but what expression she had I couldn't tell. She was holding her weapon, as were the others. The only one who was weaponless was Abby, who showed me into the shuttle. "See you up top," she said, waving as the door closed and sealed me in.

The ship rose of its own accord-not high enough to be considered truly flying, because it was just skimming the ground-and began to speed away from the truck.

I simply leaned back against my seat and closed my eyes. I figured I would just try and let everything slip by me as blissfully as possible until I got back to the Normandy.

* * *

**(Abby)**

"Shepard. I am disturbed by this," Mordin w as saying as I rejoined the group. "If Clan Weyrloc is aware of our presence, sure to-"

"I know," Shepard said grimly. "We're doing the best we can given the situation." We all entered the truck, and I moved the weapons I'd confiscated off of Sarah to the back seat so I could take a load off.

HK, for all of his calmness and tendency to be reserved, was visibly irritated. Perhaps it was just the day's events catching up to him, but finding Sarah had at first shocked and mortified him, then when Kasumi explained everything, he just got really frustrated. He was trying to hold it in, I could tell, but it was there.

"I can't _believe_ she did this," he whispered to me, sitting close to me.

"She pulled a gun on Kasumi," I muttered bitterly, too low for Shepard or the others to hear. We'd taken a seat in the far back, and the noise of the bumpy truck ride covered up most of our conversation. "You don't do that. You don't pull a gun on a friend. Ever!"

"I don't know what is going on in her head," HK grumbled, crossing his arms. "Usually I can figure Sarah out, but this time, I can't. I know she's scared of the Collectors and all, but she's making things worse by constantly doing this!"

"Exactly!" I whispered. There was a lot more I could say about the subject right then, but I knew now was not the time. "We're going to have a harder fight when we hit Clan Weyrloc-"

"Hang on!" Shepard yelled. The truck suddenly accelerated, pressing us against our seats as she took the potholes and depressions in the ground at nearly one-hundred and twenty miles an hour.

I laughed. "Woohoo!"

"Shut it!" Shepard snapped. "They're shooting missiles."

As if to make a point, I could hear a slight rumble in the distance. "Oh." _Woohoo!_

HK grunted, and grabbed onto his seat. "I didn't realize they were this well-armed," he remarked under his breath.

"Gee, it can't be because we snuck in last time?" I asked in darkly.

"Oh hush."

"Shepard is going to tear her head off and feed it to Grunt later on," I muttered, shaking my head. "She's pissed."

HK just sighed. "I don't know, I just...wow. This has been one crazy day, and I don't even know how to feel about Sarah or her antics right now," he said, as we heard another rumble.

"Crap, her stuff's falling out of the seat," I muttered. The last thing we needed was a loaded pistol going off in such a confined space. I unbuckled myself and, holding on tightly to the row of seats, sat down in the seat next to Sarah's items and buckled myself in again. I put the safety on her weapon and picked her omni-tool off of the floor.

It activated automatically as I moved it, opening to the last viewed page. I blinked.

I blinked again.

"Oh god dang," I cursed, my eyes wide. I was in her email system, and there was a picture of Garrus...

And then there were a LOT of pictures of Garrus...

I looked at the sender and gasped out loud. Luckily, the sound of a missile exploding behind us covered it up. _Oh SHIT!_

I placed the omni-tool back on the seat, deactivated, and looked at Kasumi up front. Yes, she would be the ideal person... though how Sarah managed to talk her into it...

I decided, then and there, that if Sarah threatened to do anything like THIS again, I would threaten to tell Garrus. THAT might keep her head down!

I glanced back at HK, who was giving me a very weirded out look. "What the heck was that all about?" he whispered.

"She has porn on her omni-tool!" I whispered back. "Garrus porn!"

HK's eyes went wide, and for a moment, I wondered if he was just going to faint out of pure shock. "So are you telling me that all this time that her and Garrus have been having talks, they've been in there posing for Sarah's photo album?"

I tossed the omni-tool to him. "Look!"

HK's jaw dropped as he shifted through them. "Yuck, how could Shepard romance this?" he commented out loud. "And how did she get these pictures?"

I saw Kasumi glance back at us, see the situation, and hang her head in her hands. I pointed her out to HK.

HK looked mortified, more than I had seen him in a long, long time...if ever. "So...Sarah, one of my best friends...went out on the battlefield like a crazy woman, and held another one of our friends at gunpoint...meanwhile, she also had this very same friend take exposing pictures of another friend..." he summarized, blinking. He looked at me, an angry look on his face. "Send those to Miranda right now! Tell her to haul Sarah into her office the minute she boards the Normandy!"

"What about Miranda?" Shepard called.

I bit my lip, and then shook my head at HK... much to Kasumi's relief. "Just wondering how Miranda's gonna take the latest screw-up, Commander!" I yelled back. I went back to my original seat as quickly as possible without stumbling during our hectic ride, and told him, "Sarah might blow up the Normandy if Garrus finds out," I told him. "Wait until we need the info before blabbing it to Miranda-though she deserves it!"

"I just...gah, I just...I don't know!" HK groaned, keeping his voice very low. He ran his hands through his hair. "I love Sarah dearly, but if she's not biting a finger, she's getting Jack to punch her. If she's not doing that, she's taking nearly nude pictures of _turians_!"

"The third picture IS nude, you can see some of the-never mind." I shook my head. I'd seen nude pictures of every alien species I knew of on the internet (what? It was artistic curiosity!) and even owned an elcor jockstrap, but Garrus was a friend of ours. It was almost as though she was taking nude pictures of Jacob or Zaeed, that's how much it creeped me out. "I-urgh! I don't even know what to say."

"I think she...means well, she just keeps getting into all of these crazy situations," HK said, looking like he was calming down just a bit. "But she just never stops. It's one thing after another, and I don't know what to do about it. If she keeps it up, she will be dead. No ifs about it."

"I think Miranda will kill her in her sleep if she's not careful," I mumbled. "Or Shepard."

HK shuddered. "She just...she just has to stop all of this. I think a lot of it is just inside her head. It's not as bad as she thinks."

"Yeah, what about my bleeding' head?" I grumbled, massaging the scar there.

"Shut up and I mean it," Shepard snapped. "I have to concentrate."

I turned and whispered in HK's ear: "Let's just hope she's not as bad as driving this thing as she is the Mako."

"Luckily, I don't think we'll ever see the Mako again," HK whispered back. "So we won't have to endure that, but as for her driving this...well, um, let's hope!"


	32. Tribunal

**Author's Note: **The Abby has passed her 3rd Kyu test! *dances* Very happy about that. The dream that the Abby has HERE actually happened here, too! It was so weird. o_o

Enjoy!

Abs

**

* * *

**

**(Sarah)**

I sat on the floor in the woman's restroom on the crew deck, with my knees up against my chest and my arms wrapped around them. I felt sick. In more ways than one.

I'd taken off my filthy clothes and tossed them into the corner. Then I'd taken a very thorough shower-the hot water seemed to sooth my muscles but agitate my injuries. Once I was done getting clean I stepped out of the shower, dried myself thoroughly, and then I simply got dressed in a set of fresh clothes I'd brought.

Then I simply slumped down against the wall and stayed there for quite some time, thinking everything over. Eventually though... my thoughts were interrupted when there was a knock on the door, and someone calling my name.

I winced. I had the door locked, and I'd hoped that no one would find me in here... but on this ship, EDI was all-seeing and all-knowing. There was no escape.

Still, I remained silent. I hoped they might think EDI was wrong or something. Or just leave me alone a little longer.

The door slid open silently, revealing Jacob. "I think the other ladies in the ship want to use the bathrooms sometime today," he said casually. "Come on, get up."

I quickly got to my feet, smoothing out the wrinkles on my shirt and pants. "Yeah I guess I have been... hogging it," I said casually, getting over my initial shock at seeing him. "So uh... I haven't talked to you for a while. How are you?" I was curious, but also... well... I just wanted to do something to try and keep the subject from turning... toward something far less pleasant. Even though I knew it would eventually, regardless.

He didn't answer that. I wasn't surprised. "We're having a meeting in Miranda's office," he said. He turned around and began to walk away, motioning for me to follow. "Let's go."

I took a tiny step forward, and then hesitated. "What's their mood?" I asked quietly.

"Well what do you think?" he asked wryly. He slowed up a bit and motioned for me to pass him as we neared the door, putting him behind me. Miranda's door opened automatically, revealing both Miranda and Commander Shepard waiting patiently on the other side. Miranda was at her desk and Shepard had taken the seat on the side. The door closed behind me, shutting me in with these two women. Jacob took a load off on the chair facing the window to the left, but angled it towards me. I noticed Kasumi sitting on the edge of Miranda's bed, watching the entire thing.

It wasn't lost on me that the entire set up put me in the direct middle of all of them like a tribunal. Which it was.

"Do you have anything to say before we start?" Miranda asked pointedly, leaning forward on her arms.

I just stood there, remaining silent for a moment. I finally just shook my head. It was better to just... get on with this. Wasn't it?

"Okay then," Miranda said. "So here the facts stand so far: You left the ship after the Commander specifically told you to stay, recruited some krogan merchant to go... do what, exactly? Did you plan to resolve Mordin's mission_ for _him, without him?"

"No, I hoped to soften the way," I stated simply. "I hoped to help take out the outside guards at least... so it would be easier when Shepard and the others got there." I really did sound pretty stupid now, even to me.

"Kasumi shadowed you, and then she ended up saving you from the krogan. And when she attempted to bring you back, you pulled a loaded weapon on her. What do you have to say about that?"

"I never intended to use the gun, I was just trying to make my point," I replied. "I kept my finger well away from the trigger; all I did was point it." I really didn't think this was going to help my case. But it was worth a shot, right?

"So if all Kasumi did was point a weapon at you, but didn't intend to shoot it, to make a point, then that would be okay?" Miranda asked sharply. "A loaded weapon?"

"No," I blurted. I desperately wanted the floor to open up and swallow me.

"You could have killed her," Miranda said. "You're lucky she didn't feel too threatened by it, because it's a simple matter to take a gun away from a janitor. You're also lucky that Shepard didn't leave you on the side of the road, visions or no."

"So what are you going to do?" I asked when she paused. I just wanted to know that much. I braced myself.

"Do you have any sense of loyalty to this ship and mission?" Miranda asked harshly. "Do you even give a damn, or are we just some inconvenience to you? You have no respect for authority at all, you seem to think you can go and do what you want. This is a _warship_. On this ship, we follow orders to the letter-either mine or Commander Shepard's. Pulling a weapon on another member of the crew, a friend of yours, somebody who has to watch your back, is inexcusable. Give me a reason right now not to just leave you here on Tuchanka."

I found myself eyeing Shepard, trying to see if she agreed with Miranda's words or not. But I couldn't really read her expression-I only sensed the sternness. I glanced toward Kasumi, but the distance between us-along with her hood-made it impossible for me to see her expression.

I looked back Miranda. Finally I simply said, "Well, I guess you don't have much of an excuse to simply dump me off the ship, do you?" I stated it matter-of-factly.

"We have every right to," Miranda stated. "We don't need an excuse. If we wanted you off before this we would've left you with no explanation. But you endangered the life of Kasumi. You endangered the Commander's life."

"So... what are you going to do?" I found myself asking again.

Miranda just sat there and arched one eyebrow. "Honestly, Shepard, I don't see why we should keep her here. She obviously doesn't feel any remorse for what happened."

"It won't happen again," I said quickly._ Especially since nobody will let me off the ship anyway,_ I thought, _even if they do decide to let me stay_. I wasn't gonna say that out loud, though.

"I don't give a damn if you promise that or not," Miranda said. "What you did would have gotten you ten years in a jail cell."

"Then keep me in the brig or whatever for the rest of the trip if you think it would help," I quipped.

"I don't see why not," Jacob said smoothly. "Look, this is pointless. Obviously she has mental issues of some kind. I'd say throw her on the Citadel, but the other two wouldn't like it that much."

Miranda frowned. "Kasumi, you've been very quiet," Shepard said. "Why don't you tell us your opinion on the matter?"

Kasumi's expression was unreadable. "I'm keeping my mouth shut here, Commander Shepard."

"I would prefer you to voice your opinion," said the Commander. "Before I make my decision."

"You may not have to, Shepard," Miranda stated. "The Illusive Man has informed me that he may send a ship to retrieve her if we cannot find a viable solution to our problem."

"Kasumi?" Shepard asked. She appeared to have paid no attention to Miranda.

Kasumi looked at me for a long moment, and then shrugged. "It's hard to separate what I want emotionally and what I need professionally," she said. "So I don't think I'm the best person to ask."

"Say something, at least."

"Honestly? She pulled a live weapon on me after disobeying a direct order. She went in with a krogan she didn't know and just went around trying to kill things. That doesn't work. The only reason she was allowed to come groundside was because she promised to stay within the camp. I don't think that she can be trusted to follow any order, but she's too valuable to let go easily. Keep her here on the ship. Have EDI watch her. But obviously trusting that she'll stay in one specific area we tell her to would be too much." Oh, man, Kasumi was REALLY angry.

"Sarah, do you have anything you want to say to Kasumi?" Shepard asked me.

I took that as my cue to apologize-I knew for a fact that it was. Well, at least this wasn't as bad as facing Jacob after I'd bitten his finger... at least I didn't think so... ugh then again it might actually be worse. Far worse.

I looked away from Miranda and Shepard and moved toward Miranda's bed. I was just glad to put a little space between the Commander and her second-in-command-I knew they were still watching me, but at least I was able to put myself in a spot where I didn't have to look at them. I stopped a few feet from Kasumi-I didn't want to get too close.

"I didn't mean any harm back there," I said. "Like I said I kept my finger off of the trigger-I wasn't going to hurt you. But I know I shouldn't have done that. I am really sorry." I bowed my head a little for emphasis.

Kasumi didn't say anything, but she didn't look any less angry. She abruptly stood. "I need to go sort through my things," she told Shepard. "Sarah, your omni-tool is with Abby and HK. Doubtless you need it. Can you unlock the door, Miranda?"

Miranda pressed a button on her desk and the door opened. Kasumi left.

I watched her go. Somehow I felt my heart sink a little... in my efforts to try and get something accomplished back on that planet... I felt like I had at least one less friend left in the universe now.

I took a deep breath and slowly walked back into the office section of Miranda's room, feeling as though my feet were weighed down by concrete blocks. "So um... how did the mission go?" I asked timidly. "Did Mordin see his student?"

"It was harder. HK and Abby were nearly no help at all because we ended up taking a side-route into the hospital," Shepard said coolly. "And then the missiles blew up our truck and Wrex had to send one to come and get us. Mordin killed Maelon."

I blinked. "He killed him?" I asked in shock, amazed that Shepard would allow it.

"It was Mordin's choice. I don't have the right to take that away from him."

"But... you saved Sidonis," I said. I felt confused as well as surprised.

"I did," Shepard said.

I pressed my lips together in a thin line. "Okay look," I said, trying to get back to the matter at hand-so that maybe I could just... try to go back to my normal routine or whatever, "I am sorry about what happened, and... I know sorry doesn't cut it, but that's all I have to offer. So... are you going to kick me off the ship?"

"Is that all you care about?" Shepard asked, blinking. "You put a gun on Kasumi!"

"What do you want me to say, Commander? It happened... and I can't undo it. I just want to know what happens now."

"I'm all for the Illusive Man's suggestion, Commander," Miranda muttered.

Shepard nodded, as though she were seriously considering it. It was hard to tell. "Jacob?" she asked.

"Oh she needs to be punished," Jacob said. "No doubt about that, Shepard."

"Suggestions?"

"No ground patrols any more, obviously. Elevator access restricted to this floor only. Rupert will just have to take care of the other decks by himself." Jacob shrugged. "Other than that? Keep her away from the knives."

"Not near enough a good punishment," Miranda said in disapproval, "but it'll have to do."

"I want you to stay away from Kasumi, Sarah," Shepard said firmly. "Unless she tell you that she wants to start to be best buddies again, whatever, I don't want you approaching her. If you do, what follows is your own fault. Doctor Chakwas isn't going to be treating you for injuries you sustained by doing something stupid and childish."

I nodded slowly. "I'll just stay in my room when I'm off-duty," I murmured. I hadn't listened much to music in a while anyway.

"Consider yourself on probation," Shepard said. "Dismissed."

In order to try and show a bit more respect, I offered a "Yes Ma'am" with what I hoped was a good salute. Then I turned on my heel and left the office.

I heard the door shut behind her, and... Suddenly I felt like I had a stigma attached to my back. There was no doubt in my mind that everybody onboard this small ship had heard by now. And in some ways... well, I just wanted to know if I was still on good terms with everyone-or if I would just have to avoid everyone for the rest of this trip.

I steered clear of Kasumi's room altogether, heeding Shepard's advice. I headed into the kitchen area of the mess hall, where Rupert seemed to be washing dishes. I walked up behind him and cleared my throat. "Hi," I said by way of greeting. I... needed to know how my boss felt about me to start things off.

"Sarah?" Rupert looked around and his eyes focused on me. I saw them narrow in suspicion. "I took care of all of your work while you were down on Tuchanka. You don't need to do anything."

"Okay," I said with a small nod. "Um, let me know when you need me, okay?" I was still trying to feel him out.

"I will," he said with a nod.

Feeling only a little less dejected than I had when I was dismissed from the meeting in Miranda's quarters, I quietly moved away from the kitchen. Then I found myself wandering toward the one area I felt MAYBE I could still approach safely... the weaponry.

I walked up the hallway and then hesitated outside the door. I stuffed my hands into my pockets, taking a deep breath... then I entered. I stood several feet behind Garrus, who was working at the console in there like usual. But I didn't say a word; my throat seemed to shut down on me.

Garrus glanced behind him, and then sighed. He turned for a moment to look at me. "Sarah, are you sure it's best for you to be here right now?" he asked.

"I... probably shouldn't be here," I admitted. "But... Well... I didn't really have anywhere else to go. I've been confined to this deck and... Rupert said there's no work I need to do right now."

"I know you've gotten it pretty rough already, but if you want me to be your advice guru or something, I don't think I can be," Garrus told me, giving me an almost disappointed look.

I sighed. "I'm not sure what I'm looking for," I admitted. "Look um... I just want to know... do you think anybody hates me after what I did down there? Do you hate me?"

"Sarah, _I_ don't hate you, but I can't exactly help you, either. Not after what you did, which was pretty extreme," Garrus told me with a slight cough. "I don't know if anyone else hates you. Probably Kasumi, everyone else may just think you're a bit, um, crazy. Though you might get applauded by Jack or Grunt."

I blinked at the thought. "Guess I'm not looking for help or advice any... and I don't really want any," I finally said. "I just wanted to know what you thought of me now, that's all."

"I know I don't hate you, but I'm not sure what to think of you. You help _me_, or at least try to, then you go bite Jacob's finger, or hold Kasumi at gunpoint. I am not sure what to think of a woman like that, even though I always have appreciated what you've told me," Garrus explained, shifting slightly.

I shrugged. "I guess I'm good at keeping people on their toes," I finally said.

"I think they always are...you just make them blink," Garrus retorted.

I couldn't argue with that. "True," I finally commented. "Well... look, I won't bother you anymore if that's the way you'd prefer it," I finally muttered, turning toward the door.

"I need to get back to these calibrations, but I don't hate you. I really don't. I just...don't understand you," Garrus assured me, and I heard him turn back to his console as well.

Well, I could live with that. I left the through the door, leaving him to his work.

And despite Shepard's warning and my own better judgment... I was actually thinking about paying a visit to Kasumi. It was just... would she forgive me, or would her anger be lessened, if... maybe I tried to explain, if she'd let me?

I took a deep breath and began to move in general direction of her room. I ended pausing a couple of times, and almost turned around at least three times. But eventually I arrived at her door... and stood just before it.

I did not knock. I definitely did NOT open it. I even stayed three feet away from it.

...I wondered if she would have any way of knowing I was there or not. Then again even if she did... she was probably ignoring me. Rightfully so, I guess, considering her position.

"Sarah, are you sure this is the wisest course of action?" EDI asked, her blue head popping up not far from me.

"No," I said immediately. "But... I don't know. I wish I could... do something." I shrugged a little.

"I do not think you can, though I am not human," EDI pointed out.

"Well... I sorta have a little idea," I muttered. "EDI... can you give Kasumi a message in a few minutes?"

"I do not believe Shepard has restricted that," EDI said, referring to my punishments. "What message?"

"I'll tell you in a couple minutes, just hang on," I said. I then turned away from Kasumi's door and headed toward the room I shared with HK and Abby.

Once inside I began to rummage through my things. I had actually been able to order a few items over the extranet, and they had been delivered to the ship upon our arrival at certain destinations. Mainly at fuel stops, of all places. I found the diamond I had bought on the Citadel from the turian merchant, and I also found a little something that I had been making for Kasumi as a thank you gift for sending me the pics of Garrus.

I... didn't know if anything would mean much coming from me anymore. But... I had to try, at least.

I grabbed a small box and put the diamond inside, and then I put the little homemade gift into it. It was basically a little craft item I'd made out of one of my own shifts, sort of a wall hanging with white thread sewn into it to form the words "Home is where the heart is". I figured that that phrase probably suited Kasumi very well.

Then I wrote a little letter on a card I'd bought to go with the gift box. I wrote simply:

_Kasumi,_

_I know that words aren't enough but I wanted to try and make it up to you, at least a little. If nothing else, I owe you a thanks for... well, the pictures. Just... thanks._

_Take care,_

_-Sarah_

Okay, so that wasn't entirely satisfying... it didn't even express half of what I wanted to put down. I sighed and sealed the box, then put the card on top of it.

I then carried the box out of the room and went back to Kasumi's door. I set the box down in front of the door. "EDI," I spoke up, "can you give me ten seconds to run somewhere, and then... tell Kasumi that she has a gift waiting outside her door?"

"Yes."

"Thanks," I said. I then set the box down a couple of feet in front of the door... then I turned around and began to run for the nearest bathroom.

EDI's head appeared in there, as well. "Oh, and by the way, Sarah, you have a message from the krogan merchant that you teamed up with on Tuchanka."

THAT cause me to freeze in my tracks... momentarily forgetting that I needed to get out of sight. I simply stood there in the middle of the hall and glanced up. "What does it say?" I asked.

"The message he sent to the Normandy reads as this:

_Hey, Wrex helped me get in touch with the ship that you clean on, or whatever the hell your useless ass does there. I just wanted you to know that after I came back from wasting time on that crap mission of yours, I saw that pyjacks had eaten or taken all of the items in my shop. All because I listened to some crazy loony tune who can't fight for shit._

_Damn you. I hope you die tragically. I'm sure there will be celebrations galore."_

I sighed warily. This day just got better and better, didn't it?

"EDI," I said slowly, "do you have access to my credit account?"

"Yes," EDI simply responded.

"Then whatever credits I have left in it... please send them to that krogan merchant," I said, pressing my fingers against my temple. My head still hurt, and not just because I'd been kicked by a krogan. "I won't be able to spend them anytime soon anyway, most likely." I knew I had to make up for things... somehow.

"Sarah, do you realize you are about to send him a little less than five hundred thousand credits?" EDI asked.

"Yes I figured as much," I snapped. "But he probably needs it more than I do anyway, to restock his wares."

"Alright. I will do it," EDI said, before vanishing from that particular console.

I suddenly remembered what I had been doing-and I immediately turned around to look back toward the door. I didn't see Kasumi anywhere, but the box was gone. Okay, so she'd probably gotten it.

"Um, EDI?" I asked for the AI's attention, timidly.

"Yes, Sarah?" she asked, appearing again.

"Did she say anything?" I asked curiously, indicating the direction of Kasumi's room with a nod.

"She simply thanked me, and that was all," EDI answered.

"Ah, okay," I said simply. Well... maybe-hopefully-with a little time... maybe Kasumi would speak to me again, at least.

Not sure what else to do... I simply headed for my room-or rather, the room I shared with HK and Abby. I then plopped myself down on my bed and grabbed my CD player-I then began to listen to "Ghost Love Score" by Nightwish, turning the volume up all the way.

**

* * *

**

(HK)

I walked out of the shower in the men's bathroom, just changed into fresh clothes. I had all of my other clothes from down on Tuchanka ready for Rupert or Sarah to wash, and my armor was back upstairs in the armory.

I glanced at the entrance to our quarters. The ones I shared with Abby and Sarah. I had heard about Sarah basically being confined to Deck Three now, and I knew that she was probably in there. I wasn't as mad at her as I initially was, but all of what she did still burned me. And Shepard and co. didn't even know about the pictures of Garrus.

Out of respect for her, a close friend and one of my few here, one of the two from my previous life, I would not tell Garrus, Miranda, Shepard, or anyone else. But it still shocked me that she did it. It horrified me that she did it, and Abby could go over that with her. I wasn't dealing with it. Not now.

I instead decided to head down to Deck Four. I wasn't quite sure what to do...Jacob was probably the only person who I felt comfortable hanging around with on the ship, but I didn't feel like going and seeing him right now. I had no clue what Abby was up to. And there was nothing else to do on Deck Two...Mordin needed some time to process all that had happened down there.

However, I certainly was not going to talk to Jack or Grunt, or even Zaeed. So there was one person left, a person I always really liked in ME2: Tali. I got off the elevator and made a right, then going into that short hall, before walking into the engine room.

It was strange. I despised Tali in ME1, I literally despised her. I thought she was some boring young girl that offered nothing to the game of Mass Effect, and would often rant about her to Abby. But in retrospect, she wasn't so bad. And I absolutely loved her in ME2.

"Uh, hey there, Tali," I slowly greeted.

Tali had been intently focused on something at her engineering terminal. When I spoke to her she glanced up from what she was doing and looked at me. Her helmet completely obscured her face-I could make out a hint of her eyes and maybe her nose, but that was all.

"Oh, hello HK," she said to me. Her voice vibrated slightly as it emanated through her helmet. "Just let me finish... there," she said, tapping a few spots on the terminal. "I just finished making a few adjustments on the engine calibrations, but now I am finished for the moment. Was there something you wanted?"

"Oh, nothing too much. Just not much else to do around here at the moment," I commented, looking away for a moment, and then glancing back at her. "Uh, excuse my prying, but, I wanted to know if you'd heard much from the Migrant Fleet lately?"

"No," Tali replied, looking at me curiously-at least I think she was looking at me that way. It was hard to tell since I couldn't see her expression. "I sent the data I got from Haestrom to the Admiralty board, but it will probably be a while before I hear from them. And," she added, "I know they will not send a message on an unsecure channel." She sighed and I thought she seemed... wary. Though I knew that she had lost a lot of people on that planet.

"Ah, I see. I was just curious," I told her, which was what I usually said when I didn't have much else to say. In a way, I was almost surprised. All the loyalty missions should've been unlocked by now, or at least all but one. We only had four left, not counting Legion. However, perhaps they were just unlocked slightly different in the 'real' ME universe. And I didn't even want to think anymore about loyalty missions after two intense ones in a row. "So, tell me, do you like the new Normandy? I know you've been here for awhile, but I also know it's...different than the last one."

"I like the quiet," Tali answered. "It reminds me of the original Normandy. But I miss the old crew. And it doesn't seem right for this ship to be under Cerberus of all things." She shook her head slightly, as if in disgust. "But I'm here for Shepard, not for them." Then she looked directly at me. "What about you, HK? How do you feel about being here?"

I smiled lightly at her. "It's very strange. Unlike you, and mostly everyone else on this ship, a life of combat is one that I'm not used to. I used to live a semi-normal teenager's life, and now I'm on a warship. I feel like I've been here forever, but at the same time, it still feels slightly weird from time to time. Is that kind of how you were when you joined the first Normandy, so young and new to all of this?" I inquired curiously. Tali and Liara were the only people out of the ground crew, or even ship crew, who could really sympathize with me, or Abby or Sarah. And obviously, Tali was the only one I could talk to about it.

Tali was silent for a mere moment, obviously thinking about what'd said. "In a way, I think," she finally said. "Though I think that everyday life-particularly the days we spend during our childhood and early adulthood-help shape us into what we will ultimately become in the real world. But even then I have seen things that I learned about all throughout my childhood on the flotilla, but really had more of an impact on me during my Pilgrimage and afterward. I think that our families and our training give us a good head start on life, but after that it is up to us. What we do in response to new things, and what we do with the insights that new experiences give us."

She stopped talking and lowered her head a little. "And that was a far more long-winded answer than I had intended," she admitted.

"Oh, it's alright," I assured her. "I'm glad, actually, because I think you're right. I've heard about so much death, where I come from. Experienced death of some people close to me a few times, and even saw all of this, or most, in visions...but nothing is like what I've found out during my ongoing journey here. Out on the battlefield...it's like nothing else, and that's not always a good thing. I wonder how Shepard is able to do it so well and hold up an entire ship in the process."

"Shepard is a natural born leader," Tali said, her voice full of admiration for her Commander. "I used to wonder how she could handle it all, but now... I just know and accept that it's how she is. She carries many burdens with someone who had half her strength of will could not possibly be able to handle."

I nodded in agreement. Those were very wise words from Tali. "She's definitely one strong woman, and a tolerant one. I really do admire her, and consider her a much better woman than I did in the visions...knowing her in person is much different than in our visions. It's an honor to serve on board her ship."

"Shepard is... someone I trust very much," Tali told me sincerely. "In fact I can't think of anyone else I trust more." She cocked her head to one side, looking at me with what I thought was a quizzical expression. "Shepard told me about these visions of yours and how accurate they are... but what are they like? Do you simply know everything right before it happens?"

I took a deep breath. I felt like all three of us had explained this a million times, but it still felt strange to explain, especially when we couldn't tell the whole truth. "In all actuality, we knew most right when we got here. Other information has come in from time to time while we were here. These visions...we almost experience them from Shepard's eyes, so to speak. We don't get to hear her thoughts-"

_We just control them._

"-but we almost see it as how she would see it, if that makes one lick of sense. However, it's not always one-hundred percent accurate, and it's a lot different experiencing it in reality, through our own eyes. Overall, though, we've had these visions over time, and know most that happens. It's just not in anyone's best interest to speak about it," I finished, hoping she understood all of that partially confusing talk.

Tali seemed to consider everything I'd said for a long moment. Finally she said, "It sounds like a truly marvelous talent to have. I almost wish there were more people with your talent-or that they had existed a few hundred years ago. Then perhaps someone would have warned my people so that we would not have created the Geth-or perhaps we would have destroyed them before they became sapient." She sighed softly, as though feeling wistful at the thought.

"I understand," I told her softly, totally getting what she was saying. "Unfortunately, things just didn't pan out that way...and that's just what happened. In a way, maybe it had to...for reasons that you may not see right now. I know creating the geth seems like a terrible mistake, but it may bring good things someday."

Tali looked as though she were about to argue-or say something or other-when EDI suddenly spoke over the ship's speakers. "Pardon me for interrupting," the AI said in her soft, textured voice, "but I have an incoming message for Tali-Zorah. It appears to be from the Migrant Fleet."

Tali glanced up, and then glanced over at her console. "Send it down to my console so that I can download it into my omni-tool," she answered evenly. I thought I could detect a bit of tension when she spoke to EDI. Of course, from her point of view, EDI might as well have been just another Geth. But she put up with the AI because Shepard seemed to trust her.

"Message received," EDI answered. "I am now transferring it to your terminal."

EDI fell silent and Tali said nothing. She simply waited a few moments until the message was transferred, then she downloaded it into her omni-tool in order to look at it. She stared at it for several long moments, as though she were reading it and re-reading it. Then she shook her head, lowering her arm away from her face and inhaling sharply.

"Oh Keelah, how can this be?" she exclaimed out loud. "This can't be right-I haven't... I haven't done..." She shook her head violently, as though trying to shake off feelings of... what? Shock? Disbelief? Hurt?

I frowned...this was not good. Another loyalty quest had been initiated, one of the last. And yet, Tali's pain was one of the worst and most heartbreaking. "I'm sorry, Tali," I whispered to her gently. "I knew this would come sometime, I just didn't know when."

She looked at me sharply. "You knew...?" She cut herself off. "Yes, of course... that must be why you asked me that question about hearing from the Migrant Fleet." She sighed audibly. "Keelah, why did you not warn me? Why did you leave me to find out for myself?"

"I'm really sorry, Tali, but I couldn't. You had to find out from the Migrant Fleet yourself...I don't think it was my place, or anyone's, to initiate this one. If I told you, would you really have believed me? Some random teenage guy that you only just met awhile back saying you'd be charged for treason?" I asked, trying to sound as sincere as possible, since it was the truth. I just hoped she understood, and didn't get too emotional. She had enough of that coming already.

"I... I do not know," she finally said. "I'm sorry, HK. I didn't mean to snap at you. I just can't believe that I could be charged with treason. It's..." She stopped talking, and then gestured toward the door. "I need to speak with Shepard about this but... would you mind coming with me?"

I eagerly nodded. She needed all the support she could get right now, and I could easily give it. "I'll come, don't worry. I'll be there for you every step of the way," I told her, continuing put a genuinely sympathetic tone in my voice. "Want to go now or do you need any more time to let this settle in?"

She was silent for a moment, considering. "Now," she finally said. "I just need to... talk to her about this. I need her to know, and I need to know if we can divert time to go to the flotilla." She began to move toward the door, indicating that I should follow. "I have the coordinates for the Migrant Fleet's current position, but... if we wait too long, they might move on and then we would have to wait for them to send a new set of coordinates."

She left the engine room and I found myself hurrying to catch up. I then followed her into the elevator and we both turned to face the door as it shut. We both stood there, still and silent, as the elevator hummed softly and took us toward the highest level-the Captain's quarters.

I wasn't sure if Shepard would be there or not, but she seemed to spend some time in there, especially if she had work to take care of or she just wanted to get some rest. When the elevator door finally opened, Tali stepped out first and made a beeline toward the Commander's door, leaving me to fall into step behind her.

"Shepard?" Tali called out, knocking on the door. "I need to talk to you, if you have a moment-it's something urgent."

There was a moment's pause and then the door opened. Shepard herself stood there, peering out at us. Her expression was cool and business-like as always, although I thought I saw a flicker of concern on her face when she looked at Tali.

"Come in," Shepard told us with an inclination of her head. She then stepped away from the door, leaving us to follow her.

"I hope I am not bothering you, Shepard," Tali said as we moved deeper into the captain's quarters. The quarian began to wring her hands together in a nervous gesture-she also looked like she was getting ready to start pacing, even though she kept perfectly still. "But I need your help."

"What's wrong?" Shepard asked sincerely. It was obvious that Tali had her full attention now.

"I just got a message from the Migrant Fleet. Apparently I have been charged with treason, and I must return to the flotilla to face judgment." Tali kept her tone even and quiet, but she sounded even more distraught than she had even in the game.

I stayed silent for the most part; it was Tali's job to tell Shepard. I wasn't going to interfere too much. I just stayed right next to Tali. "I expected it to come soon," I chimed in. "Maybe not right now, but I knew it would come sometime."

Shepard's eyes flickered in my direction momentarily; she gave me sort of a knowing look. Then she focused her attention back on Tali. "Why are you being charged with treason?" the Commander asked. "Give me the details," she added in a slightly softer tone.

Over the next few minutes Tali and Shepard discussed the details, just like they did in the game. Tali seemed frustrated and distraught over the entire ordeal, and Shepard gently pressed for as much information as possible, taking in every detail.

Finally the Commander said, "We have some time, we'll go to the coordinates."

"Thank you, Shepard," Tali said, her voice full of gratitude. "Actually I was thinking of booking for passage via another ship, since I didn't know if we could spare the time. But... I'll give you the coordinates." She held out her omni-tool indicatively.

Shepard held out hers as well, and the data transferred. The Commander then looked at the info and raised an eyebrow. "The Raheel-Leyya system, hmm? That's a bit out of our way but we can make the trip."

"I appreciate this, Shepard," Tali said with a tip of her head.

"We don't have to go immediately," I told them both, though Tali stated this herself in the game. "Just whenever you think is best, Shepard. They will give Tali a fair amount of time; we just can't wait too long. However, I think we all hope that we can get to it soon, for Tali's sake."

Shepard eyed each of us for a moment, then she quietly moved toward her desk and began to sort through and straighten out a pile of datapads had she been working on or perhaps studying. I knew what she was doing; she was taking the opportunity to think it over and straighten out a bit of disorganization in her quarters-thus killing two birds with one stone.

When she finished she straightened and looked at us. "Well," she began, "After that last mission-hell, after these past few missions-I almost think that this entire crew needs some good, decent shore leave... myself included. But," she narrowed her eyes slightly, "everyone knows that the more time we spend doing nothing, the more change the Collectors have to abduct more colonies."

She nodded slightly at Tali. "I know you need this to resolve this issue before we go anywhere, otherwise it's going to eat you alive. I'll have Joker set a course for the Raheel-Leyya system and we'll use the time until we arrive to rest."

I nodded; it probably was for the best. Samara, Zaeed, and even Jack were good at waiting. Tali, however, despite having to wait sometimes in the game, probably wouldn't be as good at it. It was like Shepard said: It'd eat her alive. "That's a good idea, Commander. Hopefully we can clean it up soon."

Both of them were looking at me now. "Is there anything you can tell us about what Tali will face when we get there?" the Commander asked.

"Yes, please tell us everything you know," Tali pleaded quietly.

I sighed. I certainly was not going to tell Tali outright that her father was dead, that he went behind her back with the geth like that. I had to be careful with every mission in front of the person it was about, but especially Tali. Maybe it was just me, but Tali's loyalty mission was one of the most...delicate. She was just a nice girl that got her strings pulled far too many times once she returned to the Migrant Fleet.

"I can't say much, but I want to warn you so you won't be taken so off guard," I said with a heavy sigh, looking at Tali. "The trial isn't going to be a typical one. All of the Admirals are going to drop a couple of bombs on you...big ones. I can't be specific, but you have to be preparing yourself and stay calm. I don't want to make you more nervous, but just know that. The trial will take an unexpected turn, and we're all going to have to do something that no one expected to do, like usual. And other than that...I think all I can say is to be wary of the Admirals. This trial isn't _all_ about you, Tali. It may sound crazy, but they're using this as a mask to argue over a potential war with the geth, that I'm sure you've heard about."

Something about the flicker in Tali's eyes-what little I could see through her tinted mask-made me think she wanted to argue, to press for more details. But Shepard raised a hand to cut her off before she could speak, as though reading her mind.

"I think it would be best if we just see when we get there," the Commander told her. "I don't like being kept in the dark either, but we've seen what happens when one of the psychics tries to give too much information... or take matters into their own hands."

I knew she was referring to Sarah's antics on Tuchanka. That definitely had to be a good lesson to everybody on this ship... or maybe a good several lessons, depending on how you thought about it.

"I should get back to work," Tali finally said. She obviously needed to do something to keep herself busy, and to try and keep her mind off of things.

Shepard nodded to her, and the quarian left.

"Sorry about all of this, but this will be over soon, once we take care of the last few personal problems, and can move forward," I assured Shepard, looking in the direction that Tali left. I looked back to her, and gave her a serious look. "But I need to warn you: This will be hard on Tali. She's going to need you more than ever."

The Commander studied me for a moment. Her eyes searched me as though trying to find a hidden meaning in my face. Then she nodded. "You up for this mission?" she asked.

I nodded. "Definitely, it's just going to be hard. For me, it's the most emotional, along with a couple others. You know Tali...she's younger than everyone else, and she has such a great love for the Migrant Fleet, so everything that she finds there is going to be so hard. I hope we can all be there for her."

"Are you sure there is nothing more you can tell me?" Shepard asked in a serious tone. "If this is going to affect Tali's ability to function onboard the Normandy, I need to know."

"If we're going there now, then it won't. Not much, anyway. Afterwards, it will no doubt take some time to recover from, but she'll be more at peace, I think. And she'll have friends, one friend in particular, there to help her. She's going to need it, but I think she'll be okay. It will just be hard."

There was another pause. "Alright then, I'll let you know when we arrive," she said and gave me a dismissive nod.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I spent about three hours listening to music until I finally had enough and shut off my CD player, putting it aside. I was a little surprised that the batteries had lasted as long as they had, too. Then again, I hadn't really used it much.

I did feel a bit calmer and more relaxed... but I knew everything wasn't okay on this ship. It probably would never be okay again, as far as I was concerned.

Still... there was one final thing I needed to do. I knew that Abby would probably encourage me to do it if I didn't do it on my own. So... might as well get it over with.

I swung my legs over the side of the bed and stood, and then I approached the terminal. "EDI?" I requested.

Her familiar blue, global form appeared in front of me. "Yes?"

"Can you patch me through to Mordin? I need to talk to him."

"Certainly." EDI's blue form vanished. A few seconds later she announced, "You are connected."

"Mordin?" I said aloud.

"Sarah? Need something?" Mordin said, very straight-forward. He didn't sound quite as enthusiastic as he usually did.

"I just wanted to say I'm sorry, Mordin. I know that what I did made finding Maelon a lot harder than it needed to be," I told him as sincerely as I could.

"Thank you. Appreciate the apology. Although it was upsetting, know that you were just trying to help. Maelon bright student...sad that his life had to come to an end so early. For now, just need time to get past it," Mordin said peacefully.

Well, out of everyone, of course Mordin would be the best at letting things go. He could probably go through anger or grief or hard feelings-things that might take humans months or years to get over-in a few hours, or days at most.

"I'll stay out of the way from now on," I told him. "I promise. It's just..." I sighed-I needed to get my feelings out somewhere. And I'd had plenty of time to think about things. "I found out the hard way that the only person who can be Shepard is Shepard herself you?" In many ways... Mass Effect seemed like a joke now. It was a fun game to play, of course. But in reality... people like me simply did not belong here. And nobody, NOBODY should ever try to put themselves into Shepard's shoes for real. "I tried being something I'm not just because I'm scared and I know I might die, and... I've probably pissed off everyone on the ship."

"Should know that you can't be Shepard. Only one of her, and should be yourself. Not try to be anyone else or something you aren't. Hope you will remember that for the future," Mordin said, very matter-of-factly.

"Heh, I've been wanting to be something I'm not ever since I got here," I admitted. "It just seemed like... it might be necessary. So that... well, never mind." I had thought about getting killed or captured by Collectors far too much. That was how I'd gotten into trouble in the first place. I was not going to bring it up-or dwell on it-again.

"Is that all?" Mordin asked.

"Yep," I decided. There wasn't anything else to say anyway. "Hope I didn't bother you, and... sorry again."

"It's alright," Mordin assured me, before cutting the communication.

I nodded at the terminal, even though I knew nobody could see me. Except EDI, most likely. Then I returned to my bed and grabbed my CD player again.

I heard the door slide open, and Abby appeared. The wrist she'd previously had secured with omni-gel was bandaged up, and her skin was freshly-washed and clean. I wondered where she had managed to take a shower, since she hadn't used the women's restroom I'd been hogging. "Hey," she said, taking a seat across from me.

I took my headphones off and placed my CD player near me, on the mattress. Then I moved myself so that I was sitting on the edge of my bed. I winced a little-my injuries were superficial, all things considered, but they still smarted. "Hi," I said as I wrapping my arms around my waist and leaned forward a little, in sort of a relaxed posture.

"So I got your omni-tool," Abby said, flipping the small, inactivated device in her hand. My stomach dropped. "I think we should password-protect your email for you, from now on."

I blanched. Oh my God. I had... completely forgotten about my omni-tool. I was only slightly relieved that it was Abby who'd seen what was on it... and not Shepard.

I sat up straight, my posture stiffening. "Uh... so you saw," I muttered.

Abby smirked a bit. "I didn't spill it to anybody, but HK was all for forwarding your memory chip to Miranda. And all things considered, I nearly did, too. But I was thinking I'll keep a copy of this on me, somewhere safe. Not for the pleasurable viewing of turian porn, BUT as insurance. If you do anything like what you pulled downstairs on Tuchanka, I will show it to Shepard." And she sounded serious, too.

She opened up my omni-tool and began to change the settings. "There," she said. "Type in your new password and save it." She handed it to me.

I simply stared at her for a long moment. She wouldn't show those to Shepard. She just wouldn't.

Would she?

I reached out and took the omni-tool from her. Then I stared at it for a moment. I was actually tempted to just throw it down on the floor and stomp on it in an attempt to be done with all this. But I ended up just punching in a new password and then shutting it off.

"So I've been confined to this deck," I finally said as I put it away.

Abby nodded, tapping her foot impatiently on the ground. "Yeah, I heard."

"Well at least I've tried to do a couple of good things in spite of everything," I said a bit defensively. I didn't want to sound like I was bragging or anything, but I felt the strong need to point out a couple of things I've done. "I gave Kasumi a couple of gifts... a homemade item and that diamond I bought back on the Citadel. I HOPE that might help smooth things over with her, though I still haven't heard back from her. And... I gave that krogan merchant on Tuchanka every single credit I have left. So right now, I have nothing but my CD player and my clothes. But I've still got a job, at least."

"Which is good," Abby said, nodding. "I know that things are getting a bit... weird. Look, if you're stressed, you should talk to us about it. HK and I are here for you, I don't want you to feel like we're not."

I sighed. "Yeah I know. It's just, well..." I sat back a bit on the edge of my bed and glanced downward. "Okay fine... you want to know what the problem is?" I finally said.

"Uh, yeah that would be the point of me asking you," Abby said with a grin.

I made sort of a huffing sound, even though I didn't mean to. "Okay look. You and HK, along with everyone else on this ship-I mean, the ground team-keep going on this missions. Every single time, you go out and do important things, and you also come back, no worse for wear. I've gotten used to that, and I even take it for granted now.

"But," I went on quickly, "since we all agreed that we wouldn't spill the beans-that we would just let things play out as naturally as possible, like in the game-well... that means I might die, when the Collectors come." I stopped, realizing that EDI might be listening in. She probably was. But... I doubted I said anything that she could really use. Nothing that Shepard didn't already know from my babblings, at least.

I spoke again, a touch more quietly. "I can just tell that you and HK are gonna be fine... at least until the suicide mission. For some reason I have some bad feelings about that. But me... I'm gonna die. And I thought that MAYBE if I managed to get a small group together on Tuchanka... maybe I could figure out a way to make myself a better fighter, get through the defenses, soften the way, and maybe show Shepard I can do things, too."

"Yes, and I sort of figured that was the issue," Abby said with a frown. "But Sarah, just listen to me for a moment. If HK and I have done all of these things, if we haven't died yet, if we survived Nyxeris's torture devices, then we'll make sure you'll survive, too. When the time comes, stick close to Joker. We won't let you die. And you won't, because even if you do get captured we're going to follow immediately after you guys. There's nothing to... overly worry about. Leave it to us. Trust us. Please."

I looked at her for a long moment. Somehow... I did feel a little better, after getting that out in the open. Part of me did wonder if maybe things might not have gotten so... bad if I'd tried talking this out sooner.

"I'll try," I finally allowed, with as much sincerity as I could. "But I just need to know one thing," I added after a moment.

Her lips pursed into a line at my answer, but she said, "Hmm?"

"How badly do I think I messed up THIS time? I mean... do you think maybe this will all just blow over, eventually?" I was referring to the way the entire crew probably thought of me now.

"Honestly... no. I think they'll give you a bit of a wide berth. I think Kasumi feels hurt, too. You guys were apparently buddies," she gestured to the omni-tool, "and it was her job to watch over you. She probably feels like she let down Shepard in a way. When we got back to the Urdnot camp Kasumi apologized to her, y'know? But you went... I don't even know. You went kind of crazy down there. It'll take a while for the healing to set in place. Have you apologized to Shepard yet? I was in the lab with Mordin and heard your call."

"Not yet," I said slowly. Then I chuckled humorlessly. "I don't even know how to apologize to her."

Abby nodded, seemingly saddened by this fact. "I think you should, and soon before the next mission-whatever we're going to do."

I thought about that for a moment. "I'd like to see her in person," I mused aloud. "Alone, in her cabin," I added quickly. There was something I wanted to try and talk to her about... in person, without anyone else there, if it was possible.

"I don't think you'd be able to do that," Abby said doubtfully. "She was really, really pissed. I bet she's got the elevators locked down."

I sighed. "Okay," I said, abandoning my first idea... for now. I walked over to the console and asked EDI to patch me through to Shepard. There were a few long moments before I finally heard her familiar, cool voice over the link-and it only said one single word.

"Yes?"

"Hi Shepard," I said quickly-then decided to skip the pleasantries. I knew she wouldn't be in the mood for them anyway. "I just wanted to say I'm sorry about what happened, and I'm sorry for what I did."

"Yes. I know."

I hesitated. "Can I talk to you... in person, maybe?" I asked. And I dared to hope.

"No, I think you're fine where you're at," Shepard said.

I knew she would need some kind of big reason to see me at this point. I glanced briefly at Abby, already guessing what her reaction to this might be. "I have... information for you," I blurted.

"HK already informed me about Tali's mission. Your services aren't needed."

I hesitated. I was SO tempted to just blurt out everything, right here and now about how the Collectors were going to attack. Then I looked at Abby. I then decided that, well... at this point, I wasn't going to betray anyone else. Definitely not now.

"Okay... good luck with that," I finally said to Shepard.

Shepard cut off the link. It wasn't as different as normal, but I could definitely feel the anger there. Abby gave me a sympathetic look as I turned around. "She's just being Shepard," she said. "Everything will work out, one way or another. I'll help."

"Well... I was wondering if maybe you could do me a huge favor," I said uncomfortably.

"Hmm?"

"Could you... talk to Kasumi? See if you can determine what she's thinking and how she feels about me right now?"I d

Abby shrugged and nodded. "Alright," she said. "But not today. I'm going to go get some food, but then I'm going to bed. It's nearly two in the morning."

"Yeah I understand," I said with a nod. "And thanks."

"Just promise you're not going to... do something like that again. If you got the chance." Abby looked dead serious, too. I must have really scared her down there.

"Well I definitely won't get a chance," I told her. "I will never be allowed off the ship again."

"Sarah, I want you to promise. Don't evade this question. I want to know if one of my best friends is going to do something like this again!"

I looked her directly in the eyes. "I promise I won't do anything like that again," I told her. "I learned my lesson down there. I... can't be Shepard."

Abby held my gaze for a moment, looking more like a tired, world-weary adult than a teenager years younger than I. She nodded. "Well, then that's okay, then," she said. She jabbed a thumb towards to door. "I'm heading to get food. Want any?"

I hesitated for a moment, and then nodded.

We silently left our room and headed straight for the kitchen. Rupert was still there and he appeared to be doing something or other-cleaning the counters, it looked like.

"Hi Rupert," I said simply, with a small wave of my hand.

Rupert just nodded. He got two trays for us and gave us a choice of soup, a fruit, a vegetable, and a piece of red meat. Abby took a steak, some broccoli-cheese soup, and a piece of bread, stating, like usual, she was ravenous.

I simply took a piece of red meat and a piece of fruit. I wasn't all that hungry and frankly, those two things seemed good enough to me. I flashed a grateful smile toward Rupert, then turned away to move toward one of the tables.

We sat down and Abby dug into her food with much less gusto than she normally would. She complained about her wrist for a bit, then, half-way through her meal, pushed the tray away and placed her head on her pillowed arms, creating a sort of cushion for herself. "I'm so tired," she mumbled, the words muffled. "I think I'm getting sick, or I've finally worked myself out."

I placed a gentle hand on her arm. "Maybe... you should get some rest," I suggested.

"Meesa thinks that's a great idea," she said. She got up and put her tray on the counter, then came and sat down. "I'll wait 'til you're done."

I glanced down at my plate. I had already wolfed down my meat-I ALWAYS ate meat first whenever I had some on my plate. I then chomped down my fruit and then picked up my tray and placed it on the counter. Then I looked at Abby. "Well... I guess we could both go and get some sleep," I said with a little shrug. I knew I could probably use some rest, and she DEFINITELY could.

She waited patiently for me to get rid of my tray, and then we went back into the bedrooms. She climbed into her bed without further adieu and kicked off her shoes. "G'night," she said, pulling the covers over her head to block out the bright ship lights.

I looked at her for a moment, then I simply plopped myself down in my own bed. I didn't even bother to kick off my shoes. I then curled up into a fetal position and yanked the covers over my own head.

I closed my eyes, and after a while I drifted off to sleep.

* * *

**(HK)**

I walked away from the quarters I shared with Sarah and Abby, only just peeking in to see if they were in there or not, and they were, sound asleep. I should've probably been sleeping too, but I didn't feel like it. Not yet. Even though I knew I'd need as much energy and strength that I could muster for when we got to the Migrant Fleet, and had to deal with all those geth.

For now, though, I felt like I just needed a good meal. I got a small amount of food from Rupert, and took it to a table to sit down. I started eating, thoughts about the entire mission going through my head. I was still concerned about some things; I hoped Shepard pulled off the remaining loyalty missions correctly, and that we could survive when we got to the derelict Reaper and then, more importantly, the Collector base.

Despite my frustration towards her, I also hoped and prayed that Sarah could survive the Normandy attack, and everything afterwards, whatever happened to her.

But for now, I just needed to focus on the present. On Tali's mission.

I looked up from my food to see another familiar face approaching. "Oh, Samara, hi," I said, slightly surprised.

The blue-skinned asari glanced in my direction with her usual, cool expression. She seemed kind of cold in her own way, but not in a snobbish way; more like someone who's had years and years to learn how to control every aspect of her being. Her movements, the way she looked-including her facial expressions-and even her own feelings. This was a very practical woman-and one who carried many burdens through life.

"Hello, HK," she greeted me in her soft, even voice as she went to get herself something to eat. She got a small tray of food-what appeared to be a simple bowl of soup along with a glass of water-and then moved away from the counter. She glanced around ever so briefly-somehow she seemed to take in her entire surroundings without moving her head much-and then she approached my table again.

"Would it be alright with you if I sit here?" she asked, indicating one of the empty chairs at my table with her free hand. Her other hand was holding onto her tray. "I have found that I... enjoy the act of socializing on occasion; something which I have not done for a long time. Though bear in mind I am a little rusty at it," she said as an afterthought.

I gave her a re-assuring smile. "Sure, you can definitely sit here. And I know what you mean...I'm only sixteen, and I've had a lot of friends, but it's been quite a long time since I've been around this many people every single day. A few years, at least, since I was in regular school, so I kind of know what you're going through."

Samara sat down in a seat on the other side of the table, but not directly across from me; it was diagonal from me. She sank into her seat and lowered her tray atop the table's surface in front of her, all in a single, smooth motion. Then she began to eat her food, placing a spoonful of soup into her mouth. After she swallowed she lowered her spoon into the soup again, and then spoke to me without looking at me.

"It seems that quite a few of the individuals on this vessel have been alone for a long time, each in their own way," she said. "Yet all who are here have a single goal in common; to stop the Collectors. Some of them are simply here because of Shepard, but others are here because the Collectors are a true threat."

"I think I'm here to stop the Collectors, but I've made some nice acquaintances, and even a couple friends, in the process," I agreed with a nod. "Someone has to fight for the Galaxy, and I guess we're some of those select few that Shepard leads. Everyone knows what is at stake."

"Yes indeed," she agreed with a slight tip of her head. She ate a little of her soup, sipped her water, and then spoke again. "I have heard that your two companions-Abby and Sarah-have the same..." She paused as though considering her words. "Gift of foresight," she finally said. "You and Abby definitely seem to be devoted to fighting the Collectors and serving under Shepard, judging from what I have heard and observed. But Sarah on the other hand..." She trailed off.

I nearly laughed. "Sarah's just unique," I muttered. "But I know that Abby is devoted to fighting the Collectors, and so am I. It's just weird for us all, though. No one we know aside from each other is here, and we're all very young people fighting in a war that's a lot bigger than most think. It's insane."

"I must say that I was surprised when I first saw you and Abby, and when I first learned of your ages. This mission is not something that children should be in the middle of," Samara murmured thoughtfully.

I did laugh, that time. "I know, right? But for some reason, some specific reason, we're here, and we gotta make the best of it."

"So it would seem."

A few moments of silence passed as we each ate our food. She finished her soup and then took a deep sip from her glass of water, then set the glass down again. "There is something I am curious about," she finally said. "You are able to tell the future. So why can't you predict when Sarah is going to do something... hazardous, to herself or to those around her, and simply stop her?" For the first time since sitting down, she actually looked at me now. Her cold blue eyes met mine.

I blinked, taken off guard. Samara actually asked a logical question, one that someone had never really asked before. I'd explained it from time to time to some, like Tali earlier, but still, it was an unusual question.

"Because, for one, in our visions...we weren't here. They were just random visions of people that seemed totally fictional. We were, and are, very creative people. We have wild imaginations, so this seemed like just another product of that," I explained to Samara, hoping I was doing this right. "With Sarah, well...a lot of the things she does defy all our visions, even her own. She does these random things for some agenda of her own or other, and it ends up causing more chaos than is needed."

"I see," Samara said after a moment. "And so each of you is uncertain of your own actions during all of this? You don't know what you will do even when things you have foreseen finally happen?"

"To an extent, we do, but things can always change. We've all proved that quite well," I said. It was almost funny, if it didn't potentially compromise the entire mission. "There is a saying somewhere that the future is always in motion. That holds true here."

"Indeed." Samara finished her glass of water and then set it on the tray, rising from the table. "I wish to meditate now," she murmured as she began to move toward the counter to put the tray away. "But thank you for chatting with me."

I gave her another nod. "Your welcome."

She simply handed the tray to Rupert and then left the kitchen area, going back to her quarters.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I had no idea how much time had passed. It only felt like a few seconds had gone by when I suddenly opened my eyes and felt more rested. I still felt a little tired and achy, even a bit stiff due to my bruises and whatnot. But a quick glance at my omni-tool told me that I had been dozing for at least an hour.

I glanced over at Abby. She was still sound asleep. I had a hunch she might be like that for a while yet. Yawning softly, I threw aside my covers and carefully sat up, taking care to keep the noise down-and to make sure I didn't make my bruised side or injured leg feel worse by sudden movements.

Once I was out of the bed I glanced at Abby again. She was still asleep and snoring softly, so I simply slipped out of our room. I heard the door hiss shut quietly behind me, and then I began to transcend down the corridor.

Somehow or other I found myself standing outside of the door leading to Kasumi's room again. Maybe it was just... well, I really did like her. And I did feel bad about what happened down on Tuchanka. I just needed to know if maybe there was some chance she would talk to me.

"EDI?" I said aloud.

Her familiar blue, holographic form popped up nearby. "Yes?"

"Could you tell Kasumi I'm here and... ask if she'll maybe talk to me?" I asked.

"No." EDI's reply was cool and mechanical, even for her. "And I would recommend you return to either your room or to your job unless you want me to alert Commander Shepard or Miss Lawson."

Well... I didn't really want to push the issue. For all intent and purposes, pushing an issue was what got me into so much trouble in the first place.

The rational part of my brain also reminded me that if Kasumi wanted to talk, she'd probably seek me out. She knew where I was and how to find me-and it wouldn't be hard to find me, considering I was definitely stuck on this ship... and on this deck.

"I'll go clean the toilets or something," I muttered as I walked away from Kasumi's door. I figured it wouldn't hurt to clean them... even if they didn't need it.

* * *

**(Abby)**

_Do it again..._

_I didn't want to. Hadn't I done it enough? They wouldn't stop looking at me, they wouldn't stop correcting me. Scott and Sensei were the most vivid-I could hear them telling me to do iriminage over and over and over again until I was ready to drop to the ground in pieces. Donna was reading the test list off to us, laughing her Donna laugh, and sometimes Devon was reading it off to them, or sometimes it was somebody else. And then there was me, dressed in my white gi as I did the 3rd Kyu test over and over and over next to the dinner table. _

_Do it again, they were yelling at me._

_No, I want to sleep._

_Again._

_No..._

_But I did it, my muscles aching, my breath coming in ragged gasps. _

_Do it again, one of them said._

_I could feel the refuse rising in my chest like the head of a snake preparing to lash out. I did it one more time, but I dropped my partner. Again, they chorused._

_No, I can't._

_They wouldn't shut up. I just wanted to sleep and wake up relaxed and not dead. _

_NO!_

My eyes opened up as quickly and smoothly as if I'd meant to do it all along. The entire room was quiet, dark, and perfect for sleeping in. The clock on the wall said it was 3:30. I hid my head under the blankets, extremely hot, thirsty, and sleepy. I attempted to go back to sleep despite the strange, vivid dream, but sleep just wasn't going to come. I went over my 3rd Kyu test over and over in my head, realizing that yes, I'd passed it back home. I was a 3rd Kyu in Aikido now. Woohoo.

I was sick, though. Of that I could totally tell. Even back on Earth my body was fighting some type of fever and chills. I felt bad for that body, because she was about to go to Aikido for a few hours and stay at the dojo to help out with a seminar stretching over the afternoon.

After a while I gave up on sleep and got out of my bed like a sleepwalker, rubbing my eyes and running my fingers through my hair to get the tangles out. I looked around, noticing for the first time that HK and Sarah weren't in the room. It didn't overly distress me, caught up as I was in my own issues, and I opened the door leading into the mess hall.

Rupert was gone, probably in bed by now, and the lights were dimmed. I found HK picking at some food at the table and just waved halfheartedly to him. "The Abby is sick," I announced grumpily, sitting next to him.

He looked up at me, and raised an eyebrow. "You don't look that sick," he remarked.

I raised my own eyebrow, took his hand, and put it on my head, where he could doubtless feel the burn.

"Ouch," he commented, moving his hand off my forehead, and blinked at me. "You weren't sick earlier, bu-oh, wait, I think I know what's going on back on Earth. You're sick there, or you would be if you were there, wouldn't you? And it's crossing over to your actual life here."

"Grawr," I muttered. "But at least I passed my test. I just had the craziest nightmare, though. You'll laugh at this." I recounted to him the dream.

He looked at me, surprised, and then he actually laughed. "Wow, too much of your Earth life is flowing into your real life here," he told me, after the laughing died down. "Or maybe you're just that obsessed with Aikido."

"I am," I admitted freely. "That was... a very vivid dream." I shrugged and picked a few pieces of food off of his plate, chewing on the meat hungrily. "That tastes good."

HK seemed slightly taken off guard by that, like he didn't know how I did it. "Uhh, you can have the rest if you want," he said, pushing it towards me.

"Seriously?" I asked him, surprised. I picked a few more pieces off, but then I decided that he was probably hungrier than I was. "'fanks." I swallowed it and got up. "Time to visit the Locust Queen methinks." I sniffed-my nose was runny.

"Locust Queen?"

"Doctor Chakwas sounds a lot like the Locust Queen from Gears of War. Exact voices," I mumbled. I sighed. "I shall be back!"

Fifteen minutes later I left the Med Bay, still feeling as bad as I did when I went in there. I sat down next to HK with a grumpy expression. "Apparently she can't cure me. She's totally flabbergasted. GEE, I wonder why THAT is!"

HK didn't give much sympathy and actually laughed. "Uh, sorry," he quickly said. "But it looks like just a passing cold. However, I know for a fact that we're heading for the Migrant Fleet next, so you may just want to stay secluded on the Normandy."

"Motherfluffer!" I cursed, eating more of his food. "There's no way I'm gonna be able to fight like this. I had a hard enough time on my third kyu test."

"You need to just sit the next mission out. I don't think it'll take too long to get there, and you need some time to heal," HK said genuinely, not bothered in the least by me eating more of his food. He probably didn't want to touch it now that a sick girl had, anyway. "After all, Sarah is always around here to keep you company. I doubt either of you will be going anywhere for awhile."

"Oh, I am so coming on Tali's thingy!" I said, appalled at the thought of NOT going. "Really, I'm good! As long as my body takes meds," I lowered my voice, "then I should be good."

"Abby, as much as I would _love_ for you to come," HK said, almost looking baffled. "We can't have you walking on the ship, sneezing, and murdering the entire quarian race. We need them against the Reapers."

Great. Just when I had to sneeze. I fought the urge by saying, "I'd be wearing a mask!"

"...and what if you had such a gigantic sneeze that it just came right off?"

"Well obviously I would have to put it back on!"

"And by that point, all the quarians would be on the floor, trying to enjoy their last seconds of life," HK finished.

"Oh please," I said. "I would NOT kill off the entire quarian race... accidentally." I sniffed again. "It'll take a while to get there, so we're actually good. I bet I'll feel better in a couple of days."

HK sighed, and then nodded. "Okay, okay, I hope so. I want you to come, but at the same time, I don't want the quarians to all have a heart attack. Whether it be a literal one, or because you walked on the ship and offed some of their civilization," he told me.

"But they're wearing environmental suits!" I protested. "Seriously, if they die because of a couple of human sneezes, then Tali would've died as soon as... well..." I leaned close to whisper in his ear, confident he wouldn't get sick from me anyway. "She would've died as soon as Shepard got his freak on!"

"Okaayy, point taken," HK said hesitantly. "Um, to change the subject before we delve any deeper into that, how's Sarah?"

I snorted. "You said deeper, hehe." Okay, clearly sleep deprivation was getting to me.

"Abby...maybe you just need to go rest," he suggested, practically reading my mind.

"Nooooooo," I told him. "The Abby cannot. And Sarah wasn't in the room; I thought she was with you..."

"No," he said with a sigh. "To be honest, I have not talked to her since her entire adventure on Tuchanka."

"Hmm. And how do you feel about that?"

"Psychiatrist, now?" HK asked with a smirk. "And I don't know, I was just frustrated at first. I'm calming down now, but she just keeps doing these crazy things. It gets worse and worse every time, and I can't read her like I used to. Not that that's a bad thing, but I have no clue what she's going to do next. How can we trust her?"

I nodded, my lips pursed. "It was a serious blow," I said. "And if _we're_ even wondering if she can be trusted... She can be, and I sincerely believe that, but she just... doesn't get it. She still thinks this is a game and it's not. There are rules, there's authority here. There's an actual cause. And if we even try to bring it up she gets all frustrated and pissy with us and goes and does her own thing. She doesn't seem to get that the advice we keep trying to give her will actually benefit her. The risk just isn't there. Even after Haestrom... you'd have thought that she would've learned then. And you don't just disobey Shepard's orders like that. Shep's the boss. I really, really think that if Sar puts one more toe out of line Shepard will send her to the Illusive Man. There's only so far you can push her."

HK nodded in agreement. "I know, and all of it just concerns me. I understand, to an extent, why Sarah keeps getting into these incidents: This is still a new world to us all, despite what we know about it. We all struggle in different ways, but Sarah is still trying to adjust and prepare herself for what could happen just because she's not part of the ground crew," HK said. I could tell that now, unlike previous times, he was choosing his words more carefully, likely because of EDI. But she probably already knew and had reported it to Shepard. "So I totally get it, but sometimes I just wish she would stop and think, even though I get that it's hard. And I may not be her biggest fan right now, but her getting sent off to the Illusive Man would be far too horrible. Can you imagine what he'd try to do to her?"

"Yeah." There were too many implications there. "But if I were in her shoes I wouldn't exactly be moaning about it. I trust you guys. I know you'd save me if I was captured. I'd scrub toilets and be happy with it, you know? It's crazy. Part of me thinks she might be going a bit crazy or something with all this stress. Leading an assault on a krogan base? Talking back to Shepard? Something is just not clicking with her!"

"It's all the variables," HK whispered, lowering his tone more than ever now. "I understand why she's worried, I'd probably be a little bit like her, and I just wouldn't take it so far. I'd probably just dread it in silence, but I know why she's worried...if Shepard decides to take a detour...well, never mind. She's just trying to do something that just isn't for her, and it's hurting both everyone here, like Kasumi, as well as herself. It's very concerning."

I nodded. I understood his view point, even though I didn't like the fact that I could so easily. This was a friend we were talking about, and despite my misgivings, you couldn't doubt a friend.

I never made those easily-friends. I never saw the point of wasting my time on making acquaintances with people I didn't care about, but once I made a friend it was for real. The people at Aikido, Dawson, HK, Sarah... So who cared if I was antisocial? I sure as hell didn't. This really hurt on a deep level, and I wasn't sure if the Sarah I was friends with was the same Sarah here on the Normandy.

"I think... we need to talk to her," I said. "We have to take it into our own hands. I mean, you and I hang out loads because we train together and fight together. But Sarah's the loose end. Maybe she just gave some signs we weren't picking up or responding to appropriately." I was reaching, I knew. We'd both picked up on each and every sign and tried to help, but I was trying to overlook that. "I don't want something like this to happen again."

As if on cue-though more likely by some odd coincidence-Sarah came around the corner. She had her sleeves rolled up, showing off damp skin on her hands and arms-indicating that she had been cleaning something or other.

She spotted us sitting at one of the tables as she began to pass by. She blinked at us, as though surprised to see us both sitting there. She smiled a little and waved, and then she simply stood there. She appeared uncertain whether she should simply continue on her way, or approach us.

She seemed to be awaiting a signal one way or another from us.

HK glanced at me, but then smiled lightly at Sarah. "Hi, Sarah. How are you?"

"Hi. Fine," she said simply, then glanced over at me as though awaiting a response from me as well.

I figured that now was the best time, as ever. There was no way I was going back to sleep anyway. "We kind of need to talk to you," I said. "C'mon and sit down."

For a moment she seemed hesitant and uneasy. Then she gave a little nod and sat down at the table. But I quickly noticed two things. One was that she sat kind of stiffly, as though she were about to face another lecture or whatever she'd had to endure in Miranda's office upon returning from Tuchanka. The other thing I noticed was that she was sitting in a chair at the far corner of the table-basically on the other side of the table from us. Still close enough to have a private conversation, yet obviously distancing herself as well.

HK and I exchanged a look, and I decided I better start talking. "Just tell us why you did it," I said.

She leaned forward just a little, and then she folded her hands together on top of the table in front of her, in an almost Thane-like mannerism. "I already told you why in our room, before you went to sleep," she said calmly.

"Then say it again," I said.

Now she sat back in her seat, taking her hands off the table and putting them in her lap. "Okay," she said a bit stiffly, then spoke in a more neutral tone. "We all agreed I can't spill the beans, but I've been... scared of dying when the Collectors... you know. And well... I thought that maybe if I got a small group together, it would show whether or not I had any chance of surviving or fighting back when they-you know." I could tell she was trying not to say too much, because everybody knew EDI was always watching and listening. "I thought I could also... show Shepard and everybody else that I could do something for once, while I was off the ship. I thought I could soften the way, and help with the mission, at least." She stopped talking, pressing her lips together a little.

My head was POUNDING. I wished it would stop with the conga beat and just let me concentrate so I could figure out a way to fix this. "Obviously that didn't work out so well," I joked. "But somehow we gotta find a way so you don't feel like this. What do you think would work? That would make you feel happier and safer, I mean."

She looked at me for a moment. "Does it really matter anymore?" she asked. "It's not like Shepard is ever going to let me off this deck anyway. Or off the ship again, for that matter." At first I thought she was giving me an attitude, but there was something sincere about the way she spoke this time. Did she feel like a prisoner, or that what she wanted no longer mattered?

"Sarah, I'm saying this as a friend," I said, "but you did really blow it down there. You broke Shepard's trust, and you really, really scared us. But I think the punishment is less than what Shepard would give another crew member. The question isn't if you'll ever not be in a time-out again, but it's how we're gonna fix it. And that can only come from you, how you're going to fix it. We can't help you with this. We can't go beg Shepard to forget about it. You have to take the step; you have to take the responsibility. Right now it's looking like you'll be on this deck for a long time, which is a load better than hanging out with the Illusive Man. But I want to know if there's anything that you want us to do to try and help."

She was silent for a few seconds. Before she could say anything though, HK chimed in. He looked as though he had wanted to say something for at least a minute or two.

"We aren't trying to lecture you or anything, Sarah, we both know that you've had enough of that today to last a life time," HK said peacefully. For being frustrated at Sarah, he was still very calm and serene, like he often was. "We are your friends, your close friends, even if we get flustered when you do stuff like this. Like Abby said, we want to help you. Help in any way we can."

"I... really appreciate what you guys are saying," Sarah told us. "But you know, um..." She looked as though she were about to say something, but then she quickly cut herself off. "Never mind." She turned away a little.

"Sarah," I said calmly, "you gotta speak up for yourself. If you got something to say, then say it. I'm not in the mood to play 'Guess What Sarah's Thinking' tonight, okay?"

Now she looked back at us. "Alright," she said. "I'll just be blunt. I'm kind of... jealous of you guys. Shepard takes you everywhere she goes, practically. And you're actually good fighters. Now," she held up a finger as if to emphasize a point, "I know for a fact that I do have a purpose here. I happen to like being the cleaner and assistant cook. And I know I do good, useful stuff around here. But..."

She inhaled deeply, and then continued in a rush. "I just feel like you guys, and the rest of the ground team, are the real heroes. And... Shepard is the very best of everybody." Well now maybe some things were beginning to make a little more sense in more ways as well; there was an unmistakable expression of envy on her face-right along with hero worship.

"Sarah," HK said, with a small smile on his face. "You don't always need big flashy guns and big fighting skills to be good. Just because Shepard's the best fighter, and the best hero, doesn't mean that we all aren't just as good in our own way."

"Yeah but... I get the impression that Shepard finds you two more useful than me," Sarah murmured slowly. "Like... the only reason I'm kept around in some ways is just because I know as much as you guys do about the... future events. If I didn't, I would have been kicked off the ship a long time ago... and I heard Miranda, Jacob and Shepard discussing to kick me off the ship. Again, if I didn't have this knowledge, they would have. Right?" She looked us both in the eyes, as if silently asking if we understood the essence of what she was saying.

Well duh. The only reason any of us were still on the ship was because we knew what would happen.

"Shepard may, but using that perspective, wouldn't Rupert find you more useful than us?" HK asked. "It's like a giant business corporation, Sarah. Shepard's the overall, big boss, and there are some workers who report directly to her. But there are others in their own little section in the business that works under someone else."

"Shepard's an amazing woman," I told her seriously. "And we've pretty much tested her tolerance during this entire trip. I'm not surprised that they wanted to kick you off after Tuchanka. If we were Shepard, we probably would! But just because we're part of the ground crew doesn't make us more important. What makes all three of us important is the stuff we know. Do you honestly think Shepard would've kept us on the ship if we hadn't proved what we knew? You ARE an important member of the crew! You are! You can't fight, so what? If we were all perfect fighters then the Reapers would have bigger things to worry about.

"What I think that goes on is that things happen around you that don't normally happen on a military ship. And this is a military ship, and that's what everybody's used to and expect. They don't normally have the janitor running up to talk to Garrus or leading an assault on Tuchanka."

"Heh, yeah," Sarah murmured with a hint of a smile. "Well... it's just that I've always been really impressed by Shepard, and she's even more impressive in person. I hoped I would get a chance to impress her somehow." Suddenly she groaned and did something like a facepalm. "Ugh, I've become worse than Conrad Verner."

I had to smile a bit at that. "Well... you're not running around in N7 armor busting an asari matriarch for drugs she doesn't even have. So... you're good."

"You're not _that_ bad," HK assured her.

Sarah seemed to relax just a little. "Yeah well... thanks for this talk," she murmured. "Maybe I'm just not cut out for the military life. I shouldn't even be here, regardless of what my duties are."

* * *

**(HK)**

I continued to give Sarah a light smile. All things considered, my anger at her had completely simmered by now; I just wanted to convince her that she didn't have to be some big army woman in order to be important on this ship. Because both Abby and I knew that wasn't true by any means, Sarah just needed to believe it to get past these problems of hers.

"Sarah, you belong here for a reason. If you didn't, you wouldn't have come here with us," I pointed out.

Sarah sighed softly. "Yeah well, I want to believe that," she said slowly. "But I still feel like the oddball, and I'm pretty sure I've made everyone on this ship angry by now-or at the very least, I've seriously weirded them out."

"We've all weirded them out at one point or another. Some probably still think we're all weird. You just need to have faith in yourself and not care what others think. You are still here, so make the best of it," I encouraged.

"Heh well, it's always been... like, second nature to me to wonder what others are thinking about me or saying behind my back," Sarah muttered. She glanced from me to Abby-and I realized that Abby looked like she was getting ready to doze off by this point. She was still awake and attentive, she simply looked... out of it.

Sarah looked back at me and continued speaking. "Can I be completely honest about something?" she finally asked.

"Sure."

She placed her hands on top of the table and looked me right in the eyes. "I think... I want to go home," she finally said.

Abby's face twitched a little in response. "Yeah," she said quietly, "but we can't do that yet."

Sarah's eyes narrowed. "Well, maybe if we can figure out what brought us here in the first place, I can go back. Let's face it; Rupert can handle things without me, and I highly doubt anybody would trust me after all this. I've made a mess of things, I admit it. It's best if I just go home, you know?"

I nearly sighed, but tried not to show my slight irritation or disappointment on my face. It was beginning to feel like we were right back to square one with Sarah: After all of this talking, all of this progress over the long while that we'd been here, and we were right back to her feeling like she couldn't do much, everyone hated her, and that she wanted to go home.

"First of all, how do we find out what brought us here in the first place? The closest things we've had are the dreams," I pointed out to her, trying to sound civil and not annoyed in the slightest. "And speaking of which, in a dream I had, I dreamed that everyone would die if we left the Normandy."

"Yeah but how can that be? Again, I'm just the janitor," Sarah said pointedly. "It won't make much difference if I leave or not. You two have been doing fine in keeping Shepard informed. And even in the game, Rupert did fine keeping up with everything all on his own. And... Well, once again I think I've made enough of a mess of things around here. I'd be doing everybody a favor if I left, especially since I know they're worried I'll just do something again. I'd probably take some of the tension off if I left, you know?"

"Sarah, you're ignoring all the possibilities," I persisted, hoping to get through to her. I definitely did not want her to leave, because she was a friend, and she may be needed. "Okay, so you're a janitor. You're not a soldier. We obviously have that established. But being on the ground crew isn't all that matters around here...it's been proven that we needed to be here, that we have to help Shepard if she wishes to succeed. What if you have to help Joker against the Collectors? Abby had to save Zaeed's life, after all."

"Then I dropped Jessie," she muttered chagrined.

Sarah pulled a pack of candies out of her pocket and held them in her right hand. Where she got those, I had no idea. She didn't open the package but she was obviously thinking about it.

"Yeah well... I see what you're saying," she murmured, then ripped open the wrapping on the candy. "Maybe I can still help out," she added with a shrug. Abby was watching her hungrily, and I could tell she was waiting to be offered some. However, that wasn't going to happen if I knew Sarah. As nice as a person as she was, she wasn't the type to share chocolate with anybody.

"And you never know, maybe one day you'll get let back onto the other decks," I suggested with a shrug, though at the same time, we all knew that was a very, very long shot. "If nothing else, there will be no reason to keep you here after you and Joker...well, you know."

"Heh, true," Sarah said. "Well... I'll just keep myself busy until... um... that time comes, okay? I won't do anything except... eat, sleep and work." She shrugged in what appeared to be resignation... with maybe a hint of apathy as well. "Maybe I'll just stay away from everybody, too. Except Rupert. Then I won't mess anything else up or piss anyone else off."

"Whatever you prefer. Just be careful, don't beat yourself up too much over this, and again...just be careful," I encouraged softly.

Sarah simply nodded. Then she shoved herself back from the table and rose, putting a few pieces into her mouth. "So... is that it?" she asked quietly as she chewed.

I shrugged. "If you want it to be. We covered everything we wanted to, I think," I said, glancing at Abby.

Abby just bowed her head like she was disappointed with something. "Yeah, fine, whatever."

Sarah looked at Abby as though instantly realizing that she had been a bit... rude, or at least abrupt. She made no attempt to move away. "Sorry, it's just..." She shrugged a little. "I guess I've kind of gotten used to just going off and doing... whatever. It's not like we've really done much since... well, since we first got here. Except for occasional meetings or when we see each other before we go to sleep or something." She glanced away. "And sometimes... you guys don't get there until I'm already asleep, or I don't get there until you're already asleep."

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean we're not friends. It isn't only you in this situation, Sarah. It's all three of us," Abby said. "We're hurting just as much as you are; we're just finding different ways to deal with it."

"Indeed. You are still one of my best friends, and one of my few actual friends on this ship," I assured Sarah. "Just because we're busy doesn't mean that our friendship has to go down the tubes."

Now Sarah moved over to sit back down where she'd originally been seated. She stuffed the candy back into her pocket and simply looked at us. "Sometimes I guess it doesn't feel like it, though," she said. "Even when something happens... we don't really SEE each other anymore." She paused, and then her voice got lowered. "I guess this is partially my fault, of course. But... sometimes it seems like nobody really cares all that much when something happens to me. Nobody seemed to notice how scared I really did get on Haestrom-I had nightmares about that for a few nights, after I got hurt. And then when Shepard wanted me to watch the action on the bridge after you guys got captured, I felt like she was just ignoring all of that, making me relive Haestrom-even though my brain told me I was in a safe place."

She sighed. "I don't know, I'm probably not making much sense," she muttered.

"Sarah, of course we care. We always do, we just don't have the time to show it, or we're trying to handle the aftermath of it. Your incidents often leave an impression on everyone," I told her, hoping she would understand this as well. "And why didn't you tell us this before? You've bottled it up in the eons of time that has passed since those incidents."

Sarah shrugged, and then said what was possibly one of the dumbest things I'd heard her say yet, all things considered. "Didn't want to... bother you or anyone else." Then she quickly added, "I mean... well, everybody can see I'm not military material. Maybe I just figured... you guys, who know me well-and Shepard, who is insightful, and Kasumi too, for that matter-would just... figure it out, without me having to say a word." She intertwined and un-twined her fingers in her lap, a self-conscious mannerism to have something to do with her hands, obviously.

I sighed, smiling lightly at her. "Sarah, we have too much going on for any of us to look at you and wonder what's going on inside your head. Have you done that to us? Just looked and thought 'Oh, I think they are scared and aren't saying something'?"

"No," Sarah said after a moment of thought. She looked down at her hands. "I guess that is pretty stupid," she muttered.

"It's not necessarily stupid," I assured her. "Just...don't expect it."

"Hm yeah," Sarah murmured with a small nod. "Well... I guess I'll just hang out here for a little while, since there's nothing else for me to do at the moment. So... anything you guys want to talk about? Besides what we just talked about here, I mean."

Abby drummed her fingers along the top of the table. "I had a nightmare?"

"What happened in this nightmare?" Sarah asked.

Abby explained the Aikido nightmare to her.

"Sounds weird," Sarah said after she was finished listening. "Though um... I kind of thought it was going to be another one of those weird dreams with the deep voice."

"I doubt we'll have another one of those," Abby said, rubbing her temples. "For a long time."

"I hope not," I commented. "Those are a little too creepy for me."


	33. The Quarian Mechanist

**(Sarah)**

It had been exactly an hour-well, more or less-since Abby, HK and myself had finished talking together. I felt a bit better about some things now... though I still felt a sense of... apprehension.

Still... I felt at least a little more determined to... well, do my best. Do my part. Or whatever. If nothing else... well, I could try harder to be myself... right? That was all anyone could really ask of me. And whenever I tried being somebody else, or tried doing things I just wasn't good at... it always ended in disaster.

And yet... these still were not normal circumstances. Frankly, nothing would be "normal" again in my life until I returned home... if I ever did.

Well, maybe it was time for some sort of change, then. Maybe... it was time for a New Sarah, something to symbolize that... well, I'm here to stay, and I'll try to have a better attitude about everything.

I remembered on one of my favorite audio dramas, a character once went through a significant change in his life and grew a moustache to symbolize and represent the change. Well... obviously I couldn't grow a moustache. And I did let Abby cut my hair, but that was not enough. I got my hair cut often enough back home-it was nothing out of the ordinary.

I sat there and thought about it for a few minutes. Then finally I got up off my bed and headed toward the terminal where I could contact EDI. Suddenly I was glad that HK and Abby were not in our quarters-I knew they would probably protest over my impulsive decision... possibly even freak over it. I knew that they were both busy getting ready for the Tali mission, as I called it in my mind-they would probably be gone soon.

I spoke aloud. "EDI?"

After a moment, her familiar blue-hologram form appeared on the terminal. "Yes?" she asked in the cool, mechanical tone I swore she only used with me.

"Can I talk to Kelly?" I asked.

"Yes, I will tell her that you wish to speak with her," EDI replied, before vanishing.

Mere seconds later, my omni-tool buzzed, and I activated it to hear Kelly's voice. "Sarah? Are you alright? Are you feeling calm and stable? Miranda warned me to be on the look-out in case you had another surge of instability."

Well... that made me feel a whole lot better. I restrained myself from rolling my eyes.

I decided to ignore what she said... mostly. "I'm fine. Listen, um... what kind of things do you have in your quarters? Like... I dunno, for clothing, taking care of hair... whatever," I asked with a slight shrug of my shoulders, even though I knew she couldn't see me. I knew I was going to have to be more specific to tell her what I wanted, but first I just wanted to sort of feel her out.

"An assortment. For clothing, I have the standard issue Cerberus outfit, along with a few pairs of casual clothing. I have a variety of hair accessories stored under my bed in the women's quarters, as well," Kelly replied. "Do you want anything?"

I couldn't help but smile a little. "Yeah... got any hair dye?"

"Hmmm. I may have a few bottles under my bed with my other things," Kelly answered, sounding like she had to think about it for a moment. She probably didn't have too much time to go through it all at this point on our mission. "Do you really want to dye your hair? Your brown hair is just so beautiful."

"Yeah well... um, I just want something to symbolize the 'new me' and my place here, or... whatever," I said. I really didn't know how to explain it to her, and I didn't want to waste time trying. "And well... I want something..." I paused, searching for the right word. "Radical, I guess. Like... blue, or purple."

"Oh my, I see. Hmmm, well to be honest, people often do this because it helps them feel more like they have a new beginning and new life," Kelly said, basically repeating what I just said. "It can sometimes symbolize insecurities on the inside, and the radical colors say that you want to rebel against Shepard. For locking you on the deck, maybe?"

"Hey, I did not ask to be psycho-analyzed," I couldn't help but retort. "But anyway... well, do you have something I could use? Even if we have to mix some colors together?"

"Hmm, I think I may. I am not one for radical colors, but I do have red and blue, which I think we could mix together to make purple, if you wanted," Kelly answered. "I don't have a huge variety, but I have some."

I grinned. "Sounds good. Do you have some free time right now? I mean... could we get started?"

"We should be to the Migrant Fleet sometime soon, but I don't think it will be for a while, and things are mostly quiet up here right now," Kelly replied, after a brief moment of thinking. "I'll be right down. Meet me in the women's quarters."

I grinned again. "Will do-see you there!" I then turned and headed out of the quarters I shared with my two friends.

Ten minutes later, I was in Kelly's room-I knew she shared it with one or two other crewwomen, whom I did not know for sure-and we began to go over some of the stuff she had. She pulled a box of hair supplies out from under her bed and we began to look at it.

"Hey, how about if I get sort of a mix? I mean... I've seen some people do that," I commented aloud, just pondering the idea. "Like maybe... mostly blue, but some purple highlights in the front or something?"

"Wow, you really want to be radical, don't you?" Kelly commented out loud. "But alright, if that's what you want."

"Let's do it!" I exclaimed, anxious to get started. I wanted to get it done as quickly as possible-before I could change my mind, and... well, before anyone else heard of this. I didn't want to give HK or Abby a chance to talk me out of it.

* * *

**(HK)**

I sat at a table in the general area on Deck Three. It felt like I was always around there, somehow or another, and I wasn't even the one confined to this deck... I had just been finishing up getting ready for Tali's loyalty mission. It wouldn't be long, now, just a little while until we got to the Migrant Fleet. However, there was still some time to go, so I decided to come in here while Abby continued to try to get rid of her cold and get ready herself, and while Sarah did...well, whatever Sarah was doing at the moment.

I had a piece of paper in my hands, with a list of all the missions that had been done, and all the ones that still needed to be done. Only five loyalty missions remained: Zaeed's, Tali's, Jack's, Samara's, and Legion's. Aside from that, four big missions came to mind: The IFF, Overlord, Lair of the Shadow Broker, and obviously, the final mission. There was a collection of N7 missions left, too, but that was about it. Everything else, like Firewalker, had been done.

I sighed. Was that all that I did around here? Go over the events of the game and what was left, what needed to be done, what we had to do to ensure that things went the proper way? That was nearly all that I wracked my brain with on this ship, aside from the occasional random discussion with Abby and Sarah, or a training session downstairs with Jacob or someone like that. And all I did out on the battlefield was hop around, shoot, and nearly get killed or hope no one killed me.

It was all getting a little old. It felt like it was always...business. That was all I focused on anywhere.

_I'm not very personable, am I?_

No doubt, as I had thought to myself so many times by now, Abby was the one with the most friends on the ship. Actual, true friends...not people who are just your buddy in battle. The Normandy was made up of true friends who all knew each other and got along well, for the most part, minus a few exceptions. Even people like Sarah did make everybody mad, but she had bridges to burn, and everybody knew her name.

Minus Shepard or Jacob, and obviously Sarah and Abby, I didn't have that many friends on this ship. Sure, I comforted Tali briefly, had a small run-in with Samara, or bantered with Miranda from time to time, but that was just small run-ins.

In a way, it almost felt like it was a bit too late. The three of us had been on the Normandy for ages now, and had been to so many places. Heck, I got captured once. And only now, when we were in the final loyalty missions, was I realizing that I hadn't really made more than two or three friends during my long stay here. It was part of my nature, I supposed. To hold back and be reserved because I didn't know too many other ways to be. Of course I was very friendly back in my real life on Earth and online, but still, sometimes it was difficult for me.

Well, maybe it was time to change that. Take a gamble, even this late, and try to socialize with people.

The question was...who? I glanced around at my surroundings. Miranda would not be the best person to try to be friendly to...it was always worth a shot, but it was hard in the game to get to know her. She and I had some things in common, now that I thought about it.

There was Rupert, but only Sarah knew him real well, and something in the game always turned me off about him. He seemed a bit better here, but not someone who I would like to hang around with.

Then there was Garrus, whose ears had probably fallen off by now, thanks to Sarah.

I looked to the MedBay. Dr. Chakwas knew who I was, because I had been in the MedBay far more than once, and she was always one of my favorite crew members in the game, but she was very busy now, no doubt.

_Um, this is a little harder than I thought._

However, I could always leave this Deck, and go to another level. Mordin probably needed some alone time, though, and may be busy with an experiment, anyway. I had talked to Jacob and Shepard enough already, and with the exception of Tali, everyone on Deck Four needed serious mental help.

I sighed. It seemed that anybody around, I'd either spoken to already or they were too crazy for me to talk to. But on the same token, if I looked at it in that manner, would I ever socialize at all? Perhaps I should just take a chance and see what happens.

_Oh what the heck, I'll go downstairs._

I headed to the elevator, and went to Deck Four. I almost felt like Sarah, randomly wandering around and talking to people, but hey, that wasn't necessarily a bad thing. I got off the elevator and proceeded to head down a flight of stairs right to where Jack slept.

"Umm, hi, Jack," I said slightly nervously, approaching the disturbed woman.

Jack wasn't sitting like she usually was in the game; she was actually standing next to her makeshift table, which was covered with datapads and a few other odds and ends. She seemed to be looking at one specific datapad rather intently. Her head snapped up and she cast a glance in my direction when I spoke.

"What the fuck do you want and why the fuck are you down here?" she snapped. She looked irritated, as though she didn't want to be bothered. She gripped her datapad more tightly and began to pace-she looked very agitated. "Get the hell out-" Suddenly she stopped, and turned to look at me. Her eyes narrowed into slits. "No wait a minute," she said more quietly, apparently changing her mind. "Get over here," she barked, gesturing me over with her free hand. "I want to talk to you."

Oh dear. Oh _dear_.

Of course, I just happened to walk in right when she was looking for information on Pragia. That was twice today where I felt the reaction of someone when they got the news about their loyalty mission...but that was alright. I just hoped that Jack didn't do anything rash, but who was I to say 'NO' to this woman?

"Alright, I'm coming. What do you need?" I asked, starting to walk over to her.

To my surprise and astonishment, she actually grabbed my shoulder and half-shoved me down onto the edge of her bed-perhaps her way of inviting me to sit down? I simply looked at her, startled.

She quickly moved her hand away from me and scowled down at the datapad in her hands. She had a strange look in her eyes, almost as if she wanted to throw the datapad against the wall but maybe... kiss it at the same time. Or maybe that wasn't quite it... but she looked fierce and determined. "I'm still not sure if I believe all of this shit I've heard about you and your girlfriends," she began. "But I know you've been right about enough stuff so far, so I think I can believe you know what you're talking about. So tell me... is that prison where I was tortured and trained to kill on Pragia? And will I succeed in blowing it to fucking hell?"

I knew I couldn't remain silent for too long, or she'd probably have me pinned against the wall, but pulling the usual 'Oh, we can't tell you anything' wouldn't work on this woman. And where did she get the girlfriends idea from? That was the most insane thing I'd heard since...Jacob suggested it the other day.

_Though, it is a rare thing for guys and girls to bunk in the same room together..._

"Well, uh, yes, it is on Pragia," I replied, figuring that she'd know that soon enough. I was trying to be very tactful here, and I was probably failing. "The facility is definitely there, and whether you succeed or not is...up to you."

She listened intently, then scowled when I finished speaking. She stared down at the information on the datapad for a moment, then she tossed it over onto the table. "You better give me more than that," she growled in a low tone. "I want specifics. Will this fix my head? Will it make me... stop coming back to that damn room?"

I could feel anxiety welling up in my chest as she spoke. This woman was far more terrifying in person than on a screen. "Well, Jack, like I said, that's up to you. It's a definite possibility, but being content with yourself and leaving your past behind is really all up to you. You can control it, you know, even if you didn't deal with this."

She shook her head in agitation, then marched off into the shadows. I could still make out her silhouette as she paced a little nearby. Finally she stepped back in my direction, apparently having burned off some of her built-up agitation and leaned against the wall, folding her arms and giving me a hard look.

"I should have known better than to talk to you about this," she muttered. "You may know something about me from your visions or whatever they are. But you're still an outside observer, just like everyone else. You don't know what it's like to carry this shit around in your head, the way it follows you..." She scowled, glancing away from me. "That's why you won't give me any useful details. To you, this is all just a game, something you can watch unfold because you've seen it all before."

She snorted. "At least that's the way Sarah seems to treat everything."

I frowned. It did sadden me, because Jack was obviously very wounded. Everyone on this ship was in some way or another, and here the three psychics were, knowing their possible futures, and not telling them anything. "I'm sorry, and I understand. I know it's hard to get why we are the way we are, and in a lot of ways Sarah needs to...well, improve a bit. Both she and I do, in fact. We try not to treat it like a game, because we know it's all too real. That's getting through all of our skulls...but it's hard for us, too. You have to understand that this is all so new to us. Every part of this, and we can't just tell people every single thing about their lives. It is not our place to do that. It could do more harm than good," I explained to her, hoping that all of this would make sense.

She opened her mouth as if to give a retort, then closed it quickly. She stared at me with a hard look for a moment, as though thinking about something. "Why'd you come down here, anyway?" she asked suddenly. "This is the first time you've bothered to come see me." She narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

That was definitely a good question, on her part. And explaining it all to her would seem slightly stupid, but maybe I could find a way to do it tactfully... "Well...I'm not quite sure. Maybe just to socialize," I admitted. "I, uh, don't exactly interact much with too many people outside of anything related to the mission."

Jack made sort of a grunting sound. "I think I get it," she murmured after a moment. "You're... what, sixteen? Seventeen? Makes sense." She shrugged her shoulders a little. "You want to check out others on this ship. Especially since Sarah still wants that turian to screw her, right?"

I blinked. Well, Jack was definitely still Jack.

"What Sarah wants from Garrus is really none of my business," I simply said, in reference to that last little comment. "And Abby and Sarah may be two of my closest friends, in fact probably my closest friends overall, but they are not my girlfriends by any means. Even if we do share quarters."

"Whatever. Don't have to be your girlfriends to screw with them," Jack said in a dismissive tone. "But hey, you're still a guy and I know how guys think." She moved away from the wall and stood in front of me, placing one hand on her hip. "You can't say you haven't looked, at least."

I was trying to keep my composure, even though her bluntness totally took me off guard. It was to be expected from her, but still, I was very surprised. "Yes, I know the little stereotype that comes with my gender, even if it is a bit well deserved," I told her. "But I am not like that, and I haven't looked, just for the record."

"And yet here you are down here, right now, for no particular reason," Jack sneered. Suddenly, a sly expression crept across her features. "You sure there isn't something you want, possibly in exchange for telling me what I want to know about my future?" She smirked slightly.

I blinked a few times. Maybe it hadn't been such a good idea to come see Jack. Okay, yes, Jack was really good looking, but heck no. I would never do anything remotely close like what she was suggesting. "No, not at all," I replied bluntly. "Maybe it's hard to believe since I am a guy, but I'm not like that."

"And yet you sleep in a room with two girls." She shook her head a little and then sat down on the edge of her bed, just a couple of feet away from me. It wasn't too close, but close enough to make me flinch a little. "Well kid, let me know when you change your mind. I've gotta talk to Shepard about going to that facility to plant a fucking bomb there. But if you change your mind... offer still stands."

"I sleep in a room with two girls because-" I paused. What logical reasoning was there for Abby, Sarah, and I all sleeping in the same room? Why hadn't they gone to the women's quarters, and why hadn't I gone to the guys'? Overall, I supposed it was because Shepard locked us in there when we first arrived and we had just decided to stay together. "Because we're good friends, and we all know each other the best. Shepard tossed us in there when we first got here, since we seemed so weird, and we just haven't bothered to move since. And, um, thanks about leaving me the opportunity to come back, but seriously, I can't tell you much."

Jack said nothing right away. Then after about half a minute she rose quickly in a hasty, feline-like motion. She walked over and snatched the datapad she'd been holding a few minutes ago and looked at it again. "I need to go talk to Shepard," she finally said. She glared at me. "Thanks for the insights," she added sarcastically, then turned and began to head up the stairs, no doubt headed for the captain's quarters.

I sighed, and also found it intriguing how people went to Shepard here, instead of Shepard coming to them. Perhaps it was one of the differences between the real world and a game. Nonetheless, one more loyalty mission would be ready to go.

"And don't touch anything!" Jack barked over her shoulder before she disappeared up the stairs.

"There's not much to touch down in this small hole!" I shouted back, almost joking, but in a way it was a true statement.

There was a sudden burst of startled laughter from behind me. I swung around and saw a foot appear out of the ceiling. The foot grew a body I recognized, and then a head I recognized even more. Abby's face was beet red from laughter, her long mane of hair frizzy from the vents. "Seriously?" she chortled, dropping out of the vent and on to the ground, absorbing the impact with bent knees. "Did you seriously just say that?"

I stared in pure shock for a moment at my friend's sudden appearance. "Excuse me? Just what are _you _doing here?" I asked, scowling slightly at the little spy.

"I am exploring the Normandy, dear HK," Abby said wryly, crossing her arms. She made kissing noises. "I just couldn't_ bear _to leave you alone with that woman. She was trying to steal you away from me!"

My scowl grew, even if this was the Abby I knew and loved...well, no, not in that way. "Very funny. I'm surprised Sarah didn't come along to help keep me in her and your claws," I sarcastically remarked. "Glad to know that when I walk around I have you crawling in the vents."

She raised one eyebrow, shaking her head with an amused grin on her face. "I was actually about to head back up as quietly as possible when I heard you come down. EDI's all down for having me crawl around her, believe it or not. I started all the way from Shepard's quarters down making sure the path's okay. It's really fun in there-wanna climb back up with me? It's awesome!"

I looked around, actually contemplating it. What could be the harm? And it wasn't like there was anything else to do around here. "Uh, well, okay, that'd be nice, I guess," I said, approaching her. "And why does everybody get the idea that we are some kind of couple? First Jacob, and now Jack. I know we sleep togeth-well, sleep in the same room, but still..."

Abby snorted. "I'm used to it by now."

"Hm. Well, anyway, I guess let's...start climbing."

The vents were hard to reach, and probably for good reason considering who lived down here... though Jack could probably just use her biotics to lift herself up if she wanted to. Abby took a stand on the table and, looking intently at the hatch about a foot above and in front of her, she jumped and gripped the bottom rung. Moving hand over hand, she pulled herself up using her upper body strength alone, grunting and panting. She slowly disappeared up the hatch, and after a few more seconds I heard her say, "Your turn."

I stood up on the table then, and used the same process as Abby. Although pulling myself up hurt like everything, it wasn't too much different than other labor we had to perform while on the Normandy. Finally, I got up into the hatch. "Okay, let's go."

Abby seemed to have gotten the hang of navigating the strange, sloping design because she went along faster than I had, using all four of her limbs to propel herself upwards. She was right-it was cool up here. The walls were lit by subtle white lights that cast no shadows since they were all around us, and there were various hatches and ports that looked very sci-fi looking. "Joker won't have any huge issues here," Abby panted from above. "I bet even Grunt could fit in here if he needed to."

"Yes, won't be a problem for someone exceedingly strong," I panted. It wasn't too difficult, but still slightly hard to keep going along this strange path. I was getting better and faster the more I did it, though, which was good. "I always wondered what the vents looked like. Nice to know."

"Just one of the random things I decided to do while I was laying around," Abby said with a chuckle. "Here, we're nearly to Deck Three."

"Woohoo," I muttered, with slight sarcasm. It wasn't too bad climbing through them after all, not after adjusting. "Where does it come out on Deck Three, do you know? I'm assuming not the AI Core."

"Naw, I didn't take that turn. Basically the vents are kind of spread out like a honeycomb or something... I think it comes up around Miranda's office... Hey, EDI, let her know we're coming, okay? I like my head attached."

_Oh joy. Jack and Miranda both in one day! Yipee!_

"Nice to know," I simply said, continuing to push myself up the shaft behind my friend. I expected us to be there any minute now. "Oh, and ready for Tali's mission?"

"You bet," Abby replied. "I feel loads better. I'm practicing not coughing, though. I don't wanna weird out the quarians."

"If you do cough, they will probably all freak out," I muttered with a snort.

"Yeah..." A few seconds later-Abby did the leading-we stopped and came to a closed hatch. Abby typed in an authentication code and it slid open noiselessly, revealing a rectangle of light in front of me. Abby jumped out, and I did behind her. It turned out we had come up right next to Miranda's first window. She was watching us from her desk with a bemused expression. "Hi, Miranda!"

"Hello, Miranda," I greeted kindly, climbing out of the shaft right after Abby did. "Um, sorry about this...how are you today?"

"Finished exploring?" she asked.

Abby nodded. "Yup."

"Good. Shepard wants you both to get some food, shower, and get suited up. We're approaching the flotilla."

I nodded. "Alright then. We'll do that, and report to her as quick as we can," I said politely, proceeding to head to the door. In a way, I was excited. The Migrant Fleet would be an interesting place, and Tali's loyalty quest was always one of my favorites. "Come on, Abby."

"Fooooood," Abby agreed.

Making haste, I quickly took a shower after eating a small, quick meal, and got my armor on. I finished strapping my boots, then I put on my newest accessory: A helmet. I knew that I'd need something like it for this mission, since we were going to be on a fleet obsessed with cleanliness, and had Jacob help get me one from the armory.

I walked out onto the command deck, feeling slightly awkward. I had never been this suited up before, and it felt a bit strange to wear a helmet. I had usually gone out onto the battlefield with my head uncovered, but not this time. Seeing everything through a visor was...different.

I approached the cockpit, where Samara, Shepard, and of course Tali stood. Shepard had a helmet on as well, probably one specifically designed for her. Samara had a small mask on, and Tali was dressed like usual.

I simply greeted them with a nod, as Tali spoke to the quarians of the Rayya. The usual dialogue in the game was there, from what I could tell, but I was more focused on the actual fleet that the Normandy was approaching. It looked similar to how it did in Mass Effect 2, only so much better. So much more amazing.

You could see the details of the ships, even from this distance, much clearer. Their large size, the vast amounts of them. The Migrant Fleet, for some of the strange people that it housed, truly was a marvel. It made me even happier to be able to step inside it. Few other aliens had, aside from Kahlee Sanders, Gillian, Paul Grayson, and Handel, the characters from that one book: Ascension.

"Amazing," I muttered outloud, before hearing more footsteps. I looked back to see Abby approaching.

Abby was armed and ready, much as she was on Tuchanka. She'd braided her hair tightly behind her head to keep the stray bangs out of her eyes and, I noticed, to make room for the small, clear plastic object in her hand I recognized as Miranda's oxygen mask. "I'm here," she said, nodding to Shepard.

Shepard didn't even look like she noticed. She pointed to the mask and asked, "You know how to work that thing?"

"Uh... I was going to ask you soon, I swear."

...So she was going to ask when we were aboard the ship with the quarians? Was she trying to kill the entire race?

Shepard's expression was hidden beneath her helmet, but I saw her shoulders sag slightly. "Wonderful. Here." She helped Abby attach the mask to her face, her body masking most of the movements she made so I didn't get to see the details. I heard Abby's characteristic, "Oh, that's so cool!" before Shepard finished up.

"Nice to know we're travelling with professionals," Joker said flippantly. "Uh. Ma'am."

"Laugh it up, Joker..."

Joker snorted.

I chuckled slightly, but quickly tuned back into Tali's conversation when I heard the words "Understood. Approach exterior docking cradle 17."

So it was time, then.

I looked back to our Commander and companions as Joker docked the Normandy with the Rayya. I slowly moved towards the airlock, but turned around once again when I heard Tali speak again.

"I do hope that all of you are prepared," she said. "I am not sure how this will go."

I saw Abby shoot me a worried glance out of the corner of my eye, and it was too much to hope that Shepard, who was behind us, did not catch it. "And here we go," Abby muttered bouncing up and down on her heels. She coughed. "Damn it. Stupid cold."

"Um, like I said before, try to control that while on the Fleet, or at least while on the Rayya," I whispered to her, my voice sounding more mechanical because of the helmet, as we disembarked from the Normandy.

We all boarded the Rayya, and I continued to look around it's hallways with curiosity as we approached the usual group of quarians that appeared at first in the game. Kar'Danna was leading the pack, as always.

"Captain Shepard. Tali'Zorah told me a lot about you, I wish we could be meeting under more pleasant circumstances," Kar'Danna said sincerely. I always liked Danna, at least when he wasn't pulling a gun on Legion.

"I've never actually reached the rank of Captain," Shepard corrected. "Technically, I'm no longer in the Alliance military at all."

_Yup, we all work for Cerberus now._

"You're the Commander of the Normandy, responsible for the lives aboard it," the captain of the Rayya explained. "That entitles you to respect amongst our people. 'May you stand between your crew and harm as you lead them through the empty quarters of the stars.'"

"Keelah se'lai," Tali finished softly. "It's an old ship-captain's blessing, Shepard," she told the Commander in a low voice.

One thing I had to commend the quarians for, despite their attitudes that irritated me sometimes, was the deserved respect that they gave many people. You could tell that, to some extent, they were an honorable race.

"Tali helped the Normandy's crew out of many difficult situations. I'm here to return the favor," Shepard said, getting back to the topic at hand.

"I understand," Kar'Danna assured her with a nod. "As the commander of the vessel she serves on, your voice carries weight."

_More than you know, Shepard._

Kar'Danna looked at Tali. "I wish I could do more to help, Tali. The trial requires that I be officially neutral, but...I'm here, if you need to talk. They're charging you with bringing active geth onto the fleet as part of a secret project."

That got a reaction out of Tali, all right. I could feel my sympathy for her increase as she stepped forward. "That's insane!" she exclaimed. "I never brought active geth aboard. I only sent parts and pieces."

"You sent geth materials back to the Migrant Fleet?" Shepard asked in shock.

"Yes. My father needed the materials. He was working on a project," Tali told the Commander, and I nearly winced at the thought of what he was really doing. "If I sent back something that was only damaged, not permanently inactive...No. No. I checked everything. I was careful."

I continued to watch the conversation unfold, feeling so horrible as I did. Tali was about to get the shock of her life. "Technically, I am under orders to place Tali'Zorah under arrest pending the hearing, so, Tali, you're confined to this ship until the trial is over."

"Thank you, Captain," Tali said solemnly.

"Preparations got underway as soon as you arrived," Kar'Danna informed us. "The hearing is being held in the garden plaza. Good luck."

Abby crossed her arms a bit and checked out the place. "The ship doesn't seem as crowded on this wing," she said to Kar'Danna. "Why's that?"

Kar'Danna looked at Shepard as if in surprise, but Tali just nodded and he cleared his throat. "Traditionally this area is packed tighter, true," he said, "but due to recent... developments, we've implemented security measures against future infiltration."

"I understand," Abby said. "Thanks, I was just wondering."

"Yes, well. Tali, Admiral Shala'Raan is waiting for you. You'd best go and find her in the plaza."

"I will," Tali said. "Thank you. Again. Hopefully this is all just a major misunderstanding... but I do not know. I am nervous."

Kar'Danna simply nodded and took a step back, gesturing for us to proceed.

We all began to walk along, and as we did, we heard the murmurs from the bystanding quarians about their shock over what Tali supposedly did. As we did, my dislike for the Admiralty Board grew, much more than it had when I played the game. They were all just a bunch of feuding, disgusting nitwits who just wanted a war, with the exception of Koris or Qwib-Qwib or whatever his name was. And I knew that this had to be hurting Tali.

"The Migrant Fleet seems like a very nice place, Tali," I commented, trying to inject some positivity into this until we reached Shala.

"This is where I've grown up," Tali said fondly. "This ship means a lot to me. My people mean a lot to me. I always treasure the moments I come back here, because I don't know when I will again."

I almost made some re-assuring remark, but bit my lip before I could say anything. I didn't want to reveal any bit of her potential fate just yet, and all in all, I wasn't sure how Shepard would handle this. I was pretty sure that Shepard wouldn't give the evidence to the Admiralty Board once all was said and done, but would she be able to convince them to let Tali off? Or would Tali face exile and never return to her home again? It was a troubling thought.

Thankfully, the conversation didn't have the time to continue, as I saw Shala'Raan up ahead.

The older quarian turned away from the other woman she was talking to and regarded us with a cool countenance. "Tali'Zorah vas Normandy... I am glad you came. I could delay them for only so long."

Tali spread her arms out wide and embraced her. "Auntie Raan!" They hugged tightly, and Shala released her first, but she kept her three-fingered hand on Tali's shoulder as she said, "Shepard vas Normandy, this is Admiral Shala'Raan vas Tonbay. She's a friend of my father's. I... Wait. Raan. You called me... vas Normandy."

"I am afraid I did, Tali," Shala said. "The Admiralty Board moved to have you tried under that name, given your departure from the Neema."

"I take it that being associated with a human ship is a bad sign," Shepard deduced.

"They have... stripped me of my ship name. That's as good as declaring me exiled already!" Tali accused.

"It's not over yet, Tali. You have friends who still know you as Tali'Zorah vas Neema... whatever we must call you legally."

I suddenly couldn't take this anymore. I knew exactly what the dialogue would be and exactly how hurt Tali would be when she found out that her father couldn't attend the trial. Abby seemed to share my thoughts, because she just jerked her head towards the seats up front in the circular plaza.

I could still hear Shala'Raan, Tali, and Shepard talking in the background as we took a seat. "What sucks is that I actually get the Board's motives," Abby said wryly. Her voice sounded odder up close, beneath that mask of Miranda's. "I just hope that things go smoothly."

"I get their motives, too, they are just very underhanded. I really want Shepard to put them in their place sometime," I remarked, glancing back at the others, who were continuing their discussion. I looked back to Abby. "I'm more concerned for Tali than anything. I told her a little while back that there may be some surprises here, but I don't think she expects what is coming."

"What kid can, though?" Abby retorted. "Looks like the conclave's coming to order... C'mon, Samara, over here-sit with us!"

The asari looked slightly surprised at the offer as she trailed behind Shala, Tali, and Shepard but nonetheless graciously took her seat. As Shepard and Tali moved to the very center of the circular area that was to be the courtroom, the Commander glanced back at us, her expression hidden beneath her helmet. "Should we go up there and whisper in her ear?" Abby asked, but it was too late for me to answer.

Shala'Raan took her spot at the topmost podium. "This Conclave is brought to order!" Her voice rang out with authority, calling every quarian's attention in the room. "Blessed are the ancestors who have kept us alive, sustained us, and enabled us to reach this season. Keelah se'lai."

"Keelah se'lai," we muttered, along with the quarians. To my surprise, Samara's quiet, musical voice whispered the words beside me.

"The accused," Shala continued, "Tali'Zorah vas Normandy, has come with her captain to defend herself against the charges of treason."

"Objection!" _Oh here we go_. Admiral Koris's hand flew into the air with his outrage. "A human has no business at a hearing involving such sensitive military matters!"

"Then you should not have declared Tali'Zorah part of the Normandy, Admiral Koris," Shala countered smoothly. "By right as Tali's captain, Shepard must stay."

Koris turned back around, stared at the Commander for a moment, and then said: "Objection withdrawn."

Abby straightened beside me, cracking her knuckles in preparation.

"Shepard vas Normandy, your crew member Tali'Zorah stand here accused of treason. Will you speak for her?" Shala demanded.

Shepard nodded and took the stand. "If it helps Tali, I will," she began, "but in her heart, she is still Tali'Zorah vas Neema, a proud member of the Migrant Fleet." And then, with a bit more venom: "I regret that her _captain_ is forbidden to stand at her side today."

"Nobody has been forbidden from anything," Admiral Koris snapped. "It is a simple-"

"Lie to them if you must, Zaal'Koris, but don't lie to me and expect me to stay silent!" Admiral Gerrel, to his left, retorted. "The human is right."

"Admirals, please," Shala'Raan said. "Amelia Shepard's willingness to represent Tali'Zorah in this hearing is appreciated. Tali, you stand accused of bringing active geth to the Migrant Fleet. What say you?"

"Wait a moment," Shepard interjected, "how could Tali be accused of bringing geth on to the Migrant Fleet when she's been serving on the Normandy the whole time?"

"To clarify, Shepard," said Admiral Xen, the last of the four Admirals that hadn't yet been introduced, "Tali isn't accused of bringing back active units-only parts that could spontaneously reactivate."

"But I would NEVER send active pieces back to the Fleet!" Tali defended. "Everything I sent was disabled and harmless!"

Abby leaned close to me and whispered, "She's fiddling with her hands."

"Then explain how geth seized the lab ship where your father was working!" Admiral Koris yelled.

A collective shout of dismay went out among the gathered quarians, none louder than Tali's shocked exclamation. "No!" a woman beside us whispered. "They'll invade the entire fleet!"

"We have to destroy the Alarei, it's the only way," another whispered.

"How could she _do_ this?"

"Wait, what are you talking about?" Tali demanded. "What happened?"

"As... far as we can tell, Tali," Admiral Gerrel said sympathetically, "the geth have killed everyone on the Alarei... your father included."

"What?" The air around Tali seemed to break as the realization hit her. "Oh, Keelah..."

Shepard took a step forward. "I thought quarians valued family!" she spat. "How the hell do you justify springing this on Tali in the middle of a damn trial?"

"Our apologies," said Shala. "Tali should have been informed."

Tali turned to the Commander. "Shepard-we have to take back the Alarei."

"The safest course would be to simply destroy the ship," said Admiral Koris, "but if you are looking for an honorable _death_ instead of exile..." The way his lips twisted around the word left little to no doubt about his opinion on that.

"I am looking for my_ father_, you bosh'tet!" Tali snapped.

"You intend to take back the Alarei from the geth?" Shala asked. "This proposal is extremely dangerous."

"With your permission, Admirals, yes," Shepard stated. "The good of the Fleet must come first, and Tali has to find her father."

"Agreed," said Admiral Gerrel. "And if you do die on this worthy mission, Tali, we will see that your name be stripped of all charges."

"We can discuss that later," Admiral Koris reprimanded.

"Then it is decided," said Shala'Raan. "You will attempt to take back the Alarei. You are hereby given leave to depart the Rayya. A shuttle with wait for you in the secondary docking port to take you to the Alarei. Be safe, Tali. This trial will continue on your return, or upon the determination that you have been killed in action."

Shala stepped down from her podium, signaling the end of the Conclave.

I exhaled a deep breath, standing up. I glanced to Tali and the others, my heart going out to her. This had been no less of a blow than it was in the game, and I couldn't even imagine how she was feeling. We, as her crew members, had to be there for her.

I gave a slight nod to Abby and Samara, before approaching Tali and Shepard. "How are you, Tali?" I asked curiously.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked, indignation apparent in her voice. "Why didn't Raan...?"

"We can't worry about that right now, Tali," Shepard said soothingly, placing a gloved hand on her friend's environmental suit. "We will find your father. I promise."

"We should make haste," Samara commented, moving closer to stand a couple of feet from Shepard and Tali. "Searching for survivors should be our main objective." She glanced at Tali, eyeing her with those cold blue orbs of hers-yet I could definitely see some compassion and sympathy on her controlled features.

"Agreed," Shepard said with a nod. "But still... shoot anything that moves. We'll rely on these two to tell us where the survivors are."

Abby and I exchanged another look. Abby nodded without a word.

"How many survivors are over there?" Samara asked, looking straight at me-and then at Abby.

"Not enough for us to have to worry about them," Abby said. "Just get in, kill the geth, find Rael, and get out."

"Then you are saying that Rael is alive?" Samara pressed in that soft voice of hers. Tali's head turned sharply in our direction. It seemed like Samara was trying to get as much information as possible, even if it meant reading between the lines or making guesses based on our answers. Then again, I still remembered the talk I had with her in the mess hall, where she'd asked me a very insightful question.

"I can't tell you that," Abby said, biting her lip. She turned her pleading eyes on Tali. "I would if I could. I would. But we need to get to the Alarei now." Something seemed to catch her eye, because she stared fixedly at a point over my shoulder.

"Ma'am." Now THAT voice was familiar.

Tali sighed. "How many times have I asked you not to call me that, Reegar?"

The other quarian chuckled. "At least once more, ma'am. I won't keep you, but I want to wish you good luck. I know you can do it, that's why I recommended this course of action to the Board. Hope you don't mind."

"I wouldn't have it any other way." Tali looked as though she were about to hug him, dithering for a moment, then apparently decided to stay in her original position.

"We should press on." Samara's gentle, cool voice broke into the fuzzy-warm atmosphere which had developed during Tali and Kal'Reegar's brief exchange. "If the words of our psychics are any indication, we should hurry if we wish to find Rael'Zorah."

"Samara is right. I'd recommend talking to everyone, getting some info out of them, but for the most part, we don't have much time to lose. We need to get to the Alarei before the geth multiply even more," I suggested, talking for the first time in quite awhile.

"Yeah," Abby replied. "That's the best thing we can do right now... but Tali, if you want to stick around and talk to the Admirals, I'm sure that it can wait. Actually our visions showed that you could do that without losing too much time."

Tali took Abby's advice to heart, and decided to head off with Shepard to speak with everyone. I wasn't really interested in hearing stuff I had heard several times with Tali and the Admiralty Board, and I doubted Abby was, either, so we just stayed with Samara and began to walk around the garden a bit.

"Very nice ships," I commented. "More detail than what we saw in the visions."

"It has... been a long time since I have set foot on the flotilla," Samara murmured aloud, glancing around at her surroundings in a kind of reverence. Her mind held a wealth of knowledge and experience, the kind that only a being who'd been through a lot-and for centuries and centuries-could hold. Her wizened eyes were like a mirror of her soul, and her voice was a window of her experience.

"You were on the Migrant Fleet once?" Shepard asked in surprise, turning her head to regard the Justicar curiously.

"Indeed I was," Samara replied. "Though not many of the quarians ever knew the true reason for my visit; I was... after a stowaway. Someone I had tracked to one of the ships in this fleet."

"Let me guess," Shepard murmured, "the same criminal you've tracked to Omega?"

I glanced sharply at Shepard, realizing that apparently Samara had already discussed her... daughter with the Commander as well. It surprised me a bit and made me wonder where we would be going next-to Pragia, or to Omega?

Samara gave a little nod. "Yes, it was she."

I blinked in surprise. This was another fact about the ME universe that we had not learned in the game. And thoughts were starting to swirl in my head: Could Morinth convince quarians to take off their suits so she could mate with them? She was very influencing as we all knew, but quarians were also smart people...aside from people like the Admirals.

"Wow, Morinth really has been everywhere, hasn't she?" I commented aloud.

Both Samara and Shepard turned to look at me. Something flashed in their eyes for a moment-were they startled? Surprised?-but then the expression faded quickly. Of course, they were quite used to us knowing pretty much everything by now.

"What do you know of Morinth, from your visions?" Samara asked me, looking at me intently with a calm but intense look on her face. Her blue eyes seemed to pierce through me.

I saw Abby shoot me with a glare out of the corner of my eye.

I let out a small sigh. _Oh dear. Good job, HK, with your big mouth. Weird, random convos with Jack, then accidentally opening my mouth about something relating to a loyalty quest? I am not becoming the new resident Sarah now that she's been locked up._

"Um, honestly, not too much. We know of a couple stories you told, or will tell Shepard," I said nervously, glancing at the Commander. "And we do know some other things, but we're not at liberty to say."

"Like usual," I heard Shepard mutter. I wasn't sure if she intended for us to hear her or not. She did seem a little annoyed when this sort of thing happened, though-where just enough information was spilled to inform her that we knew what was coming, but we weren't going to say much.

"Has she killed many on Omega?" Samara asked me, never taking her eyes off me.

I frowned. "I'm sorry, Samara, I really can't say. I really can't be sure, though we may have one answer in mind. You will find out in due time, I _promise_," I assured her softly, trying to take her attention off of this subject. If that was possible.

For a moment I wasn't sure if she was going to press the subject or not. Finally she looked at Shepard and spoke to her instead. "Obviously she will continue to kill until we can get to her," the Justicar said. "Whether or not I know how many she has killed, or will kill, is irrelevant at least for the moment; I will be unable to stop her until we get to Omega."

She now looked at Shepard with an intense expression on her face-up to this point, I had never seen her show so much emotion, both in her voice and on her face. "Please, Shepard. Once we are finished here, let us proceed immediately to Omega to find her... and stop her."

Shepard started at her. She seemed momentarily stunned at how much emotion Samara had just shown-and we all knew that it was unusual for the Justicar to make such strong demands of others.

After a few moments of silence passed, the Commander finally gave a small nod. "I'm sure Jack and Zaeed can wait just a little longer," she murmured aloud. "Very well, Samara."

"That probably is a good idea. I will say this: Disposing of Morinth is no doubt more pressing than blowing up Jack's childhood home or killing Vido. As far as I know, both will still be there after awhile," I agreed. "It may not be the case with Morinth."

Although chronology never mattered in the game when it came to loyalty quests, as I'd acknowledged a million times, we were in real time now. Morinth could always stay on Omega until the other two missions were complete, but that was a chance we couldn't take. We needed at least one of the two main biotics loyal, and at the moment, I wasn't sure what the result of the Jack and Miranda fight would be.

Shepard simply nodded, and I knew that the matter had been settled. "Come on," she said, indicating the direction of the quarian Admirals with a tip of her head. "We should see how Tali's doing... and see if we can-or should-hurry her up."

* * *

**(Sarah)**

"There we go," Kelly murmured into my ear as she took the towel that had been wrapped around my hair away and put it aside. I tried to look around, but she gently put her hands on either side of my head to discourage me from looking around. "Now remember what I said," she told me. "I don't want you looking in the mirror until I'm sure it's perfect."

I tried not to roll my eyes. "I'm sure it's fine," I muttered. At least I sincerely hoped it was fine. Then again, how "fine" would blue hair with purple highlights look, anyway?

I felt her slender fingers moving through my hair, perhaps an attempt to smooth it out-or to make sure the dye wasn't leaking or anything, I had no idea. Then I felt her running a brush through my hair, and I was suddenly glad that I'd gotten it cut. Having someone else brush my hair when it was short was far more bearable than having someone brush it when it was down past my shoulders.

"Okay," Kelly finally said after a few moments. "We're all done-you can look in the mirror now." She actually pulled me to my feet and half-escorted me toward the bathroom mirror-just a moment ago she didn't want me to look at myself, now she was all-too-anxious, it seemed. Maybe she wanted me to be impressed with her handiwork, now that she was done.

What I saw in the mirror was, well... um...

I guess I simply wasn't expecting to ever see myself with blue hair, truly. I had imagined it-I had to, since I seriously considered it and then decided to dye it that color. It looked sorta... weird. My hair still looked like it always did, brushed out so that it was straight and slightly fluffy, but it was just... blue instead of brown. And I could definitely see the highlights of purple in the front. In fact... I could also see that Kelly had taken the liberty of dying a single lock of hair in the front entirely purple.

"Well, what do you think?" Kelly asked me when I said nothing. I was still busy staring at myself.

I reached up and ran a hand through my hair. Maybe part of me just needed to reaffirm that that WAS still my hair... attached to my own scalp, no matter what color it was. I even found myself tugging on it a little, then I dropped my hand. I knew how silly that must have looked.

"G-good," I finally said with a forced nod. "It looks fine, just like what I asked for," I added quickly. Indeed, it WAS exactly what I'd asked for. Whether or not it was what I really wanted though... well, that was another matter altogether.

But it was my own fault and I was stuck with it now. I was the one who'd asked for it, after all.

I turned myself away from the mirror... sorta trying to forget what I just saw in my reflection. It would just take me some time to get used to it, no doubt. "Thanks, Kelly," I told her. "I really appreciate this."

Yeah, it wasn't every day I thanked a person for helping me turn my hair blue... if my parents saw this, well... I was certain their reaction would not be pretty.

"You're welcome, and I really hope this helps you resolve some of the issues you have," Kelly told me with a sincere smile.

I tried hard not to roll my eyes. "Yeah... thanks," I murmured. "And I do appreciate you taking the time with this," I added with a small smile. "Is it okay if I go now? I'd like to... get going on some other stuff."

"Sure," Kelly told me. "I need to get back to the bridge anyway. And," she added, squeezing my shoulder a little, "we should talk again soon. I think that you might be on the road to recovery, so to speak."

I blinked. "Um... is that so?"

"Yes, I can tell a lot about people," she said. "I think that you have realized you can't just keep doing the things you have been doing. And you are trying to do something about it. This is simply the first step." She nodded at my hair indicatively.

"Yeah," I muttered. "So can I go?"

"Of course. It was nice chatting with you."

I waited until I was out of her quarters-and after I'd heard the doors hiss shut-before I shook my head a little.


	34. Put your top back on!

**(Abby)**

The shuttle we took was small and cramped. There was no driver, to my shock, and it was up to Tali to navigate the shuttle through the maze of quarian ships towards the Alarei.

The Alarei had drifted to the back of the fleet, out of firing range of the other ships. We could still see a slight perimeter guard around the ship, but other than that it was just left alone. Tali spoke low, calm words into the ship's communications network in her own language. We must have been allowed to pass, because Tali gunned the ship forward and began to make adjustments on the console in front of her.

"And here we go," I muttered, tapping my foot restlessly on the floor. My voice sounded extremely weird, as confined as my face was in this small breathing mask. "Hey, I bet I could do an Elmo impression later." I sniffed. Stupid cold.

"Doesn't matter here. I guess you can sneeze all you want, unless it gets into a wound of Tali's or something," HK said, probably some small attempt at a joke. He sat calmly in the shuttle, weapons ready to go. "All we'll see here are mountains and mountains of geth. It'll be interesting to see them in person for the first time, though. Actual geth."

"Yeah..." I mused. Geth were an unknown being to me, dangerous and lethal. Nearly as bad as the Reapers in some ways, though our talks with Legion had somewhat exposed more about the geth culture. But I felt comfortable around LEGION, not the Heretics. Heretics equaled bad news in my book. "You can't use Aikido on a geth, though. I'm glad Shep brought the Arc Projector."

Samara sat quietly in her seat. She looked straight ahead, as though lost in thought. Yet she seemed to have a keen awareness of her surroundings at the same time. Her eyelids were half-shut, and she seemed to be meditating lightly.

Shepard was in the co-pilot's seat. She seemed to be talking quietly to Tali, perhaps trying to gain as much information as possible about the ship and what her father might be doing.

"Get ready," Shepard warned us. We could see the Alarei looming closer and closer outside of the ship's view screen. I felt the familiar cold, spiky sensation of adrenaline settling deep into my bones. I closed my eyes, focusing on the sensation and consciously relaxing the knot of anxiety in my stomach. I wished I could be like Samara and contemplate these things with serene tranquility, but there was no way. No way.

I concentrated on the thoughts of myself in real life back on Earth. She was sitting in English class writing an essay about an interesting story. I tried to pick the details from her mind, but I was too keyed up.

A gentle tremor shook through the shuttle as we docked with the larger quarian vessel, and I felt the shuttle sealing itself in place as the docking clamps locked in. I could hear the noises of the engines ceasing as they powered down, and there was a slight hissing noise as the interior and exterior pressures and atmosphere equalized.

Tali was literally the first one out of her seat, having locked down the shuttle controls. Shepard followed her immediately toward the back of the shuttle where the door was. Samara, despite having been in a tranquil, meditative state for at least a few minutes, was quickly on her feet, too. Yet it wasn't like she jumped to her feet, she simply rose in a fluid, dance-like motion that her appear to be standing when she had been seated an instant ago. It wasn't an instant movement; merely smooth and swift. I had no idea how she did it.

HK and I exchanged glances, and then we joined the others as Shepard opened the airlock. We both knew where we were going and there didn't seem to be much else to say.

The Alarei seemed to stretch out before us like a huge building as we entered. It still had the look and feel of a ship, yet it also had sort of... a homey feel about it. I could see where bulkheads had been ripped out or corridors had been widened to make room for more people. Indeed, quarian ships were more like individual cities, or community buildings, not regular ships.

Shepard took point, as she always did, and HK and I took the middle next to Tali. Samara trailed behind us.

We went down a long corridor until we entered into a larger room-and that was when we met some of the first geth. There was an enormous one in there-tall and heavily shielded-which I recognized as a geth prime. The rest of them were smaller, varying in color from black to red to light gray, but they were deadly in their own way as well.

I heard Shepard shout as she dove for cover. There were a few areas where we could all duck, although the large table in the center of the room wasn't very good cover material. It was too easy for shots to fly under it as well as over it.

Samara began to glow softly as she prepared for a biotic charge; I saw her eyes intently searching for a suitable target as she continued to power up. I knew that it took considerable effort for her to do this; she didn't want to pick a target and miss, plus she knew that everyone else was firing as well. So she wanted to select a geth carefully, and not pick off a target that someone else was about to take down. That would be a waste of energy.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw Tali getting ready to move as well. She had her gun ready but she hesitated instead of firing immediately. Shepard was the only one firing at the moment even though the geth had already opened fire. The geth prime was beginning to charge toward Shepard, who still had point. Samara finally fired a blast of biotic energy to take the monster's shields down. This enabled Shepard to fire at it, damaging its circuits enough so that it made a warbling noise and went down.

By the time the geth prime hit the floor, Tali had finally finished what she was doing; she'd been concentrating on her omni-tool this entire time. Now a combat drone appeared in front of her and began to dart around the geth, taking wild, random shots at them as it whisked around them. Now I understood-she was setting up the droid to be used as a distraction!

"Let's get them!" Tali shouted, and sprang up out of her cover to fire a few shots. One blast from her gun blew a geth's head right off.

HK and I had fanned out on either side of Shepard, firing at will. _Nothing more than target practice_, I told myself. I was using my assault rifle, figuring it would give me a better spread of fire than my pistol. Shepard had recently upgraded the rest of the crew's weaponry, giving the assault rifle a better edge in combat than it had originally.

I noticed HK using his assault rifle as well, growing quite attached to it since Shepard had given them to us awhile back. He seemed very focused and silent, as usual, as he fired on a geth. He was taking them out within a reasonable amount of time, but not as fast as Shepard or Samara, of course. I could tell that he'd get slightly frustrated when they'd put their shields up randomly. It was a nice, annoying little trait that geth used often.

I saw a slight shimmer of energy in the corner, maybe a heat flash or... something else. I adjusted my aim and squeezed the trigger, pausing only to switch out heat sinks. The bullets penetrated the geth's cloaking shield and the Destroyer became visible, walking towards us with mechanical precision.

HK and I turned our fire on to the Destroyer and took it down in tandem. It fell to the ground in a random clutter of parts and servos, smoking slightly. "Woohoo!" I shouted with a laugh.

Over the next few minutes we proceeded with caution. Everyone kept their eyes sharp in case we ran into more geth, though thankfully we only ran into a few here and there. Shepard kept a close eye on the GPS device on her omni-tool; she wasn't entirely sure where she was going, but the GPS helped keep her on track. I knew that there was a little arrow-thing that could indicate the way to go in the game, but apparently she had sort of a real one as well. Apparently it was homing in on the main control center of the ship... or something like that.

There was another thing I'd noticed over the course of our missions that was different from the game. Sometimes we would come across consoles or datapads that could be bypassed or locked, or sometimes we could come across a small container of minerals. Sometimes Shepard might stop to investigate a module and make an attempt to crack it, but most of the time she wouldn't bother. Not that I could blame her, because most of the time we just didn't have time to stop and pay attention to every single locked safe, encrypted datapad, or locked console we came across. She would sometimes investigate to see if they were open or easily accessed, but otherwise we would just press on.

Sometimes we did not really bother with minerals either... mainly because this wasn't the game anymore; it couldn't simply be magically added to the game inventory were it would simply become a number. Here, we would have to actually carry it back to the ship with us, and sometimes that just wasn't possible. Especially if we were going to spend most of our time just trying to stay alive, and get back to the Normandy in one piece.

However, the presence of Tali seemed to make things a little easier in that area. Quarians were experts at collecting anything whenever they could. There were some items-tech research, I presumed-which she hacked into easily and then she downloaded the data and schematics onto her omni-tool. I also saw her approach a small container of refined platinum and she proceeded to stuff its contents into her pockets without bothering to ask Shepard if she should or not. And for the first time... I got to see where she had some of her pockets. I was a little surprised.

I was still nervous, though, and for good reason. There were geth scattered around the ship just waiting for the chance to kill us, and I knew that despite my knowing the layout of the Alarei, I was just as vulnerable as everybody else here.

"Wait-stop, stop," Tali said, drifting over towards a doorway leading into what looked like a medical station. She seemed to have seen something in there through the window that caught her eye. She laid her three-fingered hand on a large, roundish item on the bed-just another techy thing to me, I didn't know-and she said in a somewhat surprised voice, "This... is one of the storage units I sent to father. It looks like parts of a disabled repair drone..."

Abruptly, she activated her omni-tool and scanned it. "Plus a reflex algorithm I didn't recognize. I remember collecting this piece. I got this from Haestrom."

"What made a part worth sending back to your father on the Fleet?" Shepard asked curiously.

"It had to be in working order," said Tali, her accented voice sounding tired and strained. "Something that could be analyzed and be integrated into other technology. Anything new had priority, of course. Technology that the geth had developed themselves. Signs of modification, clues to their thinking."

"And how did you get them to your father?" Shepard asked, taking out her own omni-tool.

"I left them in packages in secure drops in civilized areas," Tali explained. "Someone on a Pilgrimage could see that it was shipped home. For very valuable finds, I would signal home and Father would send a small ship."

"Yeah," Shepard said doubtfully, "but Haestrom was a war zone. How the hell did you manage to send things back home in the middle of that?"

"These suits have more pockets than you think," Tali said archly. "Quarians have learned to salvage things where ever possible. Whatever we can, whenever we can." The bulge in her chest where she'd stashed some of the platinum seemed to verify this. "Within reason, though. We are not vorcha. We actually repair what others toss aside. Hundreds of ships within our fleet were either found floating derelict in space or purchased for next to nothing."

"Well does that salvaged gear give you a clue as to what happened here?" Shepard asked, gesturing at the disabled repair drone.

"No... I don't know Shepard. I just-I don't know. I checked everything I sent back here. I passed up great finds because they may be too dangerous, prone to uncontrolled reactivation and self-repair! I don't know which possibility is worse-that I got sloppy and sent something dangerous, or that Father actually did all of this."

Something caught my eye in the corner of the room. It was a data terminal, still open and activated the quarian's version of instant messenger open to the front screen. Tali had told me a long time ago that quarians recorded their scientific journal and chatter by recording themselves via this application, and, curious, I went and opened up the last log.

A male quarian appeared on-screen and spoke with a voice I recognized immediately: "Who's running the system diagnostic? I didn't authorize... oh, Keelah. How many geth are networked?"

"All of them, Rael'Zorah," said another voice on the other end.

"Shut it down! Shut everything down! They're in the system!" Rael'Zorah omni-tool flashed, and the screen went foggy.

I glanced at Tali, alarmed. She had turned away, her shoulders tense. "Oh, Keelah..."

Shepard pursed her lips in a disapproving line I recognized all too well. "Let's move out," she said.

We continued through a short corridor that led to another large room. It was full of crates and it had a few work stations and desks here and there, along with a few computer terminals. Almost immediately a single, large geth came in through the opposite door just as we reached the other side of the room. Everyone immediately went into their defensive positions, as usual-but thankfully it turned out to be only one geth.

Dual shots from Tali and Shepard took it down easily. It staggered and fell down close to the floor; a final shot to the head from Tali put it permanently offline.

For a moment we just stood there-Shepard wanted to make certain that there were no other geth coming. I saw her glancing toward me and HK, as though wanting to double-check to see if there was an ambush waiting or something. When we said nothing, she made a slight motion of her head to indicate we should continue.

We headed out through the next door and approached the bottom of a flight of stairs. Shepard was the first to spot another terminal, one that contained another recording. She cast a quick glance in Tali's direction, and then she used her omni-tool to initiate a replay.

This time it was a lone female quarian speaking in the recording. Her breath was ragged although her voice was clear. Of course like all quarians I couldn't see her face, but I could feel the urgency and regret in her tone as she spoke quickly and sincerely. "We locked down navigation. Weapons are offline. Our mistake won't endanger the fleet. They're burning through the door! I don't have much time." Was she crying now? I couldn't tell. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry! Jonah, if you get this-" There was the sound of weapons fire-the quarian lurched forward a little, desperate to finish her message. "Be strong for Daddy. Mommy loves you very much!" she shouted as shots rang out-and then the screen went black.

I couldn't help but stare at the screen in horror for a moment. I didn't even know that poor quarian's name and I knew nothing about her. I could only imagine what her son would think and feel if he ever got this message.

"Keelah," Tali whispered-her voice was raspy with emotion. "What happened here?"

I looked at her, aghast. I bit my lip and bounced a bit on my heels before making my choice-I held out my omni-tool and downloaded the video to my device. "We should get it back to her kid," I said. "It's the right thing to do, and we can actually do it now."

"Yes, I agree," Tali murmured.

"It would be fitting," Samara concurred. It was the first time that the Justicar had spoken in quite some time.

"Come on," Shepard said gently but firmly. Her commanding tone gave us the push we needed to press on.

"That's a very nice gesture, actually," HK remarked as we began to proceed up the next flight of stairs. Even when he had some helmet over his face, I could take a good guess at the look under it and what he was trying to do: He was thinking and was trying to pinpoint where we were. "I think there's a big fight up ahead. Get ready."

I'd totally forgotten where exactly we were at. Were we at the place with the stairs, or the two doors?

Yup, the place with the two doors. Wonderful.

I ducked behind cover, switching to my sniper rifle with one fluid motion. Shepard hit cover next to me, her brown eyes glancing up at the reflective ceiling to gather the enemies' positions. I mimicked her, but you just couldn't see a cloaked Destroyer from a bad reflection. I peeked out of cover, lining my sniper rifle up with a geth entering from the right-most door. I squeezed the trigger. It went down without a sound.

Chuckling, I ducked back down and reloaded.

I glanced at HK while reloading, and noticed that he was taking off a few of the simplistic geth troopers with his sniper rifle as well. He looked at me for a moment. "Great minds think alike," he muttered with a shrug, before turning back to the battle. It would only get more intense from here on out.

"Come on, we don't have _time_ for this," Tali muttered underneath her breath, firing rapidly at the incoming geth.

Over the next ten minutes or so, the geth just seemed to keep pouring in through the doors. Every time we thought we had them all shot down, more would pour in-through both doors at once. Samara was beginning to use up her reserves of biotic energy; Shepard-who'd been firing the most, considering she always took point-was beginning to run low on ammo. Tali was getting more and more frustrated; especially since her combat drone had stopped working. Apparently those things conked out after a while if they used up too much energy and took too many hits.

Finally though, after what seemed like hours-even though it was only minutes-the final geth fell. A silence fell over the room, and Shepard slowly rose from her cover. "I think that's it," she murmured, then glanced around to make certain this was true.

Then we did something that would never occur in the game; we actually sat down to take a short breather. Samara looked as though she needed to-she had used up a lot of energy, both physical and mental, to help take down those seemingly endless waves of geth. She needed to recoup more than anyone else.

"Sit down for a few minutes," Shepard told the asari as the commander lowered herself onto the edge of a crate. She looked down at her weapon and frowned slightly. "Damn I've used up nearly all of my ammo clips." She sighed and then glanced toward us. "Normally I wouldn't dream of asking, but... could one of you loan me a spare clip?" she asked.

HK nodded immediately. He was likely in a stage where he just wanted to keep moving and not get stalled for too long, lest we die. "Sure!" he exclaimed, immediately tossing Shepard a few thermal clips.

Shepard looked at me with a nod-her way of acknowledging, possibly even giving a silent "thank you" in the gesture. She immediately replaced the used clip in her rifle with the fresh one I'd given her.

We waited in silence for the next few minutes, grateful for the chance to catch our collective breath. Despite being the most worn-out, Samara actually seemed to be the one back on her feet the quickest. Though whether it was due to her calm and collected outward appearance or due to her years and years of experience and training, I had no way to know.

Finally though, it was time to move again. We proceeded into the next room, where there was another screen on the wall. This one was a place that obviously contained data. Tali began to move toward it the moment she spotted it.

"This console might have something," the quarian said thoughtfully as she neared it. She began to touch some of the keys, studying it for a moment. "Most of the data is corrupted, but a few bits are left," she finally said.

Her omni-tool began to glow brightly on her arm, and she studied it intently for a moment. She taped a few keys on it, and then studied the readout again.

Finally she turned back to face Shepard. "They were performing experiments on the geth systems," she told her-though I knew she was speaking to all of us. She was mostly focused on Shepard because they were good friends. "They were looking for new ways to overcome geth resistance to reprogramming."

"Do you think testing weapons on the geth was right?" Shepard asked.

"It's not testing weapons on prisoners, Shepard," Tali replied hastily. "I only sent Father parts. Even if he assembled them, they wouldn't be sapient. You saw what Saren and Sovereign did with the geth. Any research that gives us an advantage is important."

"Did you know what kind of tests your father was running?" Shepard inquired.

Tali shook her head. "No, Father just told me to send back any geth technology I could find that wasn't a direct danger to the fleet. I suspected that he might be testing weapons but I thought he was just working on new ways to bypass shields or armor."

"Could any of that data clear your name?"

"Doubtful," Tali said. "This is mostly results data," she explained, turning back to face the terminal screen. "Effects of different disruptive hacking techniques. I don't understand all of it. But they may have been activating the geth deliberately; I don't know. Nothing here says specifically, but if they were... then Father was doing something terrible."

She looked directly at the screen, and then spoke to it. "What was all of this, Father? You promised you'd build me a house on the homeworld! Was this going to bring us back home?"

"Tali," Shepard said softly, causing the quarian to look at her. "Maybe it's time for your people to let go of trying to reclaim your homeworld from the geth."

"You have no idea what it is like!" Tali snapped. "_YOU_ have a planet to go back to! _MY_ home is one hull breach away from extinction!"

"You've got a place here, Tali," Shepard pointed out. "Don't throw it away in a war you don't need." She took a step closer, as if to place a comforting hand on her shoulder-but Tali backed away, rejecting her touch.

"Don't need?" Tali echoed. "Shepard, if I don't wear a helmet in my own home, I die! A single kiss could put me in the hospital!" Her voice abruptly went quieter, hoarse with longing. "Every time you touch a flower with bare fingers, inhale its fragrance without air filters, you are doing something I cannot."

Her fingers curled into a fist and she shook it briefly in the air, between herself and Shepard. "Damn the Pilgrimage! Without it, I might never have known what I was missing! What we had lost when we lost our homeworld!"

"Have the quarians considered colonizing a new world?" Shepard asked thoughtfully.

Tali sighed, then explained the complications that that would bring. I remembered it so well from the game, but hearing her say it in person made me realize how bitter the quarians were about it, and how bitter Tali herself was. She told us about how it would take decades just to reacclimatize to their own environment on their own homeworld-but at least they would be able to do it within their lifetime. Retaking their own world, and attempting to colonize another, was the difference between sixty years and six hundred.

I had no idea if I could live with that if I had to.

"At the very least we can take back one ship," Tali finally said with a sigh of resignation. "Let's go." She then moved toward the next door, abruptly ending the conversation. Shepard nodded, and I knew that expression on her face-she knew that none of these issues would be solved here anyway, not in this one discussion. All they could do was find out what happened and retake the ship.

I also felt a sense of dread growing inside me-I knew that Tali was going to find her father soon. And I knew her heart would momentarily break.

We went through the next door... and we found ourselves at the stairs. In just a few seconds, geth began to poor out of the door below. Wonderful. Everything seemed fast and slow, all at the same time. My mind was working overtime, as it always did during these fights for our lives. I was logging positions in my head, keeping half an eye out for the characteristic shimmer of a Destroyer in stealth mode.

My shields jolted with the impact of high-velocity geth rounds, forcing me back into cover. Shepard tapped my arm. "Switch positions."

Switching with Shepard put her closer to the corner where the staircase was and put me in the middle. I could hear Shepard firing rapidly at the three geth attempting to walk up the stairs. I activated the Overload program on my omni-tool and waved it in the direction of the closest enemy. Electrical arcs of blue appeared momentarily around its oculus, and then the geth collapsed, falling on top of the two behind it. "Nice!" Shepard congratulated, taking out the last two with a well-placed shot to their heads.

There were more, though-there always were.

For the tiniest moment, I began to hum a song to myself. I had to stop myself after I realized it, though-there was no way that Shepard, or even Tali, would appreciate me whistling the tune to "This is War."

"This is taking too long, Shepard!" Tali snapped.

"We can only go so fast, Tali!" Shepard snapped back. I felt a sudden shift of energy beside me, and Shepard made a sudden movement; the geth I'd been aiming at suddenly shot up into the air along with three of its buddies, hit the ceiling, and then slammed into the ground hard enough to crack their tough steel plating.

"Miranda teach you that trick, Commander?" I asked with a laugh.

"Yeah."

I lined up my sniper rifle on a ripple in the air, squeezed the trigger, and reloaded. "Down to three rounds in this thing," I informed everybody.

"You won't need it," Shepard said. She took out the grenade launcher and aimed it carefully. A dark, shiny object went flying through the air and landed in the doorway, exploding with the force of a bomb.

The room finally went silent.

"Good job," HK said, sounding slightly exhausted as he gathered up spare thermal clips from the floor. He put them in his assault rifle, and continued to shift around the spare stuff lying around for anything of use. He knew that we'd need everything we could get for the next, final battle.

"We should be close to the end of the ship, by now. Hopefully, my father is close by. Come on, I suggest that we move," Tali said, trying to sound calm and collected, but there still was an edge to her voice.

I looked at the Commander, who simply nodded. She looked at Samara, HK, and myself, and gestured for us to follow her. Once again, the Commander took the lead, taking us down the stairs and towards the next door. My chest was knotting up with dread the closer we got. Tali's life was about to be turned upside down, and it was already so sad in the game, I imagined it would be even tougher to watch in real life.

Shepard opened the door, and slowly walked in. It only took one or two short seconds for her to see the body of a quarian on the floor, and she had barely gotten a glimpse of it when Tali came in behind her. Tali hurried inside, but came to a quick stop when she saw Rael'Zorah dead on the floor.

"Father!" she cried, crouching down in front of him. "No, no, _no_! You always had a plan...masked life signs, or an onboard medical stasis program, maybe. You...you wouldn't...they're wrong! You wouldn't just die like this. You wouldn't leave me-"

It was at that point that Shepard cut her off. "Hey, come here," she said softly and kindly, pulling her close, old friend into an embrace.

I cast a worried glanced to HK, before we looked back at the scene playing out before us. "Damn it!" Tali exclaimed. "Damn it. I'm sorry..."

"You've got nothing to be sorry about," Shepard calmly assured her.

"Maybe he would have known I'd come," Tali wondered, turning back to her dead father. She leaned down again. "Maybe he left a message," she said desperately.

Tali placed her hand on her father's dead one and activated his omni-tool for him. I recognized the playback script the quarians used and knew immediately that yes, this was it. The dark room was bathed in a soft orange light as Rael'Zorah appeared, still alive, over his lifeless and bloodied body.

"Tali," he spoke in a deep, accented voice, "if you are listening to this, then I am dead. The geth have gone active, I do not have much time."

He was panting for breath, holding a stitch in his side. I could see where he'd applied medi-gel to what looked like exposed areas of his arms. Looking down, I noticed that the orange medi-gel was glowing slightly in the light. He hadn't had shields or combat overlays to protect him, so the bullets had ripped through his environmental suit as easily as they would a normal human shirt.

"Their central hub will be on the bridge," he continued. "You need to destroy it to stop their VI processes from developing new neural links. Make sure Han'Gerrel and Daro'Xen see the data. They must-"

Rael'Zorah collapsed. The communication ended and the omni-tool shut off. It seemed to be on a low battery.

"Thanks, Dad," Tali sarcastically remarked, standing up and looking at Shepard again. The rest of us just stayed behind the two, perfectly silent.

"He knew you'd come for him. He was trying to help you. It's not perfect. It's not what you wanted. But it's the best he could do," Shepard encouraged, continuing to trying to calm Tali down and keep her stable. I was glad to see that she was still choosing all of the Paragon options, too.

"I don't know what's worse: Thinking that he never really cared, or thinking that he _did_, and that this was the only way he could show it," Tali remarked out loud. However, right after that, she sounded a bit more stable and serious. She was, much like Shepard, trying to keep herself sane and alert. Tali'Zorah had gone through more in her young life than many quarians her age, and it showed. She was not the type to allow emotion rule her actions-except, perhaps, a bitter need for revenge. I was all for setting her loose on the geth, thinking for once that she could beat Grunt. "It doesn't matter. One way or another, _I _cared. And _I'm_ here, and we're ending this."

"Tali, you don't know how he would have ended that message," said Shepard.

"Yes... I do. Now come on. Let's go."

Tali stepped over her father's body with a straight back, and Shepard followed with one last look at the dead quarian. Samara, who was still taking rear guard in the back, waited for us. I just shook my head sadly at HK and walked around the quarian's body, jogging to catch up with Shepard. I switched out my sniper for my assault rifle-I was going to need it.

The bridge was a mess of dead quarians. It seemed as though most of the researchers had set up a barricade but were overwhelmed by the geth force. I could see the geth Prime linking up to the bridge console directly in front of us, just on the other side of the bulletproof glass.

Tali, Samara, and HK took the left, leading Commander Shepard and I to flank right. They still hadn't noticed us.

I activated my omni-tool and overloaded the Prime's shields alongside Tali in a perfectly synchronized move. The geth reacted quicker than thought, all seven of them turning around as quickly and smoothly as though it were choreographed.

Samara slammed them all against the wall with her biotics, aided by Commander Shepard. I could see the bulkhead beginning to sink with the effort the two of them put into it, grinding the geth to metal husks. One by one their activation light went dark.

The final battle was over, and we hadn't even needed to fire any shots. Shepard sagged against the wall, panting, and even Samara looked winded. Shepard took a few deep breaths to calm her system down and made to scratch her head. Her fingers knocked against her helmet, restricting her from the motion. "And that's how we do it," she panted, but I could hear the smile in her voice.

"That should be it," HK remarked, panting slightly as well. He looked up and stared at the console right ahead, where Tali would find the evidence that her father truly did do all of this.

"I'm glad that you can at least tell us that much," Tali remarked under her breath, causing HK to glance at her, but he didn't say anything, and neither did I. As Tali approached the console, HK looked at me, but still remained silent. We both knew that she had to be angry at us for not telling her about what she would find here, but who in their right mind wouldn't be? And now was not the time to pursue it.

Shepard followed Tali up to the console, not saying a word, either. Tali began speaking again. "This console is linked to the main Hub that Father mentioned. Disabling it shut down any geth we missed. It looks like some of the recordings remained intact. They'll tell us how this happened, what Father did."

"You sound like you don't really want to hear it," Shepard observed.

"No. We have to, I know," Tali firmly stated, looking at her friend. "I just...this is terrible, Shepard. I don't want to know that he was part of this."

Nonetheless, Tali went through with it. She brought up her omni tool, and the recordings began playing. All five of us listened as Rael'Zorah and those other two quarians discussed how close they were getting, and continuing to keep this from the Admiralty Board and Tali, and how her father didn't want Tali exposed to any political blowback. Unfortunately, despite keeping her in the dark, she had been anyway. But there was nothing anyone could do about that now.

"It sounds like he was doing this for you," Shepard said, after it ended.

Tali looked back to the Commander. "I never wanted this, Shepard," she stated sadly. "Keelah, I never wanted this. Everything here is _his_ fault! I tried to pretend that it didn't point to him, but this...when this comes up in the trial, they'll...we can't tell them. Not the Admirals, not anyone."

"Tali, without this evidence, you're looking at exile," Shepard reminded her.

"You think I don't know that? You think I want to live knowing that I can never see the fleet again? But I can't go back into that room and say that my father was the worst war criminal in our people's history! I _cannot_!" Tali exclaimed, getting unnerved again.

Shepard let out an audible sigh. "We're not going to decide anything here," she said. "Let's see what the admirals say once we get back."

"You're my captain in this hearing, Shepard. It's your decision, but please, don't destroy what my father was," Tali begged, a slight desperation creeping into her voice. "Come on. If we wait too long, they'll decide we're already dead, and none of this will matter."

Somehow, the worst part was watching Tali walk past Rael'Zorah's body without stopping.

* * *

We made it back to the shuttle okay, as we'd already known. Tali would not talk to any of us, and we didn't press her to. I was tired, mentally and physically, but I couldn't let myself relax just yet. We still had one more part of this entire thing to do, and I didn't want to have Shepard blow it.

So I did what any self-respecting teenager would do.

I sent an email to the person right next to me.

It didn't say much, just asking Shepard what her plans were. She had the omni-tool on silent, though her HUD within her helmet must have alerted her because she opened it up and read the few terse lines I'd written. She didn't look at me, perhaps afraid that Tali would notice, and shook her head in a negative. She wasn't going to hand the evidence over.

I nearly sighed in relief. Good.

I sent her another one, asking if she had a plan to get Tali out of exile. Shepard nodded.

We boarded the Rayya and the docking officer there, though surprised at our prompt arrival, called ahead to the Board to let them know. A slight variation from the game, though a logical one. We were nearly jogging on our way back to the central area, and when Tali opened the doors and walked quite determinedly to the center of the spotlight once more a stir went up among the assembled quarians.

"Sorry we're late," Tali said dryly.

"Go get your ship," Shepard informed them.

"Your success in taking back the Alarei was... unexpected, Captain Shepard," Han'Gerrel said.

"But also very welcome," Shala'Raan said softly.

"Did you find anything on the Alarei that could provide conclusive evidence as to what, exactly, was going on there?" Admiral Gerrel asked.

Shepard and Tali exchanged a significant look, and then the Commander took the stand. "Shepard... please..." Tali whispered.

"Does Captain Shepard have any new evidence to suggest to this hearing?" Shala'Raan asked.

"Tali helped me defeat Saren and the geth on the Citadel," Shepard said, raising her voice so all in attendance could hear. "That should be all the evidence you need."

"I fail to see what relevance-" Admiral Koris was cut off as Shepard continued by saying:

"You're not really interested in Tali, are you? This trial isn't even about her-it's about the geth!"

"This hearing has nothing to do with the geth!" Admiral Koris snapped waspishly.

"You want people to sympathize with them!" Shepard accused. "Han'Gerrel wants to go to war. None of you care about Tali! She knows more about the geth than any other quarian alive! You should be listening to her, not putting her on trial! Tali'Zorah saved the Citadel! She saved the Alarei! She showed the galaxy the_ value _of the quarian people. I can't think of stronger evidence than that. Can you?"

Tali took a shaky breath. Samara's mouth quirked in a small smile.

Admiral Shala'Raan broke the sudden silence. "Are the Admirals prepared the render judgment?" she requested.

Daro'Xen lifted her omni-tool up first and typed in her vote, followed closely by Han'Gerrel. Admiral Korris paused for two long seconds, his mask hiding any hints of expression, and then he typed in his vote.

"Tali'Zorah," Shala'Raan said, "in light of your history of service, we do not find sufficient evidence to convict. You are cleared of all charges. Captain Shepard-please accept these gifts for using your time to represent one of our own people." The Commander's omni-tool beeped as it received the information."

"If you appreciate me, then listen," Shepard said. "The Reapers are coming. I'm going to need your help to stop them. Please don't throw away your lives against the geth."

"Thank you, Commander Shepard," Admiral Koris said, albeit smugly, "I hope the Board carefully considers your advice."

Shepard snorted underneath her breath.

"This hearing is concluded," Shala'Raan said. "Go in peace, Tali'Zorah vas Normandy. Keelah se'lai."

"Keelah se'lai," the room mumbled.

"Keelah se'lai," I said a bit late.

The trial adjourned, the quarians mingling around got up and began to filter away, their subdued talk proposing many angles of interest. At least we'd manage to sway most if not all of them with our argument. "I can't believe you pulled that off," Tali said fervently, wringing her hands as we ascended the stairs. "What you said... I've never had anyone speak like that on my behalf. Thank you for being there with my father and me... even when... thank you."

"We could still go back in and get you exiled if you want," Shepard said lightly.

Tali chuckled. "Thanks. But I'm fine where I'm at. Besides... it's fun to watch you shout."

"As we know," I mumbled, rolling my eyes.

"Tali, about what your father said... about what he did. You deserved better," Shepard told her.

"I did get better, Shepard," Tali said softly. "I got you. And the rest of the Normandy. And Kal'Reegar."

Shepard turned away. "Come on, Tali'Zorah _vas Normandy_. Let's get back to our ship."

Tali bowed her head, her back to us. "Thank you... Captain."

* * *

**(Sarah)**

As soon as I received word that Shepard and the others were returning to the ship, my first instinct was to get into the elevator and head for the shuttle bay... then of course I remembered that I was confined to this deck.

So I did the next best thing. I simply asked EDI to ask HK and Abby to meet me in our shared quarters at their convenience, then I went into our quarters and plopped myself down on the edge of my bed. I was perfectly visible to anyone who walked in through the door where I was sitting.

I had to wait about fifteen minutes, but finally the door slid open to reveal both HK and Abby. I grinned and stood up to greet them, running a hand through my hair. "Hi!" I said giddily. "How'd the mission go? Is Tali okay?"

"And her hair is blue," Abby noted wryly.

HK's jaw dropped when he saw me. "Sarah, Sarah..." he said slowly, looking shocked and almost petrified."What the _hell _happened to your hair?"

I grinned. "Oh I wanted to do something different," I told them both, and I actually gave my head a slight toss. My hair fell over my face a little, and I didn't bother to brush it aside. "So what do you think?" I grinned at them both.

"I think everybody else is going to think you're crazy," Abby noted. "Let me guess-Kelly let you use some of her stash for undercover missions?"

"Something like I said," I said with a little shrug. And really... did it matter what others thought of me at this point? They probably already thought I was crazy. But hey, that wasn't the point of this; it was to show I was a changed person-hopefully anyway. "Besides, it'll probably turn back to normal in a few weeks or months... however long it takes hair to shed and turn back to normal."

"It is uhhh, very interesting, Sarah. Kelly did a good job, I guess?" HK said, sounding very hesitant and uncertain as he continued to stare at my new hairstyle.

"I wonder what Garrus and Shepard will think of it," I said with a chuckle. "Or Kasumi-" My face fell when I remembered that Kasumi was probably still mad at me. "Well... if nothing else, maybe she'll actually say something to me when she sees my new hairstyle," I muttered.

"Getting your hair colored so somebody will talk to you isn't the way to go about things," Abby said, looking apprehensive.

I folded my arms. "I did NOT color my hair just to get people to talk to me," I snapped defensively. "It's simply to represent the fact that I've accepted the change in my life and I'm gonna try to be a better person."

"...by dying your hair primary colors?" Abby asked.

"If you don't like it, just say so," I said impatiently. I didn't do this to get judged, and I'd already gotten enough psycho-babble from Kelly.

Abby rolled her eyes. "You know, I did not just come back to get snapped at," she said, yawning. "Stop being so touchy about it."

"Sorry," I said quickly. "I didn't mean to snap or anything. I just... don't want this to be a big deal. It's not like I caused any trouble this time or anything... all I did was dye my hair a weird color."

"Yeah," Abby said, sighing. "It sure is interesting." She meandered to the bed and took out some sweats she usually wore to bed, putting them over her arm. "Hey, I'll be back in a few. I need to take a shower."

"It does look interesting. I hope you enjoy it, Sarah," HK said kindly with a light smile. "Maybe it will be nice for a change of pace."

"I'm sure I will!" I said. "And now... hey," I said as a thought occurred to me, "you never did answer my question. How did it go with Tali?"

"Whoops, sorry about that. Your hair distracted both of us, I think. It went...well, I want to say great, but considering what she's going through, I'll say pretty good. Everything turned out like it should...Tali is cleared, but no one knows about Rael and what he did. Shepard gave a nice, big speech to the admirals and comforted her when she found Rael. I do think that she's mad at us, though. Or me, as she should be."

I nodded. "Good then... at least it went more smoothly than Mordin's mission, I'm sure," I murmured. "Hey Abby," I added, turning in her direction. "Don't forget to wash between your toes and behind your ears!" Okay, so I felt like being goofy.

Abby, who was in the process of walking out, held her hand high above her head in a thumbs-up. The door closed behind her.

"Well," I said, turning to HK, "I guess I better... go do something. Rupert may have something he'll want me to do. So..." I shrugged. "See you later?"

He nodded, still smiling. "Sure."

I returned the smile with a grin, and then I headed out of the room.

I walked back toward the mess hall-then I decided to try something. I waited until I was sure Rupert wasn't looking-a moment when he had ducked down behind the counter to grab some utensils or dishes-and then I made a beeline for the weaponry.

I walked right into the weaponry without knocking or announcing myself in any way whatsoever-although that was what I usually did anyway-and moved to stand right behind Garrus. Then, grinning like an idiot, I said in a loud and clear voice, "Hi Garrus. Notice anything different?"

Garrus turned around and did a double-take. "Uh... is this some new trend going on around the crew or something...?" He sighed. "You know what? Knowing you, probably not. Those are, uh, interesting colors. Why blue and purple?"

I laughed-I couldn't help it. "Well, why not?" I said aloud. "Any reason why I shouldn't do purple and blue?" I grinned so wide that my mouth began to hurt.

"It's probably against some regulation somewhere," he said, scratching his scar idly with one clawed hand. "Uh, if you're looking for some positive reinforcement in that area, you shouldn't ask me. Really. I don't know anything about human fashion sense."

"Hey it's no worse-or different-than when your people get tribal tattoos or something, I'm sure," I suggested with a shrug.

"They're not tribal tattoos," Garrus said. "They're... colonial marks. Most turians went out to the colonies and used different tattoos to distinguish themselves from other planets. Even after the war we still kept these markers. They identify us to others who may share the same common root..." He coughed, as though afraid he'd said too much. "My father used to tell me never to trust a bare-face. Saren and Warden Kuril are two prime examples. But yeah, don't go saying these are tribal tattoos to another turian. It's an insult, actually."

My grin faded and I swallowed. Well that was just ducky. I came in here to show off my new hair, and I ended up insulting not only my favorite turian, but his entire species in general, it seemed.

"I'm sorry," I said quickly and sincerely. "I honestly didn't know."

"Yeah, don't worry about it. You're learning. And I didn't take it like that, by the way. We all know that all three of you are a little unhinged-and I mean that in a good way. At least you're not like Jack." He turned back to his terminal, but his tone made me wonder if something had recently gone on between the two of them... and I was curious.

"Yeah well... I definitely don't shave my head or get tattoos like Jack did," I with a forced chuckle. I quickly realized what I just said, and I remembered what happened a moment ago when I said something about tattoos-the unintentional insult. I cleared my throat softly. "I mean... well, she is something, isn't she?"

"Oh, yes," he mused. "She certainly is... uh, something."

I wasn't sure how to press the subject without this getting any more awkward. Finally I changed the subject. "Hey... just curious, have you seen Kasumi? Or talked to her or anything?"

"Yeah, we've talked," Garrus said, sounding a slight more guarded than usual. "Sorry, Sarah, but I don't think that right now is the best moment to press it. Let her work through her feelings on her own. I can't be the comm terminal between the two of you." He sighed and looked at me. "Sorry. I really am."

"Well I wasn't gonna ask you to do anything... I was just wondering if she said anything about me one way or another, that's all," I said with a shrug. "I know that if she wants to talk to me, she will in her own time. I was just wondering... if she said anything to you, or if she still seemed mad or whatever."

"I'm not saying anything," Garrus said, shaking his head. "Sorry, but no. This is something you have to work through yourself. No intermediaries."

"Okay," I said with a sigh. In some ways I didn't see what the harm was in, well, just telling me whether or not Kasumi was still mad-yes or no. Still... I suppose the fact that Kasumi hadn't talked to me yet was answer enough. And I could definitely see where Garrus was coming from here.

"Well, I better go," I said, already moving toward the door. "Take care."

"Yeah, I understand. Hey, wait up." I turned around and saw him locking up his computer console. "Are the others back yet?"

I blinked in surprise, wondering why he would ask. "Yeah they are, I just saw them before I came to see you. Why?"

"I need to go see Tali... see how she's holding up." Garrus accompanied me out of the room and closed the door behind him with a wave of his hand towards the motion sensor. "We're friends, and I know she must be feeling horrible about what happened. I'm glad Shepard took care of it okay, but it's still a hard blow. And putting that stuff on Tali just wasn't fair to her at all."

As I looked at him and considered his words, I found myself caught between two feelings. An "Aw that's so sweet!" feeling, and... a twinge of... what, jealousy? Then again... what was there to be jealous of? Garrus never romanced anyone but Shepard in the game...

Then again, this was real. This wasn't the game anymore. And in the game... Garrus never went to talk to Tali.

"Do you... like her, a lot?" Somehow the words escaped my lips before I realized I was even saying them.

"Well, yeah," Garrus said. "She's had my back for two years, and we're the only two of the old crew left. She was the only one who I said goodbye to when I left to be Archangel. The others just drifted apart; Kaidan was promoted, Wrex was already off of the Normandy, Liara just... faded away. In some way I think that Tali and I were the only ones who couldn't find a place outside of the Normandy. After Shepard... died, I helped her find some extra data for her Pilgrimage. Not that she was too intent on going back. I think she was holding out some hope that something would be done, but there was too much red tape, the Alliance was holding things back. She went back to rejoin the Fleet after doing a few weird jobs with me, and I went to go play the Archangel on Omega."

He gave me a sideways look. "Let me guess, your visions didn't tell you that."

"Um, no they didn't," I commented. "But wow... thanks for telling me about that. That's very interesting."

"I doubt it's interesting," Garrus said, "but it's just what happened." We arrived at the elevator and I stopped, knowing that I couldn't go in. "Look, thanks, and good luck with Kasumi. I'll see you later, Sarah."

"Yeah." I took a step back. "Good luck, Garrus... tell her I said hi, okay?"

"Sure thing." He pressed a button on the door and it slid shut, hiding him from sight.

I dawdled on the spot, wondering what I should do now, when Abby came out of the showers looking very harassed. She was wearing her sweats, her hair was wet, and she looked ready for bed. "Some people are just idiots!" she crowed, stomping past me.

...I didn't want to know.

...She BETTER not have been talking about me and my hair. Somehow though... I highly doubt that. She seemed really ticked about something else altogether. What?

I probably didn't want to know, yeah.

I checked with Rupert, but it seemed that there was nothing much that needed to be done... yet, anyway. He told me to go get some sleep-after commenting on how "unique" my hair appeared to be.

I headed back to the quarters I shared with HK and Abby. It seemed that HK was already in bed, sound asleep. I decided I might as well take advantage of a few hours of shuteye as well... and I promised myself I would try NOT to think about what Garrus and Tali might be doing down on the lower deck.

Come on, I told myself silently. They're just friends, right?

I curled up onto my bed and pulled the covers over.

I was just about to drift off when I heard the door open, accompanied by the sounds of someone stomping into the room. I peered out from under the blankets and saw Abby. She still looked pissed about something. I blinked at her, and then I tried to pretend I was asleep... though I kept my eyelids half-open.

I saw her literally kick off her shoes and then stomp over to her bed. She was still grumbling something about idiots, bitch-slapping, and... Something about not being Jackie-Chan as she slumped into her bed and yanked the covers over herself.

I shook my head. Yup, just another typical day on the Normandy. "Um... you okay, Abby?" I asked aloud.

"I had a 'dream' while I was cleaning up," she grumbled. "I was watching a video of two guys having a 'fight' back on Earth! It was HORRIBLE! Bad. Bad-bad-bad! Idiots! It was all... testosterone-induced posturing, and-and... ugh, I want to go and hit them myself! One guy thought he was some kind of ninja or something-he got beat by the other guy, who was still bad. They weren't-they were just-he overextended ALL the time! And the other guy would get him down and let him up again! NO! If you're fighting, you END the fight as quick as possible; don't sit around waiting for him to punch you. No! You go and actually DEFEND yourself! You don't just-you don't-so many people saying how _good_ he is-no. Just no. NO. They are not friggin' Jedi!" She huffed angrily.

"Yes, yes, it was idiotic and awful," HK remarked groggily, still having his eyes half-closed, from his bed.

"It was just-urgh! I just-urgh, I can't even think of what I want to say now! Why did you have to show me that video? WHY?"

"I wanna sleep." I burrowed myself under my covers and under my pillow.

"First off, I needed to share my annoyance with someone, and secondly," HK replied. "Sarah, you want to sleep? You weren't the one fighting on the Alarei all day!"

I hefted my head out from under the pillow, ignoring the fact that I had just totally mussed up my hair. "I wasn't talking to you!" I threw my spare pillow in his direction... playfully.

"Do not tempt me to come over there and teach one of y'all how to throw a pillow!" Abby warned.

With some effort, I managed to maneuver myself so that I could yank one of the sheets free from my bunk without having to stand up. Then I rolled it into a ball and chucked it at Abby's head. She ducked. I grinned.

"It's so on!" She gripped the pillow and threw it back as hard as she could, laughing when I ducked it.

HK had fallen back asleep at this point.

I grinned and, swiping my messy hair out of my face, I grabbed my other pillow. But this time I didn't throw it. I jumped off the bed and rushed over to Abby-then I whacked her with it.

"Oh it's ON, sister!" Abby ducked my next whack, and before I knew it I'd been sideswiped with a pillow from out of nowhere. I stumbled away, dazed. "Muahaha, fear the Pillow Lord!" she crowed.

I took a moment to recover. Then I did something totally different. I whipped my blanket off of my bed, then I feigned an attempt to whack it with it-then I changed my stance and threw it over her instead. Then I let out a playful yell as I jumped on her, and attempted to wrap her up in the blanket-at least her head and arms.

Abby screamed and tried to maneuver herself on top of me, but her arms were pinned. She was laughing. "HK, help me out here!" she yelled between guffaws.

This was when I realized something. For once... I had the talented little fighter-the one who was the best fighter out of the three of us-pinned down! I couldn't resist making a move to sorta... show off my triumph. I maneuvered myself so I had her pinned under my knees, then I reached under the blanket and yanked on a lock of her hair.

The next thing that happened took me completely by surprise. She poked my ribs. And she wouldn't stop poking. Since my arms were around her I couldn't block, so she dug the finger in harder and harder. "This is what we call working the ribs in basketball!" she laughed.

"Show those boys how it's done, you two!" HK called from the bed, slightly awake again by now.

Suddenly I began to laugh. "STOP IT! I'M TICKLISH!" I screamed.

Abby squirmed out from me via poking, and the next thing I knew the blanket was over my head. "I got her!"

"HEY!" My own voice sounded muffled now. I struggled to get out of the blanket. "I can't breathe! Let me out!"

"You can breathe!" Abby said. "I can hear you panting!"

That's when I decided to play a prank, even though I knew it would be hard-especially after having been tickled. I shifted, then I made a strained breathing sound... then I held my breath... and then went completely limp.

"Oh damn, I killed the janitor," I heard Abby mutter, before I felt the blanket be taken off.

I exhaled and then inhaled sharply. Then I laughed breathlessly and rolled off of her bed, hoping to avoid that happening again.

"I WILL kill the janitor," Abby amended.

And that, of course, is when we heard a knock at the door. We straightened up automatically and I ran into my bed, feeling strangely like a little kid staying up past her curfew. "Hey, it's me!" a Scottish voice said loudly. "Let me in, Abby, we need to talk."

"Oh, Ken! Come on in!" Abby said.

The door opened and Ken walked in holding a datapad. "Okay, so I have the submissions but I can't send this many pictures over the Normandy's communications without sending up red flags in the computers. Here you go, and don't leave that laying around for Operator Lawson to get, you hear?"

"I hear you," Abby said, taking the datapad without looking at it and stuffing it underneath her pillow. "Thanks, Ken."

"Alright. Get some sleep, tell me what you think about them in the morning," he whispered. He waved at me, seeing that I was still awake, and checked to make sure HK was snoring. "See you tomorrow."

Ken walked out, and Abby chuckled. "Good night, peoples," she said mischievously, cackling evilly to herself.

"What is that?" I asked, staring in the direction of her pillow. "You know, if it's pictures of Jacob or Thane naked... I'm not gonna be happy about the way you reacted to the Garrus pictures," I said indicatively.

Abby left her bed and came to sit on the foot of mine... far away from HK. "Okay," she said in an undertone, "Ken and I are in charge of a... ship-wide contest." She giggled.

I opened my mouth, and then closed it. Did I really want to know? I wondered if I should just close my eyes and try to get some sleep, right now. "What kind of contest?" I blurted totally in spite of myself.

"I can't tell you yet," she said, still laughing that evil Abby laugh of hers. "But listen, you're gonna love it. It's so funny, and so many people are interested. Just don't let Miranda or Shepard catch wind of anything Ken and I may or may not be doing. As far as you know, Ken did NOT just come in here with a highly incriminating datapad okay?"

However, before we could continue any sort of conversation, there was yet another knock on the door. "Excuse me, but can you guys let me in?" Kelly Chambers' voice asked. "I wanted to speak to you about something."

I stared at Abby for a moment... then I quickly threw the covers over my head and kept extremely still, pretending to be asleep. Whatever happened now was up to Abby alone... although I could still hear everything.

Abby jumped off of my bed like it had caught on fire, silently running into her own bed and pulling the covers over herself. She turned on her stomach, as she normally slept, and said in a somewhat groggy voice, "Yeah, sure, Kelly." She yawned.

"I am really sorry to interrupt, I know you must be tired after this busy day," Kelly said, hurriedly walking in. "But I just had an epiphany, as I realized what the true root of Sarah's problems are."

It took a bit of self-restraint to stay still. But it wasn't too difficult. I actually had a bit of practice in keeping still and pretending to be dead to the world while in bed, when I really wanted to. It was one thing I had mastered back home-when I wanted everyone to ignore me. It was also the perfect way to eavesdrop.

"Are you serious?" Abby asked, sounding tired and worn out. "Can't it wait until we're all conscious?"

"Perhaps, and I apologize, but I had to say it now, while it was fresh and while you were together. It finally came to me, and I feel foolish for not seeing it before. I realized why she chose today to get a new hairstyle, why it's been so frustrating on this mission," Kelly continued. "And I wanted to say it here and now."

I held my breath and continued to keep still. In some ways, this was both embarrassing and very frustrating. But at the same time... I was dying of curiosity. What was she gonna say?

"What?" Abby asked, sounding irritated.

"I see now why it has been so hard for her, and it shouldn't be, but I understand why. She has been just so caught between her love for Garrus, and her love for you...she didn't know who to choose. She didn't know which path to go down, but today, she finally realized that her love with you was strong enough was survive, which is why she wanted to symbolize a new start before you two consummated your happiness."

I... I...

It took at least thirty seconds for those words to even BEGIN to absorb into my brain fully, because I wasn't sure if I'd heard them correctly...

I didn't move. I didn't make a sound. I finally had to remember to breath. In, out... in, out, slowly, evenly...

I squeezed my eyes shut. PLEASE somebody tell me I am dreaming. And that I'll wake up any minute.

"Goodbye, Kelly," Abby said stiffly. "Goodnight, goodbye, whatever! Out! Out-out-out-out!"

"There is nothing to be ashamed of. I know how hard it can be: I was on a road similar to yours, once. A road of no acceptance, confusion...but there is nothing wrong with it. It is perfectly fine. If you wish, Mordin can even re-assure you of these facts," Kelly said kindly.

Finally I'd had quite enough. I threw aside the covers and practically stamped my foot as I got to my feet. "I'm going to the bathroom," I told them all. How long I was going to be in the bathroom, I was definitely not going to say. That seemed to be my best form of hiding or escaping, though. "Excuse me." I moved right past Kelly, toward the door.

Abby came out behind me, her eyes wide. She was carrying the datapad. "I'm sleeping upstairs in the cockpit," she said, moving past me. "Good night!"

I hurried out of the room, not caring where Abby was going. I moved quickly down the corridor-but I did not head for the bathroom. I found myself at Samara's door. I knocked briefly, and then I stepped inside. "Um... Samara?" I asked timidly as I moved up behind her. As usual, she was meditating on the floor. She turned her head to look at me as I approached her.

"Yes, Sarah?" she asked.

"Can I borrow your couch, just for tonight... please?" I asked, and tried to give her my sweetest, most persuasive smile.

Samara smiled lightly at me. "Yes, that is fine," she said kindly.

"Thank you!" I gushed in appreciation, making a beeline toward the couch. "I owe you one, big time."

I wasted no time curling up on the couch, resting my head atop the armrest.

It took me a little while to settle down, but I soon fell fast asleep. I wanted nothing more than to sleep away as many hours as possible... and to not wake up until I was needed.

And so, for the first time since the three of us came aboard the Normandy... Abby, HK and I each slept in a different area onboard the ship, until morning came.

* * *

**(HK)**

I sighed, my eyes still slightly blurry. "I assure you, the two are not bisexual, at least not as far as I know. They were having a simple pillow fight, it wasn't...uh, whatever you thought all that gasping and screaming was about..." I said hesitantly, almost throwing up at the thought.

"Oh my! This is horrible...I must have made them feel awful. How could I be so dumb? I just heard it, and once I saw Ken come in and out I thought it was safe to go assure them it was alright, I didn't mean to offend them. I jumped to assumptions too quickly and now it has made things worse-" Kelly started, going from very happy to very sad and worried.

I cut her off. "Kelly, you weren't the first to offend and embarrass either one of them. You won't be the last. Just let the two sleep for now."

"Yes, perhaps that would be a good idea. I can apologize tomorrow," Kelly said, turning and exiting our quarters, or what was _our_ quarters.

I groaned and ran my hand through my hair. I definitely was awake now, and after this very weird incident, I doubted I'd be able to go back to sleep for awhile. But I sure wasn't going to just sit around our room...I needed to do something. I began walking randomly, an idea forming in my mind...

I had no clue why I was doing this, but I was again heading down to Deck Four to see Jack. I felt like Sarah: Just going back into trouble after getting out of it, but overall, my first conversation with her wasn't that bad. It was actually decent, considering it was Jack and I did want to see how she was feeling. It was weird, but I did.

I came off of the stairs and slowly walked back into the area that she called her bedroom. "Uh, hi, Jack," I greeted.

She glanced up when she heard my voice. "Hey," she greeted. Her tone and expression were so casual I realized that she knew I was there long before I even spoke. "I see you're back again. Come to take me up on my offer?"

I nearly shuddered at the thought of being that low. "Um, sorry, but no. I guess I just kind of wandered down here. I didn't have any plans of pursuing that offer," I replied, shaking my head.

She stared at me, and then shook her head. "A guy who sleeps in the same room with two girls, who has started to come see me... just 'happens to wander down here'?" She folded her arms and smirked a little. "Not sure what your game is... but I'll play along, for now." She then moved to sit down on the edge of her makeshift bunk-it was so low to the floor that she was practically squatting as she sat down on it.

"So what do you want?" she asked dryly without looking at me.

"I'm not sure. Sorry if this seems strange, it's just another quiet day on the Normandy, I guess, until we get to our next destination," I replied with a deep breath. She still seemed to think that Sarah, Abby, and I were all...well, never mind. "I didn't know where else to go."

"So you came down here to see me," Jack murmured with a little nod. "Of course... I'm sure all of the men on this ship have looked. And," she turned to look sharply at me, "I know that everyone wants something. It's the way the universe works."

She stood and moved toward me, stopping just about three feet short of me. "But if you really want to have some fun, you gotta make it worth my while. Tell me everything about Pragia and what will happen there."

My eyes went wide. Not_ this _again. I was only sixteen, and Jack was...what? In her twenties? She had to get it through her head that I did not want any of this at all. "Jack, for the last time, I don't want anything from you. I don't want to, uhhh, sleep with you."

Now she rolled her eyes and looked... a little put out, if anything. Or perhaps annoyed. I couldn't really tell. "Don't insult my intelligence, kid. We've already been over the facts-your sleeping arrangement and whatever-and I'm not in the mood to play Polly Parrot." Suddenly a sly grin spread over her features. "I think I get it. You're just shy. You've been with your friends for this long-people you know well-that you don't know what it would be like to screw with someone you don't know. Well..." She placed her hands on her hips, narrowing her eyes just a little. "I guess it's up to me to help you get over whatever fears or insecurities you have."

That's when she raised her hands-and took off the upper part of her outfit-what little there was.

My eyes went as wide as dinner plates. I stood there for a moment, dumbfounded and just perfectly still. I soon had to remind myself to not stare at...them! I tried to snap myself out of it. "Are you _insane_?" I asked, finally managing to make words come out of my mouth. "Put your...top back on!"

Now she just looked baffled. She held her top clenched between the fingers of her right hand, staring at me. "The way you react, I'm surprised you can even stand to be in the same room with two other girls, let alone _sleep_ with them," she said, sounding bewildered-maybe even a little disgusted with my reaction.

"Maybe you... need a little more incentive?" She somehow managed to scowl and grin at the same time. She took a step toward me.

"Jack...uh..." I said, pausing for a moment. I tried to keep my eyes on her face, and not _anywhere_ else. "Okay, I usually wouldn't say this, but just because I sleep in the same room as two girls and am a guy and like girls and all that doesn't mean that I'm a man-whore."

In one smooth, cat-like motion that was swift and agile, she had closed what little distance there was between us and slid her arms around me. I wasn't even aware-not right away, at least-that she had dropped her top on the floor. "Sure it does," she purred, and she pressed her lips against mine.

I felt Jack's lips go right up to mine in some kind of forced kiss, and the shock and anxiety in my chest only welled up even more. I just stood there for a moment, but finally tried to pull away. "Jack, are you really this desperate to get answers? You'd sleep with a minor, a fellow crew member, just to get answers?"

Now she pulled back just a little. She actually seemed surprised, then she seemed... irritated? Upset?

"I just figured you did want this, deep down," she muttered. She studied my face for a moment as though trying to decipher my expression-then apparently she decided my words were genuine. She actually shoved away from me in disgust. "Ah, I think I get it now," she growled as she snatched her top off of the floor and began to put it back into place. "You don't sleep in the same room with girls or come down here to chit-chat because you want to screw them over..." She plopped herself down on the edge of her bed in disgust. "You do it because you're gay."

I blinked, though that accusation was a lot better than trying to sleep with me. "Okay, I'm _not_ gay," I assured her, still a bit shaken up from what she just did. "I like girls, and I think you are...uhhh...very, very nice looking, and okay? But I am not like you, Jack. I don't just go randomly sleeping with people. I'm sixteen!"

"That never stopped some guys I knew," she retorted. "Whatever. If you really don't want sex... what _do_ you want?"

"I don't know!" I exclaimed out of instinct. "I just came down here because I didn't have anything else to do, and you may find this stupid, but I wanted to see how you were holding up. That was all. I have some more class than the guys you knew."

She seemed to think about what I said for a moment. "I still don't really get what you're down here," she finally said. "But I must admit... you didn't react like most other guys I've seen. Every single one of them would have pounced at the chance to fuck with me-whether it was on the floor or the table. But..." She narrowed her eyes. "Maybe I'm starting to get it now." Her scowled deepened, and then she actually laughed. I wasn't sure what was going on in her mind.

"You are kind of young, and so is Abby. Is it possible... you've never had the talk?" she looked at me with a raised eyebrow.

I wanted to pull an Abby and facepalm myself right now. Did this woman just not get it? I supposed that I shouldn't be surprised, considering it was Jack, who we all knew too well, but I wanted to at least get this through her head. "Of course we have...well, I think," I replied, slightly hesitantly. "But just getting 'the talk' doesn't mean we will automatically be ready to jump everyone's bones."

"Well kid, you're probably going to get educated sooner or later." She smirked. "Maybe you should start with Sarah. That crazed bitch could use some practice if she really wants to screw with the turian."

I clenched my fists in frustration, more than shock. "Uh, no. I may sleep in the same room as Sarah and Abby, but I could never be romantic with either of them. They could never be romantic with me! We are all just really close friends."

She snorted. "Someday that will change, at least with someone even if it isn't them," she allowed. "But you're still a guy. If nothing else, I'll wager that you've looked at Fornax and that you masturbate."

This woman was rendering me more and more speechless with everything she said. "Jack, ew, no! Just no! I mean...gah, where do you get these ideas?" I wondered out loud, though I probably didn't want to know. "Is everything about sex with you?"

Now she simply shrugged. "Sex is fun, and it's also a great motivator," she replied. "I've seen men-and women, for that matter-of all shapes and sizes who want it." She smirked. "I remember the time I screwed over a krogan. Turned out he just wanted to have a little fun because his little asari girlfriend ditched him. So he wanted a casual fling." She snorted a little. "First time I almost broke my pelvis while having sex, I'll tell you that."

_Wow, she really has had a lot of adventures._

"Okay, that was exactly what I wanted to hear today," I muttered with sarcasm. I'd almost laugh if she hadn't just made advanced towards me and told me an insane story. "I know a lot like sex and all, and it's not that I don't, well, I...um, okay, I just haven't had it yet, and I don't plan to for a while."

"So are you one of those lovey-dovey types, who want to find that special someone, the love of your life and all that shit?" she asked, frowning.

I rolled my eyes. "I'd be up for it, but not exactly. It's not what I think about all the time and I don't know if it'll come or not. With that, I guess I'll just wait and see, so no. Not exactly that type of guy, either," I replied. And it was true: If I found the 'love of my life' I would be happy, and I would like to someday, but it was not my top priority. Definitely not at the moment.

"Well then let me give you a piece of advice, kid," Jack said, looking in my direction again. "Don't bother to look for love. It only exists in fantasies and kids' storybooks. Whenever you're ready to start looking for it, well... prepare to have your heart broken a few times. But the sooner you learn, the sooner you'll realize that you should never expect anyone to want you just because of this thing called 'love'." Her eyes suddenly became distant, as though she was focusing on a memory. "I was in love once... at least it might have been love."

"Although I am not the biggest 'Oh love love love forever' fan, I don't look at it as that grim, either," I told her. And I raised an eyebrow at her last words; that part of Jack's history was fuzzy to me. I couldn't quite recall it at the moment. "And you were?"

She stood up and lifted her shoulders in sort of a shrug. "None of your fucking business," she finally snapped. "Only reason I'm telling you anything is because you came down here to see me, and you're naive. If you want anything in life, you're needed to be ready and willing to take it." She took out her gun and began to look it over, checking the sights and the ammo clip inside.

I felt a chill, hoping that she wasn't beginning to contemplate actually shooting me. We could not have_ that_. "Okay, I apologize, and I see your point. But I'm not the kind of person to just suddenly take something when I shouldn't," I told her.

"Then I guess that means you're regular goodie-two shoes." She finished looking over her gun and put it away, much to my relief. Obviously she had only been looking it over. Or maybe she was trying to ignore me.

"Believe me, not exactly, but I'd rather be that than some ruthless person like the Illusive Man or half the people that work for Cerberus," I commented out loud.

"Yet here you are, on this ship, working with Cerberus," she remarked.

"And so are you," I shot back.

"I'm here because of my deal with Shepard," she retorted. "And she's agreed that as soon as we finish up some other shit, we're going to Pragia. After that..." She shook her head. "I don't know. I won't know until I can put this shit behind me."

"And, like you, I am here working for Shepard, not Cerberus," I agreed, although it may not be true. Were we all really working with a terrorist organization? Even if we claimed to be working for Shepard? "Cerberus, overall, is a disgusting organization. The things they do to people are insane."

"Then we agree." She sat down on the edge of her bunk again. Apparently moving around during a conversation helped her do something with her energy or agitation; I wasn't sure. Or maybe she just wasn't used to having someone talk to her and therefore wasn't sure what to do with herself. "Still, this ship doesn't have to work for Cerberus. Shepard could easily go pirate and live like a queen. And with you and those other fortune-tellers onboard... well, we would always know where we could hit for the most credits."

"You make a good point," I told her with a slight smirk. "But not to sound all goody two-shoes again, but I don't think the three of us are here for that. We're here to help Shepard stop the Collectors, not so she can become a pirate and get rich. I'm sure everybody has enough money, anyway."

"Whatever," she replied. "You know what? I'm done talking. Leave me the fuck alone."

I blinked, though I should've been used to it by now, since I knew Jack from the game and was now getting to know her in real life. And maybe it was best that I get out of here before she made anymore sexual advances in exchange for information. "Alright then, I understand. Uh, bye," I said, before turning and darting out of the room.


	35. Who has the scale itch?

**(Sarah)**

There was one definite problem with sleeping on a couch; it gave you a crick in your neck and a stiff back.

A VERY stiff back.

I painfully rolled over onto my back, so that my face wasn't smashed against the back of the couch. I must have moved or something in my sleep; I swear I was not in that position when I first drifted off.

It took me a few moments to remember where I was, and why I was there. Then it donned on me that Samara was not in the room. I blinked in surprise, and then sobered. Well... I couldn't exactly expect her to be in the room 24/7, could I? This was no longer a game, after all. She had to eat and go to the bathroom and take a shower like everyone else.

I groaned softly as I got up. First I had to sit on the edge of the couch and wait for my back to stop protesting-and for the pins and needles feeling to fade as the circulation returned to my left leg. Ugh. There was one thing I was definitely sure of; I was NEVER going to sleep on a couch ever, EVER again.

After sitting still for about ten or fifteen minutes, I got up and stiffly moved toward the door. I presumed that Rupert would probably have work for me.

After the door opened, I headed straight for the kitchen. I definitely saw several people who were at the tables eating their breakfast staring at me as I passed them. I saw several familiar faces sitting there as I passed-well, of course I knew pretty much everyone by now. But the ground team members always stood out more than others. Thane was there and so was Zaeed-they seemed to be talking about something or other, although both of them stopped to stare-just like everyone else-as they noticed me passing by.

"Hold on," I heard Zaeed say. I knew it was him speaking; I could always tell it was him when he spoke because he had kind of an old-man-with-a-heavy-accent voice. "What have we over there? Is that a new crewmember or did Sarah join a cult?"

"It would seem she has done something with her hair," I heard Thane's deep, almost raspy voice reply.

"No damn kidding," Zaeed muttered. I glanced in his direction just in time to see him shake his head a little; he was still looking at me. "Well, at least she didn't dye her hair green."

"What does it matter?" Thane asked, sounding more curious than anything.

"I once knew a bitch that'd dyed her hair green," Zaeed replied.

"Was there something significant about the color, or this person in particular?" Thane asked, keeping his dark, marble-like eyes locked on the veteran. That was something I'd noticed about the drell assassin; he always paid keen attention to whomever he was talking to at the moment.

"She was... well, let's just say she was something special once, back when I was a member of the Blue Suns. I still don't know why she dyed her hair green, but that was the one thing I always remembered about her-that and her smile, and her perfume." His eyes grew distant and almost glassy, as though he were remembering something. But thankfully he didn't get that distant, spooky look that Thane got when he was remembering something. "She was the one who helped Vido betray me. Turned out she was in league with him all along. Thankfully I managed to take her out a few years ago-a gunshot right between the eyes. Ever since then... I've always disliked women with green hair." He shook his head. "It's unnatural anyway."

Thane and Zaeed's little... discussion or whatever soon turned back to what I assumed they had been discussing before I showed up. Stuff about killing techniques and different kinds of weapons and... whatever. I quickly got bored-and tired of all the stares-and approached Rupert.

"Morning," I told him. "What's on the agenda today?"

He peered at me for a moment, and then scratched the back of his neck. From the way he was looking at me I could tell that he was still trying to get used to my new... look. I couldn't quite tell if he disapproved or not though; he never really said much about it. Whether he didn't want to openly give his opinion or risk hurting my feelings, I couldn't be sure. Maybe I was glad he was keeping his mouth shut.

_It's not like there were any regulations against this sort of thing on THIS ship, after all. I mean... just look at how Jack dresses._

"I'd like you to take over in here and finish cooking breakfast for everyone," Rupert told me, indicating the food he'd already started cooking-and the food he had ready to go behind the counter. "As usual I've set aside something special for Garrus and Tali, since they can't eat the same things that everyone else can. Just prepare the food like I showed you, and if there's any leftovers put it in the cooler."

I nodded. "Yeah, that lets people help themselves later," I finished for him. I knew the drill by now. Sometimes it felt like he was rehashing old instructions I knew by heart, as if he was afraid I would mess up even the simplest things. Maybe he was worried about me now, after everything else I had done on the ship and off the ship-either that or perhaps I was merely reading too much into things. I was probably just being paranoid... again.

He nodded at me. "Well, I need to take care of some cleaning duties on the bridge level and the lower level," he told me. I swallowed, knowing exactly what he was implying without saying it. Normally that would be what I would be doing right now if I wasn't... stuck on this deck. "When you're finished with cooking breakfast, wash all of the dishes and clean the bathrooms again," Rupert continued.

With that he grabbed his cleaning supplies and headed for the elevator, leaving me alone to cook and serve food.

Overall I enjoyed it. It was kind of fun to cook and serve food; it was certainly better than some things I could be doing right now. Zaeed and Thane finished up and left about ten minutes after I got started, and a few other crewmembers finished and left as well. But then I saw others coming-most of them either served themselves or let me serve them and then took their seats, but there were two exceptions I noticed. I knew all about the rule where supposedly no food was allowed off of deck three, or something like that. But today I noticed Shepard take a small serving a sliced fruit in a bowl and then she headed directly for the elevator. Jack was the other one who did this; she practically piled a mountain of food onto her plate and headed straight for the elevator, shoving pieces of fruit and meat into her mouth as she went and dropping crumbs and small chunks on the floor, which I knew I would have to clean up later.

So apparently these two women reserved the privilege of eating in their own places, so to speak-Shepard probably ate in her quarters, I assumed, and Jack ate down in her "hidey-hole" as Kelly called it. Well... who, exactly, was going to argue with them?

An hour went by. Things began to slow down quite a bit. I was a little amazed to see Tali and Garrus walk in together, talking in quiet tones. Tali did a complete double-take when she saw my hair-if anything her reaction was even more comical than Garrus'. This was saying something, considering I could not see her face. Jack just looked at me, snorted, and didn't even give me the time of day, which was pretty typical for her I supposed. I don't think Shepard noticed, though, because I was bent over grabbing some cleaning supplies from the bottom cabinet while she took the fruit, and by the time I stood up again I could see her turning away, eating a slice of apple in a distracted sort of way as she reviewed some information over her datapad.

"Sarah..." Tali stammered a little, then she regained her composure. "Wow. Garrus mentioned that you did something with your hair, but... I have never seen that color on a human before."

"It's... different, that's for sure," Garrus commented in a tone of amusement.

"Yeah, that's me for ya," I muttered, and then I handed them the food I'd made that was fit for people with dextro-amino acids. "Bon appétit."

Tali murmured a thank you and then she and Garrus went to sit down at one of the tables. I couldn't help but stare at them a little as they started to eat. I couldn't hear what they were saying, but considering they were speaking in such hushed tones... they were probably talking about something private. Then again... maybe I was reading too much into it.

Kelly showed up at some point too, taking a fair serving of food and apologizing profusely about what happened last night. I told her three times that it was okay, no hard feelings, and then I gave her a cupcake to help her feel better. She seemed a bit more chipper after that, and she joined one of the tables that had a few of the bridge crew around it and began to chat with them animatedly.

Grunt was one of the last people to show up, which surprised me a little considering his size and... well, his appetite. And of course he noticed my hair, and decided to say something about it.

Grunt actually let out a laugh before speaking. "Ha! Bitch's run in with the krogan did more damage than I thought," he muttered. "Seeing people like Shepard and true krogan display actual skill hurt you, didn't it?"

I simply rolled my eyes. I didn't want to get into a discussion about this with him of all people. I simply piled several large chunks of rare-cooked varren meat onto an enormous plate and then hefted it onto the counter with some effort. "You like yours rare, right?" I commented dryly. Then again, anyone who would joke about eating dead bodies probably wouldn't mind it raw, either.

He nodded, not bothering to say anything more.

I watched him as he simply took the plate and gobbled all of the food down, right there and then. Not that I could blame him... most of the chairs in the mess hall were small, made for humans. Plus he had a pretty hefty appetite anyway. I watched as he wolfed down enough meat to last a human all day in mere seconds, then he let out a big belch that caused everyone's heads to turn in his direction.

Not caring one bit about everyone staring at him, he simply walked off toward the elevator. I was just glad everyone wasn't staring at me.

At least not for THAT reason.

Eventually the entire room began to clear out. Soon there were only one or two people left, but eventually even they left. So I wrapped up all of the leftovers and put them in the cooler, then I went around and collected all of the dishes. I scraped the leftover food-or pieces of food left behind on the plates where people finished eating-into the garbage, and then I rinsed them off. After that was done I put everything into the dishwasher and fired it up.

Now that that was done, I decided I would get myself something to eat. I still needed to clean the kitchen counter, the stove, and the floor surrounding it-plus I needed to sweep up the area around the tables in the mess hall; everything needed to stay neat, after all-but I figured that could wait until after I'd fed myself. So I simply grabbed a few pieces of kiwi fruit and a small slab of meat and sat myself down in the corner. I happened to like the corner because, well... it was out of direct sight. People would have to actually come into the mess hall in order to see me. I liked to eat in as much privacy as I could.

I began to munch on my food, feeling the wonderful taste of kiwi as it slid over my tongue and I began to chew it. It was definitely one of my favorite fruits.

I heard soft footsteps approaching from the direction of the elevator, and I looked up to see a familiar figure walk past me. Abby grabbed a piece of meat and an apple, saluted in my direction when she saw me, and came over to sit down. "I have to eat fast," she said, devouring her meal much like Grunt had. "Kelly won't stop bugging me about last night; I can't let her get a scent trail. Where'd you sleep?"

"I slept on Samara's couch," I answered after swallowing a large chunk of kiwi-painfully. I knew I should have chewed that better. "And don't worry about Kelly; I know she left here a while ago. Like... probably half an hour or forty-five minutes ago." I reached for my water and took a swig.

Abby shook her head. "I know. She asked me if I would like to go get a bite with her. She kept saying sorry, it was really bugging me! I was all polite and said 'sure, sure, no problem, hopefully it won't happen again, et cetera' but I said I didn't want to grab any food with her. I just want to avoid her for now."

I nodded at her sympathetically. I couldn't blame her at all. "Well," I said as I picked up a piece of meat between two fingers, "you could always hide behind Samara's couch or something. I'm sure she wouldn't mind." I grinned and stuffed the meat into my mouth.

"I'm not going to hide from Kelly," Abby said defensively. "I'm just... avoiding her. I don't want no more 'well, being a lesbian is hard for me, too!' Okay? I am not a lesbian!" She shuddered and shoved about half of the steak into her mouth, then putting the rest back on the plate. She said something that sounded like a very garbled and muffled, "See you later," and trotted off, carrying the rest of the food with her.

A few minutes later, Zaeed entered the room again, looked around, and left.

I was nearly done with my food when I heard another set of footsteps approaching. The voice attached to them was humming contentedly. Kasumi Goto rounded the corner, and immediately she saw me sitting there in the corner. She just nodded and went up to the counter, picking out her own food for herself. She didn't look worried about me at all.

I looked at her for a long moment. This was the first time I'd seen her since... well, what happened. I hadn't even caught a glimpse of her since she walked out of Miranda's office, back on that fateful day. I could also deduce that that was probably the way she wanted it, too.

I wondered... was she simply in here to get herself some breakfast, or could this maybe be her presenting me with an opportunity to... talk to her? With her it was impossible to tell what her motivations were sometimes. And I had a tendency to read into things too much at times.

I looked down at my plate. Well... there were pretty much only scraps left now anyway. I had an excuse to approach the counter now, so I grabbed my glass of water, gulped down the remainder of its contents, then grabbed my plate and moved toward the counter. Kasumi seemed to be going over the choices of food in the kitchen, which gave me a chance to approach quietly. She didn't really look at me as I approached, although I thought I saw her glance briefly in my direction.

I still felt... shy and a little nervous, so I did look at her as I passed her, but then I simply stooped down behind the counter to check on the dishwasher. It had stopped, so I opened it up and began to unload the dishes. Well, this gave me something to do with my hands, at least. I put my dirty plate and glass up on the counter; I would put those in the dishwasher after I finished taking out all the clean dishes and putting them away. I took out several plates and then stood to put them in one of the cupboards. I glanced briefly in Kasumi's direction again, then turned back to the cupboard and slowly put the plates away. "Nice day today," I said aloud-even though that was probably the stupidest thing I could say while on a ship. There was no weather here, after all.

"Just another day on the Normandy," she said. She seemed to have finally made her selection of food and placed it on her plate. I noticed she didn't have a drink, which was kind of odd until I realized that she had her very own bar in her quarters. Of course she didn't want a drink.

She took her plate and began to wander off. Not to her own quarters and not to Miranda's, thankfully, but towards Doctor Chaka's. I could see the doctor through the window talking to Thane, typing a few things into her omni-tool.

"How've you been?" I called out before she could go too far. I then stooped down to grab several clean bowls out of the dishwasher and then stood up again, looking at her. I still felt a tad shy around her right now. I just needed to keep my hands busy.

"Uh, good," she said without turning around. She entered the MedBay. I saw her wave to Thane and the doctor, and then sit down with her back to the window. It looked as though she'd gotten food to share with herself and Chakwas.

I watched them for a moment. I knew that Chakwas was a very lonely woman, so I knew she probably appreciated the company and the gesture. I even saw the doctor smiling a little as she and Kasumi began to talk in there. I found myself smiling a little too. Well... I really did hope they enjoyed each other's company. And Kasumi was doing a very nice thing right now. I decided that... maybe I would just wait until she came out before I tried talking to her... and I would try not to be so shy about it when she did.

I think it was probably safe to say that Kasumi wasn't angry anymore, at least. But even before all of this crap happened, I always felt... uneasy around her. Because she was very difficult to read, even though she was a nice person.

So I simply did what I was supposed to do; I finished putting away the clean dishes, I put away everything else I needed to and scrubbed down the counters, mopped the kitchen floor, cleaned off the stove, and then I swept up around the tables and chairs.

I was... a little baffled and amazed to find... a cigarette butt? Who the hell did THAT belong to?

I shook my head slightly and threw it away along with the rest of the crap I had swept up. If I were to wager a guess... MAYBE it belonged to Zaeed. But of course I had no way of knowing, and I wasn't exactly gonna go around accusing people.

After I finished up, I decided to go stand by the door that lead into the medical bay. I hoped I didn't look... too persistent or anything, but I decided that that was the best way to catch Kasumi without bothering her or Chakwas. I wanted to talk to her, but I didn't want to disrupt their time inside.

Just as I approached the door-it opened on its own. I nearly jumped out of my skin. "Oh-HI!" I exclaimed my voice a little louder than I meant it to be due to my surprise.

Thane blinked when he saw me. "Greetings," he said, moving past me.

Leaving me with a good view of the Medical Bay. Chakwas's face was calm and stoic, but I only had eyes for Kasumi, who was looking at me without her characteristic smile. "The Medical Bay doesn't need cleaning, Sarah," said Chakwas, breaking the icy silence.

"Yeah okay," I said with a quick nod. "It's uh, been a while since I've cleaned the medical bay anyway-I'll be right back, just me get the mop!"

I dashed away from the door and went to get the cleaning supplies. I also had to count silently to five under my breath to allow the feeling of sheepishness to fade. I got some water, put some soap in it, and then I grabbed the bucket and mop and headed back into the medical bay.

I allowed myself to look directly at both women as I entered. Both of them looked back at me. "So uh," I said aloud, holding the mop a bit awkwardly in my hand, "How are you both?"

"I told you that the medical bay does _not_ need cleaning," Chakwas said.

"Oh, oops," I said, and I could feel myself blush. "I'm sorry; I thought you said it doesn't mind cleaning."

I heard footsteps from behind me and turned around to see Jacob approaching. He surveyed the situation with a dry look and leaned in to the room. "Hey, Doc. Kasumi, think you can come up to the armory? I'm not sure I'm understanding the Kassa Locust specs."

"Yeah, sure!" Kasumi said eagerly. "See you, Doc. Sarah."

Kasumi walked out, and Jacob leaned in close to me and whispered in my ear, "Stay away from her. That was your punishment, and you gotta stick to it unless you want to force Shepard to boot you off." He saluted in Chakwas' direction and followed Kasumi to the elevator.

I stared out the door until it closed. I could actually feel anger rising in me, along with indignance. She was the one who had come into the kitchen, and the only thing I'd done was make small talk with her. Then when I came into the medical bay, well... I was simply going where I was allowed, even if I had misunderstood Chakwas.

The thing was... well, I knew that not everything could just go back to normal, not after everything that had happened. But I was at least making an attempt. I had done everything I was supposed to today, and not ONE bad thing had happened. The worst thing I'd done was misunderstand Chakwas, but that was only because I wasn't listening. I had not caused trouble, and I was only looking for an opportunity to smooth things over with Kasumi.

I wanted to be friends with her again. Was that so bad?

"Excuse me," I snipped, not even bothered to look at Chakwas again. I left the medical bay and put the cleaning equipment away behind the counter. Then, temper still flaring, I snapped, "EDI? Could you pass on a message to Shepard?"

"Certainly," EDI replied.

"Tell her I demand she either re-consider the 'terms' of my punishment... or she should simply lock me away in my quarters for the rest of the trip or hand me over to the Illusive Man."

"Making demands of Commander Shepard, especially in your current situation, is not the most tactful thing to do," EDI reasoned.

"Yeah well... tell her I'm trying my best right now, but that still doesn't seem to be good enough. And if I'm still that much of a risk or a bother, I shouldn't even be here anyway, right? So I think it's only fair that either I be allowed to roam the ship again-even if you watch me like a hawk, I don't care about that-or she should simply lock me up or hand me over to the Illusive Man. No in-between," I insisted. "Tell her I said all that if you want."

"Very well, then," EDI said.

"Thank you. I will be in my quarters," I told her. I then squared my shoulders and began to walk determinedly for the room I shared with my friends, my head held high.

Abby was in there, dressed in her normal workout clothes. "Zaeed just randomly asked me to come down and train," she muttered, pulling her hair up. "Weird. Be back in a bit!" She left, and then I was alone.

The door opened a little while later and Commander Shepard was revealed, dressed in that first, formal-ish outfit I'd seen her in before. "Talk," she said, sitting down on HK's bed. "Either you give me a hell of a good argument about why I shouldn't keep things the way they are, or you stop the damn whining and you get on with your job."

I remained standing-in fact I did my best to remain standing at attention. I even attempted a salute, keeping my face sincere. I knew that if I was going to talk to her now, I needed to show the utmost respect, and try to present myself in a way that did NOT make me look like I was just feeling butt-hurt or whatever.

"I realize you could easily throw me off anytime, Commander," I said, making myself look her directly in the eyes. "And I am grateful you didn't... because in all honesty, you should have after what I did on Tuchanka." There, I was acknowledging my responsibility for my actions. "And I am trying to turn over a new leaf," I added, giving my head a slight tilt as a way to try and indicate my hair-although I knew that that really had nothing to do with this. "But it seems like I am still... confined in some ways. I've been ordered to stay away from Kasumi even though I would like to try and be friends with her again, and I can't go and talk to anyone anymore unless they happen to be on this deck."

I sighed. "I'm asking you, Commander, for a second chance. Otherwise if you truly think I am bad for this ship, and the mission, or that I'll do something stupid again, I'd like you to just say so and act on that decision. Throw me off the ship, or lock me up, if you feel I can no longer be trusted or deserve any privileges."

Shepard's face was impassive. "No, I think you're fine exactly where you are," she said calmly. "This is what had to happen, and it's going to stay like this for a long time. You're being punished, and rightly. There is absolutely no way I'm going to give you the free reign you originally had after Tuchanka. You'll have to put up with the stipulations I've given you, and whining about how absolutely unfair it is isn't going to get you any points. Take it like an adult."

I inhaled deeply and exhaled slowly, keeping myself calm. Fact is... I knew she was right. I just... didn't like it. But I couldn't say that to her, especially since I knew she was right.

I wracked my brain, trying to think of something I could say, anything. Maybe some sort of deal that we could work out possibly, or some kind of argument I could use in my defense. But I couldn't really think of anything. All things considered, everyone had still been acting like they usually do around me; no one had been rude, disrespectful or mean or anything. There was absolutely nothing I could complain about, there were no problems to point out, and I couldn't think of any loopholes I could use-not ones that would work on Shepard, at least.

Finally, I blurted out something. "Can I stay on Omega?" I'd heard that we were probably going there next.

"Hell no," Shepard said. She stood up and began to leave. She chuckled. "There are so many things wrong with that question..."

"Wait please," I said. "What about Illium? I could stay with Liara-or I could stay with Anderson on the Citadel or something... I know Kahlee Sanders will be going there eventually..." Ooops. I shouldn't have said that last part.

"Sarah," Shepard said, turning around. She actually sounded mad, now. "You are going to stay here. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. You will only leave your quarters when you're working, you will not talk to Kasumi, and you will not leave this Deck."

She left.

_Yes Mom,_ I thought simply as the door closed shut behind her.

* * *

**(HK)**

I went straight to bed after that very weird conversation with Jack last night, and it felt weird to sleep alone, with no one else in the room. I used to all the time, back at home, but on my new home, I never really had. I wasn't quite sure where Abby and Sarah slept, but I assumed they found some place on this huge ship.

And now, yet again, I was back on Deck Four. Not to speak with Jack, of course, or at least I hoped not. I was actually coming to see how Tali was doing, after all that went down yesterday. Also, on a more selfish note, I wanted to see how she felt towards Abby and me for not telling her about her father.

However, as I stepped off the elevator, something caught my eye: Below, on Deck Five, Abby and Zaeed were sparring. I actually hadn't seen them together at all since Abby pulled the fire alarm all that time ago. I crossed my arms, and stood there for a moment, watching them.

They were doing a drill I recognized instantly: Zaeed had a red marker and was using it as a dagger, attempting to stab Abby. Abby, however, had this huge smile on her face, staying just out of his reach. I watched, interested, as Zaeed made his move.

Abby just kind of flowed around him or something. I must have blinked, because at one moment she was there, about to be stabbed, and then she wasn't. Zaeed was slammed on the floor in the next millisecond, and Abby had his arm in a painful pin I vividly remembered, though I couldn't think of its name.

Zaeed tapped. Abby didn't let him up. He tapped again, and she just stayed there. Then Zaeed dropped the red marker, Abby put it in her pocket, and she released him.

I smiled lightly. I was glad that they seemed to be back to normal, because they were really good friends before Abby dropped Jessie, but then it faded. However, the incident was behind them now, it seemed. And Abby needed some Aikido-moves and sparring after that horrible fight she saw last night, and of course, the Kelly incident. I decided to stay and watch to see if anything happened next.

Zaeed began to get up, and then Abby did something that made me laugh: she jumped on his back and tried to hold him down. Zaeed got on all fours and attempted to shake her off, but she just held on to his neck, laughing as he tried to throw her off. He probably could have if he was fighting for his life, but he was taking it slow. Eventually he managed to get up, Abby riding piggy-back, and he began to bump her against the cargo containers in an attempt to get her off. He was actually LAUGHING.

...was this the type of stuff he and Jack did in the men's bathroom?

Zaeed went one way and Abby leaned another. Zaeed toppled over, falling on Abby, who squirmed out from underneath of him. Zaeed twisted over and grabbed her ankle, dragging her closer. She pushed off against him with her feet, but Zaeed was a strong guy and wasn't to be brushed aside by a fourteen-year old girl. He placed her in an arm lock, she squirmed, and finally she tapped out. Still laughing, she rolled on to her back and noticed me for the first time. She waved.

I slowly waved, though I was quite weirded out by this. Abby and Zaeed together was an interesting combination, mainly because they were both so insane. Jacob was close with Abby, too, but he was a moderately normal guy. Zaeed, on the other hand, was even crazier than Abby. And everybody knew that the three psychics were whack jobs.

Abby held her hand up in a fist, Shepard's signal for "halt." I decided to wait her out as she talked to Zaeed some more, gathered her things, and finally left. The elevator beeped behind me and she walked out, smirking. "Come to have another chat with Jack?" she asked archly. She was sweaty, and there was a shadow of a bruise underneath her right cheek.

I glared at her. "No, not after last ni-" I said, and then stopped. "Did I tell you about that?"

"Nope!" she said cheerfully. She chuckled. "Man that was... a situation!"

"I went down to see her after the Kelly thing, and well, she kind of, uhh...took her top off and tried to get me to sleep with her in exchange for information. I refused, she kissed me, we talked, and then I darted out of there. Quick version of the story, anyway," I explained with a slight shudder.

"Yeah, I saw."

"Ind-wait just a minute, you _what_?" I practically screamed.

"Oh, yes. Come on, into the elevator." Abby pulled me into the elevator and closed the door, pressing the button for Deck Three. "So... what does Jack taste like?" She chuckled.

"Excuse me? Like I'm going to tell you!" I snapped. "And I don't really care, either."

"So she obviously doesn't taste like a smoker," Abby mused.

"And just how did you see it? Crawling around in the vents?" I asked her, still glaring at her. However, soon my lips formed into a smirk. "Just trying to watch to see if I'll step out on you? Oh, wait, I was just your rebound since Sarah left you for Garrus."

"Oh please," Abby said. "I would've dumped you years ago. You're just trying to make me jealous by sleeping with Jack-that's okay, I get it. Too bad you chickened out at the last moment, though."

I felt more frustration, at first. "Well, you're right. I am so much different from you...a chicken, in fact. You have so much more courage. Like when you slept with Sarah last night! Wow, that was some real bravery!"

"That one was all Kelly's imagination. I would never have intercourse with Sarah without inviting you and Jack first."

"But then Sarah would have to invite Garrus and Jack would have to invite Zaeed," I reminded. "You didn't want that many people in there, so you just went ahead with only you and Sarah."

"All we have to do now is throw Commander Shepard into all of this and we'll have one huge party!" she laughed, doubling up with mirth.

"Oh, but she'd have to bring Jacob and Thane if we brought her into this," I said cheerfully.

"And Jacob would have to bring Miranda, or she'd feel left out," Abby pointed out.

"Okay, this is seriously the weirdest conversation we've had lately," I said at the thought of all of this. "We must really have nothing to do with ourselves."

"At least we keep EDI entertained," Abby said lightly. "And Joker." She waved at the wall. "Hi, Joker!"

The lights momentarily blinked on and off. Abby laughed.

"Oh-_kay_," I remarked, raising an eyebrow. I looked back to Abby. "So, have you and Zaeed patched things up after you dropped Jessie? Everything seemed alright when you were sparring."

"Yeah, that was so weird," Abby said. "We haven't exactly talked much for a while now, and today he just randomly found me while I was hiding from-I mean avoiding Kelly. He said something like 'Get your clothes on and meet me on Five.' I got my usuals on, went down, and we had a one-on-one. I'm glad he's being nicer about it. I wonder why he just started to be nice now, though... I think Shepard made him."

I raised an eyebrow. "Do you think Shepard really...er, not to make her sound heartless, but cares that much about little disputes like that?"

"Nah, she does," Abby said. "She just doesn't get into most of them because she knows that she can't take control of our lives. Shepard is an observer, just like me. If she thinks something bad or wrong, she'll step in. She's had to step in a lot with Sarah," she mused.

"Well, true, but I haven't seen Kasumi or Jacob ask Sarah to go hang around recently," I commented. Though, on the other hand, Jacob didn't have much in common with her, and Sarah held Kasumi at gunpoint. "But I see what you mean. What do you think Tali thinks of us now?"

"Tali," Abby said, grimacing. The elevator door opened, and we stepped out. "Honestly? I think she understands. I don't think she likes it, but that she understands. She knew that her father might be dead going in."

I nodded with a frown. "I just feel bad for her. I mean, I hate that we couldn't tell her, but we just couldn't. Seeing what she went, and is still going, through was much harder when a few inches away from her, than when it was simply fiction in a dream," I commented solemnly.

"I understand. Things are only going to get crazier and crazier." Abby shook her head. "All right, where you going? I need to go get changed, but then I'm heading upstairs to see Jacob and Mordin."

"I don't really know, to be honest," I replied thoughtfully, not quite sure. "I did go down to see Tali, but then I got distracted, and I'm not sure if it is the best idea to go see her at the moment, anyway. Don't know what to do. I was trying to establish some more...friendships with people, but Tali is probably mad and Jack wants to have sex with me."

"Wait up for me and we'll hang out with Jacob and Mordin," Abby suggested. "And if you want to hang out with different people, try Joker!" She suddenly blushed and giggled.

"...no," I bluntly refused.

"Oh, come on, Jack tried to hit on him, too, and it didn't work, either."

"I like Joker, I always have, but I don't know if he's someone I'd like to become buddy-buddy with. He is more fit for you, I think," I explained to my friend with a light smile.

"You never know until you try," Abby told me. "I'll catch up with you later, I need a shower!" She waved and set off... but she didn't go to our quarters OR the bathrooms. She went, for some odd reason, to Thane's room and closed the door behind her.

I blinked, but decided to just shrug it off, for now. She probably went to an access to a vent to crawl to the showers from there. It'd be just a bit, so I decided to head to our quarters for now. I walked in, and noticed Sarah inside.

"Good morning," I greeted kindly.

"Hi," Sarah greeted me, a bit blandly. She was sitting on the edge of her bed, her brow somewhat furrowed. "What's up?"

"Oh nothing much, just stopping by here for a bit. How are you today?" I inquired curiously.

She shrugged. "Well I just got chewed out by Shepard, but other than that I'm just ducky. How're you?"

"I'm very good overall, but chewed out by Shepard? What happened _this_ time?" I asked, alarmed.

Sarah glared at me. "Don't worry I didn't cause any trouble... not really, I mean, not in the way I have before," she stammered a little. "I just... pissed her off, good."

"Why? How?"

"Well..." She sighed, hesitating. "I got mad when Jacob told me to stay away from Kasumi, because... I've wanted to talk to her to try and smooth things over. So I asked EDI to tell Shepard that I wanted her to let me have free reign of the ship, or lock me up or hand me over to the Illusive Man."

I blinked. I then blinked again. "You what? Sarah, did you really think that would _work_?"

She shrugged. "I... guess I wasn't really thinking about it," she said.

I sighed. "And so she got mad, again."

"Yeah."

I sighed. "Sarah, you and Kasumi will patch things up when you patch things up. I am sure it will come, in due time, you just have to be patient. Continue to do your job around Deck Three, and just wait for Kasumi to approach you. She just needs time, I think," I explained to her softly.

"Yeah I guess that's all I can do, especially because... well, now I'm not allowed to leave this room unless I have work to do," Sarah remarked.

"Ah, so I guess that was a consequence of angering Shepard again," I said. I actually felt bad for Sarah, just slightly. Sure she deserved a lot of these punishments, but I couldn't help but feel sorry for her. "I'm sorry, but at least you won't be stuck in here all day."

"Well," Sarah said, in sort of a "let's look on the bright side" tone of voice, "At least I have my music." She reached for her CD player. Suddenly she stiffened, making a face. "Do you hear that?" She searched through her things and finally lifted up her mattress, revealing a small, black rectangular thing with a screen. Music I recognized from the Mass Effect 2 Loading Screen was playing softly from it. There was a small set of headphones next to it, curled into a tight ball.

She studied it for a moment, and then she played with some of the settings. After a moment, some more familiar music began to play from it-it was the Normandy Attacked theme.

She grinned. "I've always liked that one," she said.

_I'm sure you won't in a few weeks._

However, I was glad that she did. "I guess that is Abby's? Something else to listen to, I suppose," I said with a shrug.

"Yep," Sarah said. Then she shut it off and set it down next to her CD player. "Hey, I need to go take a shower... so I'll see you later, okay?"

I nodded with a smile. "Sure."

She smiled in return, and then glanced behind us toward the small terminal where EDI appeared whenever she talked to us. "Unless it's against the stipulations for me to leave this room to take a shower," she snapped softly. "Though if you and Shepard want me to go around smelling like a dirty camel..." She trailed off indicatively.

"Shepard is a fair woman, not an insane one. She'll let you go to the bathroom and take a shower, I'm sure," I told Sarah with a light chuckle.

EDI's blue "head" popped up at that moment. "I would recommend you take showers more regularly, as a matter of fact," she said. "Some of the crew have been complaining that you apparently don't take them enough... and they are wary of your cooking at times."

Sarah scowled. But without saying anything, she simply turned and headed out of the room.

Suddenly my omni-tool chimed softly, indicating I had an incoming message. I checked it, and I saw that it was from Shepard. "HK," the Commander's voice said, "meet me in my quarters."

I blinked, but quickly, a hypothesis grew in my head about what was going on: Like other missions, Shepard likely wanted some type of briefing on Samara's. And boy, would she need it. "I'll be right there," I said obediently, turning and heading for the elevator.

Soon enough, I stepped off the elevator on Deck One, aka Shepard's quarters. I opened the door, and walked inside to see Abby and Samara already inside, along with of course, Shepard.

"Hey, everybody," I greeted kindly.

"Greetings," Samara said tranquilly-but for once, her face was animated. "We have much to discuss." She glanced in Shepard's direction.

Shepard brought us over to the couches with a wave of her hand and sat down in the chair, leaving Samara to sit on her right and Abby and I to squeeze next to each other in front of her. Abby's hair was still wet, but thankfully she'd gotten a shower. I didn't want to sit next to a smelly teenager, best friend of mine or not.

"Alright, so this is where we stand," Shepard said, resting her elbows on her knees. "We'll arrive at Omega in another five days, which should give us enough opportunity to prepare. What should we expect?"

"There's no fighting, you don't have to worry about that," Abby said dismissively. "It's an undercover op. The only one that would be doing any sort of fighting would be Samara."

Samara's eyes were intense. "So you are saying that I will successfully kill her?" the Justicar asked.

"Not necessarily," I replied. In a way, I was surprised that Samara was up here, as well...or maybe I was just a little more careful since she was. I wasn't sure what to and what not to reveal to her. "You won't be doing anything like on Tali's mission, where we had to blow through mountains and mountains of people. It will be more like a very strange diplomatic mission."

"You could die," Abby said bluntly. "But you've accepted that already. Just give your all and everything will work out. Most of the mission hinges on Shepard, though. Basically, you have to infiltrate the upper section of the Afterlife-the VIP section-and catch Morinth's attention. Again, not really an issue. Morinth likes people who can, like, move around. They're creative and stand out. But she doesn't like jerks. Dance with a few people, get everyone some free drinks from the bartender, and don't egg anybody on. Eventually she will approach you. Get her to invite you back to your apartment, and there Samara can get the drop on her."

"I know my daughter," Samara murmured. "And I believe you speak the truth. Morinth likes individuals who are artists-whether they are artists in the literal sense of the word, or in the form of battle, or in... persuading people to do things. But remember, acts of charity or meekness bore and annoy her. If you defend yourself or maneuver your way through a crowd she will be intrigued. But pick a fight and she will grow bored."

I nodded. "We know. We've heard you say that in our visions. There will be some more details that you will find when we get there. You'll have to do a little investigating. As EDI may tell you, Aria will be able to help," I said, with a slight glance to Shepard. "It won't be easy, but it won't be extremely difficult. You just _have_ to play your cards right."

"We will need to be very careful," Samara told us. I could tell she definitely wanted to get that point across to us. "You will be in grave danger every moment until I get to you, Shepard. You will have to get her alone, and then keep her busy until I come for you. And I must warn you..." Her eyes darted in my direction, and Abby's, then focused on Shepard again. "She will use charm and sex appeal to... allure you. If you're not careful, you will end up wanting her. You would... fall under her spell, in a sense."

"You'll have sex with her and die," Abby said wryly.

"Nothing is ever easy, is it?" Shepard asked, raising one perfect eyebrow. "So Morinth... huh. She'll be difficult. There's too much at stake here to go in alone. I want you two in there with me."

"Yay!" Abby squealed.

"No," Samara said with a small shake of her head. "Morinth is a dangerous predator-we must not endanger the lives of these children."

"I know what you mean, Samara," I agreed, slightly nervously. "But, if we're not there...there is a bigger chance that Morinth would get away. We need to be there to help you and Shepard as much as we can."

"Yeah," Abby agreed. "Look, we'll keep in touch with Shepard, give her a few hints along the way. Other than that, the two of us will probably just be mingling with people on the dance floor."

"I'm not saying I like the idea," Shepard said dryly. "There's no need to act so excited, Abby. I'd rather have somebody older, like Sarah, but obviously that is an issue. People are dangerous on Omega; I don't have to tell you that. You would have to stick together, and you will be wearing tracking chips. I won't have another Illium again." Shepard turned to Samara. "I understand that Morinth is a dangerous woman. I wouldn't expect any less from your daughter, but right now these two are the best chance we have at defeating her."

Samara lowered her gaze and exhaled softly. It wasn't quite a sigh-at least not an audible one. "If Sarah had not proven to be so... unstable and incompetent, I would prefer her as well," she murmured. "I would not want anyone so young to be anywhere near her. She is one of the most dangerous individuals we have gone after."

"I know, I understand," I said, trying not to say that she'd already killed one very young girl. A girl probably even much younger than Sarah, perhaps even just a little older than me. "But we know the risks. We know how she works, too. We can be careful, and we'll stop her from ever hurting anyone ever again."

"That's exactly what we intend to do," Shepard said, giving a meaningful look to Samara. "Besides, HK and Abby have already been through a lot on this mission; I'm sure they can handle this as well."

"I simply hope that Morinth does not take an interest in them," Samara murmured.

"They're _children,"_ Shepard said. "You really think Morinth would make a move on them?"

"This is _Morinth_ we're talking about," Samara answered gravely.

"Don't put it out of your thoughts," I added with a shudder.

"Yes, yes, Morinth is a dangerous predator," Abby said. "We know and understand. And you don't see us complaining. So let's move on past the sexual pedophilia and get down to business."

"How soon until we arrive at Omega, specifically?" Samara wanted to know. I realized she had directed her question at EDI.

EDI's blue head popped up. "Approximately five days, ten hours and eleven minutes," she answered.

I nodded. "That will give us time to rest and recuperate from Tali's traumatic mission, and prepare for what's ahead," I said, looking back to the other three.

"Thank you for helping me with this... all of you," Samara said earnestly. "I do not share this burden lightly."

I smiled. "No problem, really."

"Is there anything else either of you can tell us that might be useful?" Shepard asked. I knew that tone of voice by now; she was getting ready to dismiss us if we didn't have anything else to share-that we were _willing_ to share, at least.

I looked at Abby, wondering if she thought we should tell the two about Nef. Abby caught on and shrugged, then shook her head. "Nah, we're good," she said.

"Very well," Shepard said, and rose from her seat. "Dismissed."

Samara regarded each of us with a meaningful look, and then she simply nodded and left-silently and gracefully.

Abby and I exchanged glances, and then we turned to leave-but stopped abruptly when Shepard said, "Hold on for a moment. I'd like to talk to you both."

"Yes?" I asked our commanding officer, turning around to face her.

"Oh dear," Abby muttered.

Shepard folded her arms across her chest. Somehow she had a talent for appearing casual and confrontational at the same time when she did that-at least sometimes. "How's Sarah been doing? Has she been behaving herself?"

"Well, she's been fine, as far as I know," I replied with a shrug.

"Just wanted to make sure she's been sticking to her duties and not causing more problems," Shepard said. "Well, specifically, I wanted to know if she was causing either of _you_ any problems."

"She's Sarah," Abby said dryly. "I think she wants to talk to Kasumi, but other than that? She's doing... okay. I'm kinda surprised that Kelly let her dye her hair, though."

"I noticed that," the Commander commented, referring to Sarah's hair. Then her brow furrowed a little. "Why does she want to talk to Kasumi?"

"If you pulled a gun on Jacob and he was mad at you, you'd want to talk to him, too," Abby pointed out.

Shepard's face did not change. Somehow I figured she knew that already-maybe she just wanted to hear our thoughts on the matter. "Any idea why she did that in the first place?" she asked slowly, narrowing her eyes a little. "When I questioned her in Lawson's office after we got back from Tuchanka, she didn't really give me much to go on."

I sighed. "I am not sure; I think Sarah is just majorly stressed. Or she was. She's handling all of it much differently than we have. All of this is just new and strange to her," I simply explained to Shepard, not sure how else to put it.

The Commander looked thoughtful for a moment. "I've known pretty much from the first week you three appeared on the Normandy that she wasn't cut out for this," she finally said. "She's not a soldier, and part of her seems... deeply frightened of something." She frowned. "She has mentioned the possibility of dying too many times, that along with an attack of some sort, I believe." Now her eyes narrowed, but she didn't press that particular subject. "She's caused a lot of trouble, but I'd rather keep her where I can watch her-and have people I trust watch her." Then she looked directly at us again. "Plus I know that the two of you are very fond of her."

She sank back down into her chair and leaned forward, placing one hand on her knee. "How did you... befriend her, exactly? Can you tell me a little more about her... background? Perhaps it'll help me understand her better."

"I had a dream about this fish tank on my first night here," Abby said wryly, moving to look at Shepard's tank thoughtfully. "You fed us to killer fishies or something. I can't remember the entire thing."

Shepard blinked. "What's that got to do with anything?" she asked.

"Nothing, just randomly popped back into my mind," Abby said. "HK?" She motioned for me to proceed.

I almost laughed, but decided to focus on the Sarah question. How would I explain this without revealing everything? "We kinda stumbled onto each other," I explained, and it was true. We did. "We all liked writing, and just started writing together. From that point on, we got to know her. As for her background, well, she grew up mostly on a farm, back on Earth. She lived a different type of life, to be honest. She went from a small home life to a life where she had to work with tons of people, and the transition may have been difficult."

"She just seems different from the two of you, with the exception of your visions," Shepard said thoughtfully. "So you're saying she's... used to farm life?"

"Well, she didn't live there her whole life. She eventually moved to a neighborhood or two, living the average life of anyone in a home like that," I answered. I almost felt bad about revealing Sarah's entire past to Shepard, but heck, what harm could it do at this point? "But in a way, yes. She is used to a more normal life, not the life of heroes gallivanting across the galaxy."

"Someone used to civilian life should never be thrust into a military situation without proper training-both physical and emotional," Shepard murmured. She touched her chin thoughtfully for a moment, and then dropped her hand again. "Yet you two seem to do alright, overall. I can tell that Abby's had a lot of combat training for most of her life and you know some things as well, HK-and you're a quick learner. But Sarah..." the Commander shook her head. "I think I can tell that she's not a bad person. She just... isn't cut out for this."

She sighed, and then stood. "But I can't let this sort of thing go on, and I can't have her going off and doing stupid things that might get her-or those around her-killed. But at the same time..." She rolled her eyes. "I don't know. Part of me feels that I can't exactly hold her to the same standards as I would someone else on this ship. She just doesn't have the background, the training, or the experience."

She looked at us again. "So... frankly, I'm open to suggestions at this point. Especially since you both have known her longer than I have. Is there anything we can do to help her adjust, and stop pulling these outrageous stunts of hers?"

I sighed heavily. "Honestly, I don't know. I've spent many days of my life consoling Sarah, but she's done things I never would have expected here. As we have both stated numerous times, she's not cut out for the ground crew. She has also let her fear and her fascination with Garrus overpower her on multiple occasions. How to help her, after all of this? I...honestly don't know, Commander."

"Then I guess I don't know either." Shepard's shoulders lifted into a shrug and she gazed into the depths of the enormous fish tank for a long moment. "Perhaps some of this may not have happened if I paid closer attention," she murmured, as though looking back over everything that had happened so far throughout the weeks and months we'd all been on the Normandy. "Perhaps I shouldn't have taken her to Omega back when you three first appeared on my ship. And I know I should never have let her come along to Haestrom, and... something in my gut told me even before we left for Tuchanka that taking her along was a bad idea."

She shook her head slightly. "I've come to depend on both of you so much," she said, turning to face me and Abby again. "Perhaps I've even begun to take you for granted in some ways. I feel that everyone on this ship is valuable, but... in some ways, the three of you are far more valuable because of how much you know." Her lips curved downward into a small frown again. "I still don't understand how you know so much, but I've come to rely on you."

Now she actually chuckled a little, as another thought came to her. "You and Abby have been the main reason our mission has gone as well as it as so far. And yet... ironically, Sarah seems intent on disrupting things, however unintentionally."

I almost smiled myself. "Nah, Sarah has only caused a few big issues," I stated, even if that was downplaying it a bit. "She just gets herself into crazy situations, I guess, and thank you, but really, we're all equal. We may be able to tell the future better than others, but Jack will always be better at biotics. Jacob will always be better at sparring than me. Garrus will always be a better sniper; Miranda will always be a better leader. Mordin will always be a better scientist, Kasumi will always be a better thief, and Tali will always be a better hacker and slicer. We all have our unique, special talents."

"Exactly," Shepard agreed with a nod. "And I never meant to imply that any one person was better or more useful than anyone else. Hell, the only reason any of us are out here right now-including me-is because we're trying to protect the rest of the galaxy. And that means protecting the civilians... the people who can't defend themselves." Somehow I felt that all three of us shared the same unspoken thought; _that includes people like Sarah._

"Indeed," I told her firmly. "And I know what you mean about everything. In fact, some of the crew probably can't even defend themselves that well, they just are a bit more trained and don't get into such wild situations. And, although I don't know if you'd agree or disagree on this...the Normandy has almost become like some sort of family. And Sarah, for all of her shortcomings, is a weird part of this...family."

Shepard's eyes grew distant and thoughtful. "Yeah, she has." Then she simply turned back to stare into her fish tank again. Then she murmured in a voice that was barely above a whisper-so softly I had to strain to hear her, "Sarah's just the black sheep of the Normandy." I saw her smiling slightly.

Then she nodded toward us. "Dismissed."

"That was interesting," I muttered to Abby as we walked out. Anything that involved Sarah was nothing but. "Wanna go see Jacob now?" I asked, boarding the elevator.

"Sure!" she said, hopping to my side. "But why?"

"...because we were planning on it before we came up here?"

"We were?" Abby asked, blinking. "I don't remember that. Talk of evil deeds in the fish tank has distracted me."

"You asked me if I wanted to come up with you to see Jacob and Mordin after you took a shower. Then Shepard called us up," I reminded her. Oh, how I loved Abby's short term memory sometimes. "So I was wondering if you wanted to go see them now?"

"Sure!" Abby said. "I thought you didn't want to go see them, actually, so I kind of forgot about it."

I raised an eyebrow, as I punched in the button for Deck Two on the elevator. "I like Jacob and Mordin, I never mind seeing them," I assured her.

"Sweet," she said, pressing the number for Deck Two. "So I went to talk to Thane before Shep called me up. Keeping in touch with everyone, you know. He's doing good."

I nodded. "That's good," I agreed. "Is he still talking to Kolyat and all? And, uhh, do you know if he's romancing Shepard at all?"

"He and Kolyat are still talking," Abby confirmed. "But as for the other thingy? I didn't ask. I didn't want to put him on the spot."

"I understand. I'm just curious, though it is none of our business, because I have this suspicion that she's got something going on with Jacob, but there's some kind of feelings on Thane's side, as well. I don't want anybody to get heartbroken."

"She and Jacob have been a bit closer lately," Abby noted with a grin. "But Thane's got a fascination for Shep, too. I can tell."

"I just hope it ends well. The last thing we need is some huge love triangle breaking out on the ship, especially as everything narrows down to the final stuff," I remarked. "Jacob seems like the kind of guy who wouldn't let it get to him too much, though. Or at least, he wouldn't show it. On the other hand, I'm not sure about Thane and how he'd take any sort of heartbreak."

"He'd understand," Abby said, "but he'd still take it a bit hard, I think. So would Jacob. They're human beings with feelings... a lot deeper than we'd seen before."

"Oh, I know that they both have feelings, especially a lot deeper in reality than in the visions," I said, well adjusted to using the term 'visions' instead of 'game' by now. I knew that the elevator was about to stop, so we'd have to end this discussion quick. "And I know both of them pretty well, especially Jacob. In my visions, I-Shepard just never dumped anyone."

"And if she did, she was pretty blasé about it," Abby said wryly. "Somehow, I can't see her backing out of something, though. She gives everything she can, and it normally works out. Kaidan doesn't count."

"So, in that case, the question is which one does she really like?" I wondered as we stepped out of the elevator on Deck Two.

Abby cackled. "Well... I'm thinking that if Dawson were here he'd have an answer," she said, naming her best friend.

The thought made me shudder. "I know he is your best friend, but if he were here, the Normandy would be a lot worse off," I muttered. I then looked around. "So, where are Jacob and Mordin supposed to be, exactly?"

"Normal places, I'm thinking," Abby said.

I rolled my eyes. "Which room?"

"...the normal room?"

"The lab or the armory?" I asked bluntly.

"Well, I'm pretty sure both?"

I nearly wanted to have an Abby-style moment and facepalm myself, but instead I looked to the bridge before us. I looked to one certain person. "Hey, Kelly, Abby's over here if you wanted to talk to her!" I called, a grin forming on my face.

Abby flinched as though I'd whacked her with a hot iron. Looking around, her eyes narrowed as she realized that Kelly wasn't even on this floor. She smacked the back of my head. "No."

I shrugged, ignoring the momentary sting. "Too bad. I'm sure she wants to apologize for giving you and Sarah that speech because of some silly assumption."

"And I'm sure that you just went up and washed your mouth out immediately after Jack tongued you," she shot back.

I suddenly scowled, and glanced back to the Bridge to see a few crew members giving us weird looks. I felt myself blush. "Um, yes, let's go find Mordin and Jacob now," I declared, taking a right turn to the lab. They had to be in one of those two rooms.

"I'd say Mordin is in this one!" Abby declared, throwing me a sideways grin.

"I was wondering if Jacob and Mordin were already waiting for us in one room," I explained simply, not wanting to continue this discussion much anymore. It seemed that all of our talks lately had just turned weird.

Well, on the other hand, what else was new?

Sure enough, we walked inside the lab and Mordin was in there, doing scientific work as always. He looked up at us and smiled. "Ah, Abby, HK. Good to see you," he said brightly.

"Mordin!" Abby greeted with a grin. "How is you?"

"Good, good. Better and relieved after Tuchanka," Mordin explained. "Glad that you both and Jacob are stopping by. Wanted to speak to you all about...medical matters."

My eyes went wide. "No, no, _no_," I immediately said.

"Oh dear," I heard Abby mutter.

"Well, aware that mission is dangerou-" Mordin began.

"Trust me, Mordin, no need for sex talks," I protested calmly. "Jacob is not in a relationship, as far as I know. Neither is Abby, and neither am I."

"Relationship not needed for-" Mordin started.

I cut him off again. "Mordin, nothing is going on with anyone," I politely said.

Mordin looked curious. "Certain?"

"Certain," I agreed.

"Completely," Abby said.

"Ah, good. Lecture not needed, then," Mordin said happily with a nod. "Though, should talk to Shepard about her various entanglements."

I couldn't help but smirk. "You do that, Mordin," I said, turning around when I heard the door open. Unsurprisingly, it was Jacob. "Hey, Jacob."

"Hey," Jacob said, throwing half of a salute our way. "How you guys doing?" He stood in front of the research terminal and began to flip through the ship wide upgrades.

Good, somebody was still making upgrades around here. "We're fine," I replied kindly. "Been a little crazy around here lately, more so than normal, but I'm okay. How are you?"

"Been checking things out," Jacob said mildly. "Not liking staying on the ship so much this time around. Gets boring real quick."

"Sorry," Abby said wryly. "Maybe Shepard will take you out on Zorya."

"Yeah, I'm going to talk to her about that," he said, scratching the back of his neck. "What about you, Mordin? What're you up to?"

"Also researching other upgrades that Shepard asked me to make. To weapons and otherwise," Mordin replied, continuing to look at his work. "Studying strange varren scale itch, as well. Unsure as to how it got onto the Normandy."

Mordin paused for a moment, then looked at Abby and I. "Know anything?" he inquired.

"Uh, unfortunately not. We heard of that in our visions but we never found out exactly how," I replied hesitantly.

"That's the sexually transmitted disease, right?" Abby asked curiously. "How does that work out?"

"Not sure how it got onto Normandy. Still researching," Mordin replied quickly.

I shuddered. "Ugh, scary thought," I muttered.

"Well, yeah," Abby said, "but what I meant was... what happens when you get the scale itch?"

"Ah, much like implications, it is unpleasant. Skin begins having a burning itch, and immune systems of any species are not used to fighting it, so it proves to be a bigger problem than most itches. The more the victim begins scratching the itch, the worse it gets. I advise against any sexual relations until problem is cleared."

"So it's... contagious?"

"Potentially."

I shuddered again. "You know, I hope you don't find out how this started, Mordin," I remarked aloud.

Mordin actually chuckled. "Do not worry, will not share results with you," he assured me.

"Awww." She actually sounded disappointed.

Jacob chuckled.

"Will share results with you, Abby, if you wish," Mordin told the girl. It made me cringe slightly, though I wasn't shocked. This was Abby; of course she'd want to know who had sexual relations with a varren.

And of course, this line would come up at some point: _'I did not have sexual relations with that varren.'_

"Maybe it was from some varren steak or something," I mused, trying to get some moderately cleaner thoughts into my head.

"Nah... Hey, Mordin, can you get an STD from a thresher maw?" Jacob called.

Mordin looked up for a moment. "Don't believe so. Not sure if sexual relations are possible between thresher maws and other species, due to their large size," he replied seriously.

"...I think he was kidding, Mordin," I chimed in, blinking.

"Still helpful tidbit of information," Mordin pointed out.

Abby giggled. "I wonder which of the ground crew had sexual relations with a varren... Maybe Grunt asserted his dominance while we weren't looking."

Jacob guffawed. "Oh, man..."

"I, uh, don't think so," I said. The very thought of Grunt asserting his dominance with anything was alarming. "In fact, the only people that were out on Tuchanka were Abby and I, Mordin, Shepard, Kasumi, and Sarah. Aside from Grunt, obviously."

Mordin glanced at me. "Still sure that there were no sexual activities with Jack?"

I blanched. "NO!" I sharply exclaimed.

"I don't think Jack would've left him alive, Doc," Jacob said, finishing up at the terminal. He sat down on a supply crate and Abby went over to take a seat next to him.

I glared at him. "Pft. I could've taken Jack...uhh, if I wanted to..." I argued hesitantly.

Abby just gave me a deadpan stare. "She'd eat you."

"Says you. Luckily, we won't find out," I told her.

"You sure?" Jacob asked. "'Cos I heard that she was groping you downstairs. Like it?"

"Heard the same rumors myself," Mordin interjected.

I narrowed my eyes at them both, but especially Jacob. "She wasn't groping me, Jacob. She just...showed me her breasts and then tried to kiss me. I sure wasn't going to have sex with the woman in exchange for giving her information," I explained, gritting my teeth. "And I am sure that none of you would like it if she did it to you, either."

Mordin and Jacob exchanged a significant glance. "Yeah, we had a talk about that..."

"Do tell," Abby said.

"Jack threatened to rip off the jewels of every male member of the Normandy with her mind if we even offered," Jacob said. Abby roared with laughter.

"What a nice thought," I stated blankly. "I must be special to her, if she asked me, then."

"I'm just waiting for her to start with Sarah..." Abby mumbled.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

Once I finished my shower I felt relieved and refreshed. It also felt nice to wear a fresh set of clothes.

Since I didn't have anything ELSE to do-and I knew EDI was watching me-I decided I should just go back to my room. Actually, the room I shared with my two friends-but it was as much my room as their room, so I might as well say it's my room. Much easier than saying "My room, HK's room, and Abby's room" every single time I wanted to make a mention of it.

So I went in and then plopped down on my bed. I then decided that it would be nice to take a nap. So I simply lay myself down atop the covers and then I sank my head against the pillow.

I had drifted off after just a few minutes, and then... I began to dream.

_I was standing in the kitchen... but I wasn't cooking or cleaning. Screams filled the air along with heavy steps-the sounds of alien footsteps and the sounds of running. Rupert was yelling at me to move, to run... but I was frozen in place. Frozen by fear._

_I saw a Collector coming straight toward me. Rupert came out of nowhere and rushed forward, using his fist and a large frying pan to try and beat the monster back-it was useless, I could see that-especially as it knocked him on his butt and swatted the pan away effortlessly. It grabbed his arms and began to drag him off. He kicked at it, but only kicked at the air; it was impossible to fight back without weapons. He then shouted at me, "Run Sarah, RUN!"_

_I ran. I felt my heart pounding in my chest as I ran down the corridor, toward Thane's room. Then there was a loud buzzing noise followed by heavy footfalls-a quick glance over my shoulder revealed that one of the Collectors was right behind me, pursuing me!_

_I ran straight toward Thane's room, hoping I could escape into the vents. But as I neared the room the doors opened on their own and Joker emerged. His eyes went wide and his face blanched when he saw the Collector right behind me._

_I froze, staring at him. Then I attempted to brush past-it didn't take much effort. Then I heard Joker yelp as the Collector grabbed him-I could also hear the sounds of his bones cracking as he was hauled roughly away..._

_But I kept going. I made it into the vents, not even thinking. I thought I heard EDI's voice calling to me over the ship's speakers but I couldn't understand her very well in the vents. I simply kept going._

_Finally I made it down to another level-the engineering level, but I stayed inside the vent. Surely I was safe there..._

_Then I could hear EDI speaking out, loudly over the speakers. "The Collectors are leaving the Normandy-they have the entire crew," she said. "Sarah, can you hear me? Respond! The Collectors are opening fire-"_

_Then the Normandy exploded into a ball of fire and debris-killing me and EDI right along with it._

I sat straight up, panting, in a cold sweat. I breathed quickly, in and out... and eventually slowed my breathing. It took me a moment to remember where I was... and to realize that that had been only a dream.

My face felt went from sweat-as did my palms-and my mouth felt parched. A dream... only a dream.

Yet there seemed to be an echo in my mind... something that was left over in the dream even as I awoke. Some deep voice whispering something like, "Be bold when the moment is right and this won't happen. Be ready to sacrifice yourself."

I curled up atop my bed, folding the covers around me best I could. I still wasn't sure I understood this... and that had been one hell of a creepy dream. But... was it possible that could happen? I just didn't know...

I found I couldn't relax anymore no matter how hard I tried. So I threw the covers aside and got up, walking purposely toward the door. Part of me wondered if EDI might say anything about me leaving this room, considering what Shepard had said the last time I'd seen her. To my mild surprise though... she said nothing as I walked out through the doors.

Unless maybe EDI figured I was going to do some work or something.

Rupert spotted me immediately as I headed in the direction of the kitchen. "Hey Sarah," he called out to me. "I'm fixing up some more food for the next meal, but that side of the deck hasn't been cleaned in a while." He jabbed a finger in the general direction of Miranda's office. "I think there are a couple of areas in the office down that way which should be cleaned up if possible. I've got the cleaning supplies over here-along with a couple of stain removers, which should hopefully work."

I blinked at him. "You want me to go clean Miranda's office?" I asked blankly. "Um... is she in there?"

"I believe so, and she can show you what needs to be cleaned," Rupert said with a nod. "From what I hear, there's some kind of stain on the rug in her bedroom and on her bed. She wants it taken care of."

"Hey maybe you would be better at it than me," I said quietly with what I hoped was a persuasive smile. "I could handle the cooking while you-"

He was already shaking his head. "No can do. Shepard actually said she'd like you to do this."

My heart sank slightly. Oh, so this was part of the punishment, wasn't it?

"Better get going," Rupert told me, snapping me out of my temporary fog. "The sooner you get started, the sooner you'll be done."

I moved like a zombie toward the cleaning supplies. Good gosh, did I HAVE to do this? I hadn't even been anywhere near that office since I got spoken to after Tuchanka-where I received my punishment. I had no desire to go back in there now.

...But then again, it couldn't be as bad as cleaning the room for the Wicked Witch of the West or anything.

As I carried the cleaning supplies down the hall toward_ her_ door... I couldn't help but feel as though I was marching toward my own funeral.

_Come on,_ I told myself._ She's not THAT bad._

I paused at the door. I inhaled deeply-and almost choked on my own breath. I cleared my throat, and then tried again. I inhaled deeply, exhaled slowly, and... opened the door to step inside.

Miranda, as usual, was seated behind her desk looking at a terminal sitting in front of her. Her hand froze just above the keypad and she looked up as I entered. Her eyelids fluttered a little in surprise, and then her eyes narrowed. "Sarah, what are you doing in here?" she asked briskly.

"Rupert sent me in here to clean," I answered quickly. I looked at her computer terminal instead of her-I didn't want to look at her face. "Says you have a couple stains in here?"

"Yes I do," Miranda replied stiffly, rising from her chair. She still remained where she was, but somehow standing up seemed to enhance her authoritive stance. "Though I was under the impression that Rupert would be handling that."

"I guess it was Shepard's idea," I replied, a bit meekly. I hated it when my voice sounded like that. But I knew I'd gotten the message across; if she had a problem with it, she had to take it up with Shepard.

"Well then," Miranda said after a moment, "I won't keep you from it." I knew there were two things she hated; incompetence, or when people just didn't do their jobs. I had a pretty good idea what she thought of me in general... at least I could guess. But she couldn't exactly say I was a bad cleaner, and if she kept talking to me she'd only be keeping me from doing my current job-thus keeping me in her room longer. She wanted to do neither, so now she simply sat down in her chair again and gave me an impatient look-she wanted me to get started, immediately.

"Check the bedroom, you'll see where the stains are," she told me in a clipped tone. "And just be careful you don't make an even bigger mess."

I handled the cleaning supplies a bit awkwardly as I headed into the bedroom. And that was when I saw the problem. There was a large, dark stain on the floor-and a crimson stain on the mattress, where the sheets and blankets had been pulled away to leave the mattress bare. I glanced around and saw that the sheets and blankets had apparently been tossed into a pile on the floor-right along with the pillow cases.

"I want the bedspread and pillow cases to be thoroughly washed as well," Miranda called out from the other room. "Return them to me once this is done, and I'd prefer it if it is done by the end of the day." From her tone I would have almost thought that something had come in here and contaminated the room or something, and she sounded as though she wanted every trace of it scrubbed clean.

"May I ask what happened in here?" I called out as I got down on my knees. Then I quickly changed my position to that of a squat; I was never really comfortable on my knees. Anyway I decided that the best place to start was the floor stain. The one on the bed looked kind of... gross, somehow. I wasn't even sure I wanted to know what it was. It was sort of reddish... yet it was a bit faded, almost close to brownish. I hoped that it was spilled coffee or something.

Then again, did Miranda ever eat or drink anything in her quarters?

I heard a sigh from the other room. "If you must know, apparently someone decided to sneak into my quarters while I was off doing an inspection of the bridge," she replied. "I was gone for several hours, especially since I went down to check on engineering as well. And apparently I forgot to lock the door when I left."

I blinked a little. I applied a little of the cleaning solution onto the floor and waiting, allowing it to sink into the carpet. "What did they do?" I wanted to know.

Miranda made a clicking noise of disgust. "Take a good guess," she replied with venom in her tone. "I also know that the same two crew-members locked themselves into the men's restroom last week to do the exact same thing. I told them quite firmly not to do that again, and so apparently they chose to use my quarters."

"Oh my... gosh," I murmured, suddenly realizing what the stains probably were. The one on the floor was probably some kind of spilled drink. I didn't even want to speculate about the one on the mattress.

"Why didn't they just go in their own quarters?" I couldn't help but asked. I began to scrub at the carpet a bit-the stain seemed to be coming out.

Miranda's tone turned even darker. "Apparently they did it on a dare... and there were credits involved," she snapped. "Now get to work and then get out. I have a lot of work to do."

And so, over the next half hour or so, I worked hard at getting those stains out. I actually got it so that there was only a faint hint of the stain left-unless you really looked, you couldn't really tell anything was ever there. At least, it seemed that way to me.

Once that was done I scooped up the sheets, blanket and pillow cases and put them under one arm, and then grabbed the cleaning supplies in the other. I had to move carefully out of the room to avoid spilling any of the cleaning solutions.

Miranda glanced in my direction as I began to pass her desk. "Make sure you clean my bed things very thoroughly," she stated firmly. "I happen to know that one of the crewmembers who were in here was diagnosed with scale itch."

I flinched slightly and stared down at the stuff under my arm, suddenly feeling like I was holding something very, very dirty. In every since of the term.

"Are you just going to stand there, or are you going to put those in the washing machine?" Miranda spoke without looking away from her terminal screen this time; she very obviously wanted me out of her room.

"Yep I'm going," I muttered, feeling my lips twist in disgust as I carried the bed stuff a bit more awkwardly than before.

I found myself pausing near the door. "Um... Miss Lawson?" I asked, not quite turning back in her direction. "Can I ask something?"

"What?" came the terse reply.

"Do you think, um, it would be possible for me to talk to Kasumi?"

Now she lifted her eyes from the terminal and narrowed them at me. "You were told to stay away from her, so I suggest you simply stick to your duties and be quiet." She looked at her screen again. "Dismissed, janitor."

I definitely knew that was a "get out". I left.

Well... maybe SOMEDAY I'd be able to talk to Kasumi again.

I went into the area behind the mess hall where the lone washing machine sat and I threw Miranda's bed things into it, slamming the door shut afterwards. After that I put in a moderate amount of laundry detergent-I knew better than to put TOO much in, because that only made them messier with the extra suds-and then I started it up. Then I knew I would be free for the next twenty minutes or so.

Rupert was apparently just finishing up his cooking duties. He simply asked me if I was finished doing my duty in Miranda's room, and I gave him a rundown on all that I'd done so far. He nodded, and then said he was going to go take a nap.

That left me with the duty of putting away the extra food, but I didn't mind. I actually wanted something to do with my hands... I was still trying to get that dream out of my head.

I thought of Kasumi again as I finished putting the food away and began to rinse off the pots and pans that were used, in order to put them in the dishwasher. In some ways... I wondered why she hadn't made a real attempt to talk to me yet. I knew that I had been pushing things a bit much, but... I just wanted things to be normal again. At least, as normal as possible.

So... why hadn't she approached me? Sure, she had been in the kitchen earlier, and we'd exchanged a few words, but that was it. She didn't seem to be making any real effort to talk to me.

Well, maybe that was how she wanted it. Maybe she was still angry and had better things to do anyway. I shrugged my shoulders at the thought and clunked a frying pan into the dishwasher with far more force than was necessary.

"Guess it doesn't matter if she doesn't want to talk to me," I muttered out loud. "At least I can still talk to HK and Abby; they're the only friends I really need anyway." I shoved the dishwasher shut and began to move out of the kitchen.

I paused as I glanced in the direction of Kasumi's door, forlornly. Well, my decision was made. In my head, at least; I guess that friendship was over. In my heart it wasn't, but... well, logically, it seemed to be over. It was probably over when I pointed that gun at Kasumi, and maybe some things just couldn't be fixed or changed.

I went straight back to "my" room. Maybe I would just listen to music for a while.


	36. The Asari Justicar

(HK)

Five days had gone by, and everything began to die down a bit on the Normandy. I still got teased on occasion by some crew member about the incidents with Jack, but that had gone down a lot, too. And no one had dared to mention the whole Abby-Sarah rumor, lest Abby reap some kind of just revenge on them. Not to mention, Kelly was still embarrassed and guilty about the whole thing, to some extent.

There was also something that happened in Miranda's quarters that was linked to the scale-itch break out, but I didn't care to know much about that, especially after the little explanation Mordin gave on what that did to a person. Why in Miranda's quarters? No clue, and again, didn't want to find out.

Otherwise, things had been silent, for once. Abby and Sarah had both gone back to sleeping in the quarters that the three of us shared, and there had been no more incidents with any of us. All that had happened was just mingling, basically.

Every day that went by, tensions were slowly rising. Everyone kept a calm face, sure, but we knew that we were getting down to the wire. Tali was still reeling from her father's demise, and I couldn't tell whether she still harbored any anger towards us or not. Grunt was being a krogan, and Zaeed was getting anxious to finally kill Vido. He also mentioned that Jack was getting more and more ready to blow up her old home on Pragia.

Also, Samara had such a calm aura about her, but I knew that she was more than ready to kill Morinth. The asari Justicar was very hard to read, and she no doubt had accepted that Morinth had to die. She probably did that a few hundred years ago, but I knew that she had to have some reaction to the fact that the time was nearing.

And now, it was closer than ever. I stood in the cockpit, by the airlock, as the Normandy docked with Omega for the second time. Shepard and Abby were here, like always, and Samara was with us as well. Miranda was with us, too; she hadn't been out in a long while, much like a few people on board, so she was coming along.

"I really hope this is the last time we visit this place, Commander," Joker muttered underneath his breath.

"Unless you want to just pay the place a visit," I said, looking at Shepard. "I think it will be. At least, that is what my visions tell me."

"Okay, we should be good to go," Joker announced, as the Normandy finished docking with the massive space station. Omega truly was the Citadel of the Terminus Systems; the huge, center of everything.

In truth, it did give me the creeps. I hoped not to come back to it, either.

"We should make haste," Samara suggested, heading for the airlock.

"Agreed," Shepard said, motioning for all of us to follow her.

All five of us stepped off of the ship, and into that usual entry passage of the station. "Before EDI says it," I started, knowing full well that the AI could hear all of us through our comms. "We need to start at Afterlife. I know it isn't the best place in the world, but Aria can help us."

"No problem," Shepard murmured. "I've been in there before." I saw her checking over her weapons for a moment, as though wanting to make doubly sure they were loaded and ready to go.

"Aria is the leader of Omega, is she not?" Samara asked.

"Something likes that," Shepard replied as she finished checking her weapons. "She's more like a self-proclaimed pirate queen than anything, but if you want to know any of Omega's deep and dirty secrets, she's the one to go to."

"Then we should speak to her indeed," the Justicar agreed.

We all didn't waste any time, immediately heading through the usual areas of Omega. We all passed the waiting line, as people continued to complain about not getting let in. Interestingly, but not surprisingly, there was another human complaining, instead of the one that was always complaining in the game. However, the elcor's message was basically the same.

Shepard paused at the top of the stairs leading into the club, much to the outrage of those standing in the long, snake-like line behind her. "Don't drink anything," she warned us, "and don't go off without one of us."

"The last thing we need is for one of you to die from liver failure," Miranda remarked stiffly.

"No ryncol, no turian specialties, no beer, no ale," Shepard continued. Abby opened her mouth, but Shepard cut her off, saying, "And absolutely no margaritas or anything else that would have an adverse physiological effect on your body. There, I've spelled it out for you."

"I wasn't going to argue," Abby said, throwing a glance over her shoulder. "Just that there's a batarian bartender there that poisons the drinks of every human that walks in. So don't you guys drink anything, either... though you both will probably survive."

"Understood," said Miranda.

We were able to walk in without anyone else questioning it. I knew no one would question Shepard walking in, but no one even seemed to care that Abby and I looked to be minors. Though, this was Omega; it probably didn't matter one bit. It seemed as though the incident with Sarah was far, far away.

"Remember how worried we were about being underage here?" Abby murmured to me as we advanced through the brilliant fiery hallway, picking up on my thoughts.

Despite how vile and disgusting the club was, I couldn't help but marvel at Afterlife as we walked into it. It was one of the few central places that I had not visited, nor had Abby. Sarah had, and she had her first crazy incident here: She drank some krogan ryncol and tried to come on to some random turian.

Thankfully, none of that would be happening today. Except for when Shepard seduced Morinth, and vice-versa.

We walked into the club, which was so much louder in real life than in the game, I could barely hear anything else. It was also a bit more lifelike; people were dancing and drinking all over the place, and I even stepped over a few passed out guys on the floor. I thought I heard Abby say something, but couldn't hear it for all of the music.

Shepard, having been through all of this before, simply led us towards the ramp that led to where Aria was perched. I felt some slight nerves well up inside of me; we were getting ready to meet the great and terrifying Aria T'Loak, and I had no idea what would come from it. However, I tried to keep my composure as we followed Shepard right to the crime lord herself.

Aria was lounging in the middle of the long couch, staring intently at a datapad in her hand. She spoke briefly into her omni-tool-I could hear her voice speaking loudly to be heard over the general noise of Afterlife. "Well check into it-and don't let either of them slip off of Omega unless I say otherwise." She switched off the communication link without waiting for a response.

"Problems?" Shepard asked as she neared her, also speaking up to be heard over the loud music.

Aria glanced up almost casually. This made me realize that she'd known Shepard was there all along-maybe she even knew the Commander was here from the moment she stepped into Afterlife. Not much seemed to slip past the Pirate Queen.

The asari "queen" nodded toward the couch on the other side of the perch, and Shepard walked over and sat down in the middle of it. This was obviously a way that both of them could speak and look each other in the eye, yet neither were two close to the other for comfort.

"Let's just say there are a couple of salarian snoops outside of Afterlife," Aria finally said, answering the Commander's curious query. "Apparently they're trying to dig up information on one of my men. I plan to put a stop to it before it goes too far."

"I see," Shepard said simply.

"So what do you need?" Aria asked, turning the subject of discussion back to the purpose of the Commander's visit.

"An asari fugitive is hiding out here. She's an Ardat-Yakshi. We need to find her," Shepard explained, leaning forward intently.

"I knew it," Aria said. "Nothing leaves a body quite so-" her eyes narrowed, "empty... as an Ardat-Yakshi does."

Samara took a couple of steps up the stairs. "You haven't taken steps to kill her?" she asked intently.

"Why would I?" Aria replied crisply. "She hasn't tried to seduce me. Her last victim was a young girl. Pretty little thing, lived in the tenements near here. That's where I would start looking."

Shepard nodded and then rose. She took a couple of casual steps toward Aria-though not too close. "Thanks for the help," she said.

Aria nodded in kind. "Good luck finding her. Better luck catching her."

"Thanks," Shepard murmured, and then she began to move down the steps-indicating to the rest of us that it was time to go.

I didn't bother to give one glance to Aria as we left. Okay, I'd seen the powerful woman, now it was time to get the heck out of here. "That was interesting," I muttered to myself. "Now, we just need to go to the apartment where that girl lived. Everything will speak for itself there."

We made our way toward the entrance/exit of Afterlife and out into the streets of Omega once again. This was where Abby excitedly took the lead, saying she knew exactly where to go. Shepard cautioned her, telling her not to get too far ahead, but then we simply followed her. Shepard kept a sharp eye out, making sure to stay within arm's reach of Abby.

Finally we made it to the tenements, although there were a few more there than we had seen in the game. In fact... there were five doors.

"So which one is it?" Shepard asked, eyeing both myself and Abby.

Abby looked toward the doors... then shrugged. Shepard turned to look at me.

"...well we didn't see this in our vision," I replied in shock. I looked around, examining all of them closely. "Um, from the position I remember it being in the game... I think it would be the right or second-to-right."

"We need one, HK, not two," Miranda snapped.

"Okay, uh, let's try the second-to-right one," I replied nervously. Gash, we didn't have time for this.

"Left," Abby put in. "It's the left."

Shepard took the initiative and walked up to opposite door I indicated, knocking on it, but the person who answered was obviously not Nef's mother. It appeared to be... a very drunk krogan. He reeked of what I guessed MIGHT have been ryncol-I had never smelled the stuff before so I could only guess-and he scowled at us.

"What?" he slurred.

I scowled myself, marching up to the door and making a bold move: Just slamming the door in his face. I looked at the others. "Okay, so I was wrong. Let's just hurry into the right door," I said, gesturing to the one beside us.

An instant later, the door I'd just closed opened again and the outraged krogan stepped out, scowling. "What's the big-" He didn't get to finish that sentence. His drunkenness overcame him and he fell face-first on the ground with a heavy _thump_ that seemed to shake the ground right around us.

"...yes, let's just go inside now," I advised.

Thankfully the second door I'd chosen was the right one. There was a red-haired woman inside, sitting on the couch. She glanced up as we entered, her eyes widening in surprise. "Are-are you here about my Nef?" she whispered.

Shepard stepped in, seeming to take in the entire scene with one sweeping glance-the tissues on the counter, the teapot heating up on a second-hand stove, the three rooms opposite of the tiny sitting room, the nearest of which was open and displaying its contents. It was Nef's room, I remembered. "I'm so sorry to hear about your daughter," Shepard said, taking a few slow steps to the couch. She sat across from the woman with the air of somebody paying a visit to a person on their sickbed.

"Did Aria send you?" the woman asked a hopeful edge to her voice. "I don't care who sent you-there is nothing more you can do to hurt me than what has already been done."

"Aria did send us, yes," Shepard said. "She wants to make sure that the woman who killed your daughter is taken care of."

"Then take care of her," Nef's mother whispered harshly. "Make sure that no other mother has to go through what I am."

"The woman your daughter was seeing," Shepard said, "do you know her name? What can you tell me about her?"

"The woman-this _Morinth_-met my daughter and everything changed. Nef was suddenly going out to parties, coming home late..." Her voice hitched for a moment. "And I think she was given drugs. Hallex. I know the signs. Nef's eyes would light up when she talked about Morinth... she became a zombie until Morinth called, asking her to go see something, to go somewhere."

"Did you ever see Morinth for yourself?" Shepard asked softly.

She shook her head. "No-no."

"Tell us about your daughter," said Samara, turning the woman's attention from the Commander. "It may help us."

"My Nef was always a free-thinker," she whispered, broken-hearted. "She was into sculpting from such a young age. She had this dream of selling her work, gathering enough money to get us somewhere nicer. One of the border colonies, maybe. Anywhere but Omega. A few people... they bought her work. She was so, so proud... Always a good girl. Always a wonderful woman."

"And how old was she?" Abby asked gently.

"She was nineteen," her mother promptly answered. Her lower lip twitched. "I'm sorry-I-I-"

This was, much like Tali's mission, a part in the game that broke my heart.

Shepard reached out and touched the woman's shoulder with a gentle hand. Tears flowed freely down the mother's face for a moment, until she regained control of herself, blinking the tears away. Samara's face twitched with grief and empathy; she lowered her gaze toward the floor momentarily. "Thank you," the mother whispered softly to Shepard. The Commander nodded at her slightly, and then slowly withdrew her hand.

"We'll find the one who did this," Shepard told her sincerely. "You have my word."

"You have my oath as well," Samara added. "And... I know what it is like to lose a daughter."

"Thank you both," the woman said. "Please, if it helps you find her killer, look through her things."

"We will be respectful," Samara promised.

"I'll examine her things," Shepard said, and we all turned, heading into Nef's room. It was almost cramped, being a room fit for one but having five steps inside of it all at once. I examined the surroundings, and I could see what her mother was saying; Nef was very creative. Most of the things in here looked to be some form of art.

It was sad that she had been taken just because some asari craved sex.

"There are a few things of interest that we should look at," I whispered to Shepard and Samara. I dared not let Nef's mother hear me, or she'd probably have a breakdown at the fact that Abby and I knew her daughter's killer and how to catch her but didn't say a word. "A note from Morinth, the logs, and the statue. They'll help, trust me."

Shepard examined the small statue for a moment, taking note of the unique style and intricate details, and then she moved on without touching it. Indeed, she had promised to be respectful.

She picked up the note and read it briefly. "Looks like Nef and Morinth liked an Elcor artist called Forta," she commented.

"Morinth always did have... robust tastes," Samara remarked.

Shepard then moved onto the recorded diary logs. She opened it up and then spoke aloud, "Read the oldest entry."

Nef's teenaged face appeared on the terminal screen. In some ways, if I didn't know any better, I would have thought she could have passed as Shepard's younger sister.

"Hey Diary," she said-and I began to feel like I was listening to something from beyond the grave, "Cycle 34, orbit 671. There's a lot to talk about!" Her voice sounded so enthusiastic. "I dropped Jaruut's name and they let me into the VIP room at Afterlife. I was sure everyone was staring at me. Then the most beautiful asari starts dancing near me. She moves like water, form and volume but shifting, changing." Her eyes glazed her at the memory. "I'm in a trance," she continued dreamily. "Then I'm dancing with her! Later we went for skewers, and I'm supposed to see her again tomorrow."

The entry ended. Shepard was silent for a moment. She cast a brief glance at Samara, and then said, "Play the middle entry."

Nef's face appeared again on the terminal. "Cycle 36, orbit 671. Am I a freak? Morinth is a girl just like me, but she's definitely not human. Just... when we dance, and the Hallex is flowing through me... The way she looks at me... with a hunger, a longing... no one's ever looked at me like that." Even though this was just a recording, I could definitely see the affection-and lust-in her eyes. "We kissed tonight."

"Read the newest entry," Shepard said as that recording ending.

"Cycle 42, orbit 671. She's going to take me to her apartment tonight! Whatever happens, I want to be with her forever." There was definitely something different about Nef in this recording; she looked as though she were under some kind of enchantment. "She can sell my pieces and we can live somewhere glamorous, like the women in Vaenia, that vid Morinth likes. How did this happen to me? I'm just dumb trash from Omega." She smiled, and the image froze-with an expression of adoration and longing played out on the girl's face.

"Close the holo-journal," Shepard told the device.

There was a moment of silence in the room.

I sighed. Nef's death truly was devastating, especially when you listened to her talk like this. "So now we know the password. We should try and get there as soon as possible to stop her before anything else happens," I suggested.

"Agreed," Samara said. "This is Morinth's work. She is attracted to artists and creators. Someone with a spark slightly isolated from their peers. She impresses with sophistication and sex appeal. Then she strikes. The hunt interests her as much as the conquest."

"Anyone who's hunted sapient beings for 400 years warrants caution," Shepard agreed.

"Morinth speaks to you on many levels. Her body tells yours that she'll bring unimaginable ecstasy. Her scent evokes emotions long hidden," Samara explained to all of us, but mainly Shepard. "Her eyes promise you things you were always scared to ask of another. Her voice whispers to you after she is done speaking."

"She sounds more like a highly evolved killer than a genetic defective."

"The condition has been present since my people huddled around fires at night. Perhaps it is symbiotic, rather than defective," Samara clarified. "Storming her den will be a mistake; she'll have a hundred escape routes planned. She will go to ground and disappear for fifty years or more. This is the closest I have _ever_ been."

"So we have to lure her out," Shepard finished. She had already caught on.

"Exactly! Shepard, you've read my mind. Afterlife's VIP section seems her preferred hunting ground. You have to go there alone and unarmed."

Shepard glanced at us. Not for approval, but more so wondering if we had anything to say about this, from the look on her face. I remained silent for a moment; I certainly didn't want to go into the VIP section of Afterlife, despite all the fun that went on there. However, while we would have to keep our distance, we may have to help Shepard.

And Samara's loyalty was vital. We also owed it to Samara, and to Nef's mother and any other person that she had ever killed, to bring Morinth down. The risk would be too big.

"We need to go in with Shepard," I finally said, gesturing to Abby and myself. "Miranda can stay behind or go back to the Normandy or wherever, and Samara can stand outside, but we need to be close to Shepard."

"No. Shepard will only draw out Morinth if she is alone, and while I trust your knowledge of the future, any type of strange activity would alert Morinth. For all of the atrocious crimes that she has committed, she is a smart girl," Samara immediately, though calmly, protested.

I nodded. "I understand, and we'll keep our distance. In fact, we'll all go in one at a time as to not tip Morinth off at all," I continued, looking at Abby one more time. She didn't seem to disagree. "But drawing her out is a delicate process. We know exactly what Shepard has to do to get her attention. You know this, too, Samara. If Shepard makes one mistake, we've blown our chances."

"I don't know whether this is a good thing or a bad thing, but I'm following your guys' lead on this one," Shepard said to the three of us with a sigh.

"You have a valid point. However, I cannot condone sending young children into Afterlife. We all had to go in earlier, but this is unnecessary," Samara argued.

I shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. However, Omega as a whole is dangerous. I doubt that the VIP section of Afterlife is that much more dangerous than standing out on the streets," I told her.

I didn't like doing this, but the idea of Morinth getting away just gave me a sick feeling. I also hated going back into Afterlife, but I had to. I just wanted Samara and everyone else to be at peace.

"Alright," Samara finally conceded. "Just be careful. However, none of you will be alone, this I swear. I will be watching at all times.

All three of us nodded, and with just a little more discussion, we were on our way. We said goodbye to Nef's mom, and once again promised her that we would bring Nef's murderer down. It only made me feel more obliged to help Shepard stop Morinth. It couldn't be too bad, after all; not many had access to the VIP section, and Shepard just had to do a few little things, and boom. Morinth would want her. From there, it was up to Shepard to remember what we had learned.

Since we'd already told Shepard about heading into the dragon's lair unarmed, she'd brought a small bag with her that held her dress and shoes that she'd worn during Kasumi's mission. She, Miranda, and Abby disappeared into one of the cleaner-looking restrooms to get set up locking the door behind them. Samara and I waited outside, keeping a lookout, and when Shepard reappeared she was still wearing that grouchy, I-cannot-believe-you-forced-me-into-this look on her face. "Okay," she said, stuffing her pistol into the small beaded bag that was the finishing accessory of her outfit. "Let's go."

We split up just like we'd planned, with Shepard walking alone at the far point, Abby and Samara mingling in the middle, then me, then Miranda. We all kept within eyesight of each other, but it was slightly difficult to keep up with Shepard's fast, brisk pace.

Samara disappeared from Abby's side, ducking into the shadows. I soon lost track of her, but figured she'd gone up ahead to follow Shepard in her own unique, mysterious way.

Soon enough, after a bit of walking, we got to Afterlife. Shepard, obviously still in front of us all, dropped Jaruut's name and we all got in to the VIP area. We headed for the entrance to the actual VIP part of the club, and like always, Samara hid behind those boxes. We all stood with her as she and Shepard went through everything one last time.

After they were done, I took a deep breath, nodding at Shepard. "You first, Commander."

Shepard nodded. "Understood. I want everybody to stay in radio contact-you two especially," she warned, pointing to Abby and me. "Don't take risks."

"Don't worry," I assured her. "I think we will just stay around and...Observe you. Maybe throw a glance to us once in awhile before you do something, and we can make some kind of motion explaining if it is good or bad or not?"

"I think I can handle that part," Shepard said gently, a hint of a smile on her face. She took a deep breath. "Okay... let's go see if I can pick up a date."

"Good luck," Abby whispered, backing up to make room for Shepard to head out. Shepard disappeared, leaving us all in silence. Miranda paced a little bit, but Samara stood perfectly still. Finally, Miranda nodded at us to let us know that we should head in.

"No risks," she reiterated. "No drinks. No drugs of any type. Don't go off with a stranger, and-"

"Relax, Mom," Abby said with a grin. "Don't worry about us."

"If you are to go, do it now," Samara said.

Abby and I entered the club. We immediately split up, as to not raise any suspicions, and I simply took a seat at a secluded table. No sign of Morinth, and I tried not to turn my eye to see what Shepard or Abby were doing. Not for a few minutes, at least.

I sat there for a short period of time, occasionally trying to look for Shepard, but I couldn't find her. I imagined that she was taking her time with this, as she should. Who knew what Abby was doing?

I continued to just sit quietly and keep to myself.

* * *

**(Abby)**

Too many strippers. There were just too many strippers.

Did they have to dress in that... clothing? I could see things I did not want to see, especially right now! Or, well, ever! I went on my way, blending within the crowd as best that I could. It was larger than it was in the game, though somehow a bit more subdued than the Lower Levels. There were less people, for one, and the entire middle seemed to be devoted to dancing only. Around the circle small booths had been set up just like in the game, though I could see a quasar machine and other money-makers in another corner off to the side.

But still. Too many strippers. Just too many strippers.

_I'm fourteen!_ I thought, edging away from the male strippers. _I do not want to see this!_

A man's _cojones _looked as though they were going to flop out of whatever small thong thingy were holding them, to the delight of many drunk women clustered around him. I took one look, sure that my eyes very much mimicked the "o_O" expression we sometimes used on the internet, and walked in the other direction.

I caught sight of Shepard taking a sip by the bar, talking to the bartender. She was the epitome of charming, all smiles and easy grace. I had to admire the change that had come over the woman, but then again I wasn't too surprised-she was, after all, the highest-ranked Special Forces operator there was. N7 wasn't just a title.

I decided to go help her out a bit. If the strippers were gone, I might've actually tried to flesh out the time we spent here a little longer (since it was probably my first and last nightclub... ever) but we had a schedule to keep. I took a seat, a smile on my face, well aware that Shepard was probably wondering what the heck I was going to do now.

"Do you have any light beverages?" I asked the bartender.

The man raised an eyebrow as his eyes searched me over, as though trying to determine just how old I was. "Well we don't serve soda pops in here, or things for little girls," he sneered slightly. "Or do you want something fit for a woman?"

I chuckled. "Fit for a woman, of course," I said smoothly. "What do you think I am, fourteen? The thing is, I don't want to be going around the place drunk off my ass. Just something to take the edge off is all I would like... Perhaps more later."

"Well, as long as you have your credit chit on you..." the barman said indicatively, then he stooped down behind the bar counter to grab something. A second later he rose and began to pour a long, thin cylinder-shaped bottle into a small, clear glass. Then he shoved it toward me.

"And what's that?" Shepard asked, seemingly intrigued. I could feel her wrath beginning to boil, though.

The barman looked down at the glass he'd given me, and then he looked back at Shepard. "It's blue," he said with a slight shrug of his shoulders.

Despite her belief, this was actually a very well-thought out and organized plan. I had _actually_ thought this through three seconds longer than I normally did. "Well that's not much of an explanation," Shepard said, raising one eyebrow. "How much business you get around this thing, anyway?"

"Plenty, lady," the barman said. "I get fewer people in here than the more public areas of Afterlife, but anyone who comes in here has money to throw around. And I always get a good amount of it."

"I bet I know how you could get more," Shepard said archly.

The man looked skeptical, but he was at least curious enough to ask, "Oh yeah? Like how?"

"Offer some people a free round of drinks," Shepard suggested. "It'll put out a good example, let people know you care. More business for you."

His brow furrowed, and he seemed to think about it for a moment. "Not a bad idea," he commented. He stroked his chin thoughtfully. "Well, it's worth a shot, at least. But you better be right about this."

He then cleared his throat and raised his voice. "Hey everyone, listen up! We really appreciate your business, and we appreciate you being here. So the next round is on the house!"

A collective murmur of approval and a few cheers sounded throughout the entire area as people began to crowd around the bar counter. I grinned at Shepard, winked, and slid the drink towards her without taking a sip. She raised one eyebrow, a smile tugging at the corners of her face, and brought it to her lips. I melted back into the crowd.

There certainly seemed to be ample enough opportunity to have fun in this crowd. "Hey!" somebody called, tapping my shoulder. I turned around, surprised to see a twenty-something man with a light brown beard bobbing to the music beside me. "You wanna dance?"

Uh, could somebody say '_pedophile_?' "I'm good!" I told him, raising my voice a bit so he could hear me over the loud music. "I'm heading over to a friend of mine."

"Dance with me!" the man said with a large grin, gripping my shoulder.

I nearly did something. Nearly. "I'm a lesbian!" I told him.

"Even better!" he crowed. "I wouldn't mind meeting your friend!"

"I think its best you went away, now!" I informed him. I gripped his fingers on my shoulder with a charming smile, and then placed him into a nikkyo that would have made my old Sensei proud. I moved away before he could regain his bearings, putting my hair up into a ponytail, and then mingled with the rest of the crowd, making sure to keep an eye on both Shepard and HK.

* * *

**(HK)**

A couple of minutes passed and I saw a figure moving in the general direction of my table. I looked at the person-and suddenly realized that it was a turian. Not just any turian though, a female turian. I knew Sarah had been dying to know what one looked like, and she would be envious if she knew I had seen one.

The turian looked as though she was simply going to ignore me-and everyone else in the club-and simply walk on by. Yet when she glanced in my direction, she raised a curious eye-ridge. "Waiting for someone?" She asked aloud.

So this was what they looked like. Wow. "Um, no," I simply replied, momentarily distracted by how a female turian actually looked. One had never been seen in the Mass Effect games, or up until now during our time in the actual ME universe. Only in books, and briefest mention of Garrus's mother.

She made a noise, something that sounded like "humph". "Been waiting for my date to arrive," she muttered, placing a hand on her hip in a very human-like fashion. I wasn't sure if that was normal for turian females, or if she'd picked up the habit somewhere. "You haven't seen a dark-skinned turian with white facial markings similar to mine, have you?" She indicated her own face with a single clawed finger.

I shook my head. "No, I don't think so, sorry. There are a few turians in here, like that one that is hitting on that asari over there, but I doubt that it is him," I told her.

She looked sharply in the direction I indicated-then did a double-take. "That _is_ him!" she exclaimed, her voice full of outrage.

"Oh my," I muttered. "Um, I apologize."

"That's it," the female turian hissed, shaking her head venomously. "I've given him every chance-far more than he deserves-but if he wants to pal around with every pretty face he sees whenever he's drunk." She shook her head again. "I'm done with him."

"Oh dear," I said, almost starting to feel bad for her. And I also didn't want some kind of situation to erupt. I also felt like I was sitting here like some idiot. "Would you like me to do anything?"

She glanced at me, and then resumed her stare in the direction of her boyfriend and the asari. After a moment I saw the male turian's eyes dart in our direction-then they focused on the female turian.

For a moment she looked conflicted. It made me wonder if she still had some sort of feelings for him, in spite of what she'd said a moment ago. Then she muttered, "Yeah," and then she moved toward me. Next thing I knew she was leaning over me and putting an arm around my shoulders-then she rested her forehead against mine, much like I'd seen Garrus and Shepard do in Mass Effect 2 if they had their romantic encounter in the captain's quarters.

"Just stay still," she hissed at me. "Just want to see if this makes him jealous or not."

Heck no. No, no, no. Not after Jack. I was not going through this again, and I felt my blood boil. When asked if she wanted any help, I more so meant... well I wasn't sure, but nothing like this. Not to mention, female turians were not even all that cute.

"Hey," I snapped, immediately grabbing her arm and shoving her away. "Get _away_."

She stumbled back a little, and then scowled. But before she could say anything both of us heard the sound of shouting-we both turned just in time to see the turian male being slapped by the asari he was hitting on. In turn he grabbed her wrist and her waist-then that was when she kicked him in the midsection, causing him to stagger-and then she punched him in the jaw. He fell on the floor in a heap and did not move.

The turian female growled softly, obviously frustrated with the entire situation. "Thanks for nothing," she finally spat, and then she stormed off with her head held high.

I sighed. Okay, I did not like shoving anybody away. Although I killed people so much while serving under Shepard, it didn't feel right to do that. However, I was not going to let anyone randomly start trying to make advances towards me like Jack did. I had quite enough of that.

I leaned back in the seat, exhaling a deep breath.

A few moments passed. I saw a couple of people come in from the direction of the door-obviously they'd just arrived. One of them was a krogan. He headed directly for the counter where the man who worked in the VIP club was taking orders and giving out drinks.

The krogan ordered a large glass of something-the glass was obviously meant for krogans, because it looked almost like a tall vase, at least by human standards. Then he began to look around, as though trying to find a good place to sit.

He walked past several tables that were occupied by a few individuals, and then he glanced down at mine-then looked at me-and scowled. "Move, human," he growled. "I'm taking this table."

I blinked. Okay, I was not one to assault a krogan...heck, I wasn't one to assault a turian! And I knew fighting skills, but they were against people like Jacob. The few times I had fought Grunt were... unpleasant.

But I didn't want to get up and start walking around aimlessly, either. Although a lot of people were, any wrong move could ruin Shepard's chances. "Umm, there are plenty of other tables around," I replied softly.

What had gotten into me this evening?

"I want THIS table," the krogan insisted with a snarl. Then he grabbed the back of my chair and threw it backward, sending me crashing to the floor. "It's quiet, in the corner and it's got a good view. And now," he said, sitting down in one of the chairs that was still standing upright, "it's mine for the night." He took a deep drink from his tall glass and then set it down on the table, staking his claim.

I scowled. This was all we needed right now, a bar fight to break out between anyone other than Shepard. However, I couldn't just sit back and take this and show my fear. I also couldn't make Shepard or Abby come running towards me when I wasn't the objective.

"Hey," I snapped as I stood up. "Where do you think you get off?"

The krogan simply laughed and took another long sip from his tall glass. "Piss off, little boy."

I glanced around. Good, neither Shepard nor Abby seemed to be near me right now. "I'd say it's you who should do that," I growled underneath my breath. I was usually not this assertive, but I wasn't one to take this kind of treatment, either, and with krogan, you couldn't just go 'Please leave, dear sir'.

He looked at me again. But he seemed almost bored. "What're you going to do about it, insect?" He finished his drink.

"You'd be surprised," I replied simply. I really didn't have anything else to say other than that.

He set the glass down with a heavy clink. "So you want to try and do something about it? This should be amusing." He casually rose from his seat and glowered at me, daring me to try something-it was as if he was challenging me to do anything at all but walk away.

I crossed my arms. I had to be tactical, not act like an all out idiot. I definitely couldn't attack him, but I couldn't stand around, either. "What clan are you, whelp?" I asked, saying the first thing that came to mind. "Gatalog, maybe? Weyrloc left over? Because people from clans like Urdnot don't act this stupid and mindless."

Now he actually began to look angry. He growled loudly and then walked around the table, grabbing my arm in an iron grip. "You're young and unarmed," he growled. "You're not worth the effort it would take to crush you. I suggest you leave the building, now." He released my arm, but did not back off. He folded his arms.

I felt myself tense when he did grab my arm, but I tried to conceal it. I could not let any fear show. Though, I felt like I was acting pretty suicidal right now. "Bully, hmm? Originates from childhood memories? I imagine that you were one of those that always had the other krogan picking on him because he was such a wimp. You'd try to head butt them but it wouldn't make a mark, right? Then you'd get thrown into the varren pit so they could watch you squeal and run? Sounds about right."

Now the krogan roared and charged. His head butt against my chest and sent me flying right into the middle of one of the closest tables. Three people who were seated at the table stiffened and straightened, their expressions ranging from shock to outrage. Then they looked in the direction where I had been a moment ago-and when they saw the angry krogan, they promptly abandoned their seats and began to run.

That left me lying flat on my back on the table, with the krogan coming toward me. He stopped beside the table and glowered down at me.

I tried not to let the obvious pain show on my face, and briefly cast a glance to see if Shepard or Abby had noticed. Thankfully, so much was going on in this club that it was hard to. I looked back at him. "Pft, some krogan. I know a couple of real krogan who could show you how to actually fight, or is that why you left Tuchanka? Too many krogan that could kick you to the ground? You wanted to go some place where you could feel like you were wearing big boy pants."

Now he raised his large, heavy fist-thankfully I was able to roll out of the way before it came down. I landed roughly on the floor as his fist smashed through the wood and metal, cracking the table right in half. Then he roared and began to lunge at me-

But he didn't get to take more than a single step toward me. Blood suddenly spurted out of the side of his humped back, and he went down with a groan.

I turned to see what appeared to be an armed guard approaching. It was a stern-faced turian, armed with a heavy rifle. "Everyone knows the rules," the guard said stiffly. "Start a fight, and we'll hurt you." He pointed the gun directly at the krogan. "Get out of here before we throw you out... or worse."

The krogan grunted as he got to his feet. He glowered at the turian-but the fact that the turian was well-armed, and quickly joined by another well-armed turian and an asari commando, quickly made him back down. He began to move toward the exit.

"Thanks," I said simply, quite relieved to have that krogan gone. I would probably have been dead if it hadn't been for the guards... though in a weird way, taunting him was weirdly enjoyable.

_Maybe I won't sit at that table anymore. It just seems to attract attention, and I'd like to get a good eye on where Shepard and Abby are, anyway._

As I walked across the floor several paces, trying to find another place to sit-and keeping my eyes peeled for Abby and Shepard-I suddenly noticed an asari stepping out of the shadows. She eyed me curiously, and there was something... intense about her gaze, almost like a longing.

"Hi there," she said to me, leaning casually against the wall-one thing I noticed was that her outfit seemed to cling to every curve of her body, accentuating it. "My name is Morinth. What's yours?"

..._EXCUSE EFFING ME?_

It took me a few seconds to regain my bearings. This was not how it was supposed to work. Morinth was supposed to want Shepard, not me. How the heck did this happen? Surely the incidents with the female turian and the krogan didn't attract her...or were they the type of incidents that Morinth liked?

However, she had chosen me tonight...and...oh Lord, I couldn't let that opportunity slip away. I wanted to just run for the hills and let Shepard continue to try to woo her, but Morinth seemed to want me tonight.

"Hey," I said, trying to sound calm, and not like I had just freaked out at staring a killer in the face. "I'm HK."

Her dark-colored lips moved into a smile. "I've been watching you tonight," she said. "You're one of the more interesting people in this place. I've got a booth over here in the shadows, why don't you come sit with me?" She indicated the direction with a tilt of her head-and a suggestive motion of her shoulders.

I gulped. I didn't want to do this, but I pretty much had to now. This was what I got for trying to act like a tough guy and even wanting Morinth to be brought down so badly. "Sure, lead the way," I answered, beginning to follow her.

Her teeth flashed like pearls when she grinned, then she began to move like a smooth ripple of water through the club as she approached her table. I noticed a couple of envious stares as a couple pairs of eyes locked onto Morinth's attractive form-although she had obviously chosen her place well. There weren't many onlookers in this area for some reason.

It also disturbed me deeply that I was actually finding Morinth very... nice to look at. Was this the effect she had on people?

She lounged casually-almost lazily-on one of the soft, cushioned seats. She allowed her lithe body to sink into it-her entire form seemed to relax invitingly, all except her eyes. Those remained focused on me, very intently. "Have a seat," she said, indicating the chair on the other side of the table. "I'm lonely tonight, and I want you to keep me company."

I nodded slowly, taking a seat. "That is alright. Not too much to do in this club, other than deal with idiots," I commented, trying to keep her interest, and start all of this off somehow. We needed to get to the normal game conversation. Then I could talk better...maybe.

"Sometimes there's not much to do in a place like this," she replied smoothly. Her voice was soft and alluring. "And some nights there's no one interesting to talk to. Some nights there's just one." Her gaze intensified; I knew she was implying that I was interesting without actually saying it.

All at once, there seemed to be a buzz of radio chatter in my ear. "HK's got the bead on Morinth," Abby hissed. "Shepard, back off and melt into the crowd."

"You're probably one of the youngest people I've seen in here," she went on. "Tell me about yourself. What kinds of things do you like?"

Okay, I had to try to align it closely with what Morinth liked. "A lot of...unique things," I answered, which wasn't a total lie. "Art, music, stuff like that. Lately I've been curious about a band called Expel 10."

"How the hell did that happen?" I heard Shepard snap after a moment. Then she said a very unladylike word and continued, saying, "Abby, keep your eyes on him, understand? I'll take the left side of the room-no, I would not like a strip tease, thank you."

"Ah," Morinth preened. "Now there's an interesting taste in music. That band can get into my head and tear it to pieces." She scrunched up her features and shivered ever so slightly, as though reliving a memory that was both pleasant and painful at the same time. It was strangely... encouraging, and I felt my mind beginning to respond to that little motion. Her voice just added the finishing touch to a beautiful act. "They're playing in concert soon," she went on, locking her gaze onto me again. "Maybe we should go together."

"No," Samara interjected. "Do not focus all of our attention on him, or Morinth will become uncomfortable enough to leave. Commander Shepard, you have a personality too intense to pull this off. You should come back."

"Acknowledged."

"I have HK, don't worry about it," Abby said calmingly. "Now stop talking, HK needs to concentrate."

_Yes, HK _really_ needs to concentrate!_

Morinth was still eyeing me carefully, and now her eyes had narrowed a little. "Come on, aren't you going to say something? I don't like carrying on a conversation by myself, you know."

"I'm sorry," I said with a light smile, trying to figure out something to say. This conversation was definitely not progressing exactly how it did in the game. "I am just...well, I don't know how exactly to describe it, but I'm different. I can make conversation, but I feel like some kind of outsider. Don't have that many friends where I am at all the time."

In a way, it was true, I supposed.

There was a slight break of the crowd; just enough for me to catch a glimpse of Abby lounging lazily on one of the booths, an ice blue drink in her hand. She saluted in my general direction and settled in for the overview. I tried not to pay much attention to her.

Morinth seemed to consider my words for a moment, and then she chuckled softly. "Well you don't need a lot of friends, trust me. Sometimes you just need one friend." Her eyes locked with mine and I felt a shiver go up and down my spine at the intensity I saw there. "We could be... friends."

I was scared in a way, and yet in another way... I felt almost... comfortable. However, I knew that it was just Morinth's effect on me; I had to remain sharp and clear-headed. I knew what she did to people, what she'd try to do to me. "I think that would be nice," I told her. "I've always had a hard time with friendships. I've had a few close ones, but it has always felt like that any friends I've had always have someone or something else. It feels like everyone else is so much better at being social."

She nodded-it was as though she understood exactly what I saying, and what I meant. "It's hard to be social, especially when you're trying to find the right kind of person to be with," she told me sincerely. "But there will always be someone who finds you interesting." Her lips spread into a delicious smile. "I think that might be something we share. We... don't quite fit in with the normal crowd of people." Her eyes seemed to twinkle slightly in the dim light of the club. "And I can tell that you're shy. I'll bet you've never done more than hold hands with a woman, or kiss her at most."

"I have kissed one," I admitted, in reference to that little fiasco with Jack about a week ago. "But it wasn't exactly my choice. I've had a fair amount of romance in my life, but it has never been anything too substantial. It has just furthered how outside I feel."

"So, do you think you would like to experience more with a girl someday? If you found the right one?" Her words sounded even more alluring, and her skin actually seemed to have a slight... glow to it? Yet no one else was looking or paying any attention. I couldn't help but notice how... pretty she was. I was almost starting to sweat.

I tried to stay perfectly still, and not fidget at all at the thought that this woman was actually attracting me. "I would, definitely," I replied. And it wasn't a lie; I was not craving for a relationship, but I would like to have romance in my life again someday. "I just have never found the right one. I've liked a lot, and I've developed feelings for a few, but it was never right. Maybe it was me, I don't know, but it never worked out."

"Tell me about them," she purred. "What girl captured your heart the most, and why didn't it work out?" Something about her face, and her eyes, seemed to suggest that she was genuinely interested in me as a person. And somehow... I actually wanted to believe it.

"I...I don't know. There were a few that I really genuinely liked a lot," I replied. I was beginning to feel like I wanted to answer her, instead of just doing it to seduce her. "But I can never be certain about these things. Feelings and I have a very on and off relationship."

"Then tell me what you're feeling right now. Do you see something you like in me?" She was still smiling-and something about the way she looked at me made me want to smile at her in return.

"I...do," I admitted honestly. What was I _doing_? "I feel okay with you. I feel some kind of...security that I've never felt before. You are treating me a lot better right now than most have. There's a sense of care in your voice that I have not heard for a long time."

"I like you," she told me-and everything about her voice made feel that it was true. "I think I can tell some things about you, too. Are you an artist?"

I nodded. "Yes, in a way. I don't paint, but I like to write, which is an art in its own way," I told her. "I've always liked to do it, so I guess I've always been an artist."

"Ah, writing," she murmured. "Usually I enjoy looking at artwork and sculptures, but I have enjoyed a few pieces of literature now and then. What kinds of things do you write?"

"Many genres. Drama, fantasy, sci-fi, even comedy," I answered, constantly feeling compelled to respond now. I felt like I was being drawn into something comfortable and wonderful. "It really is a broad subject, and I like all of it."

Wait, I couldn't do this. I had to trick Morinth, yes, but I couldn't get drawn in by her. It was just a trick, a ruse so the people who didn't have resolve could have sex with her and die. Did that mean I had no resolve? I couldn't let her do this to me. I could not let her bring me into her web and trap me in it, and...dang she was _hot_.

"I enjoy works of fiction that are, shall we say, descriptive and erotic. Perhaps I could show you some of my favorite links on the extranet sometime. Some authors have the talent of giving you a visual imagery with mere words, describing in detail how a knife blade to the chest feels as it plunges through your flesh and makes the blood gush out... or how it feels to have someone's hands caress certain areas of your body."

"Oh, I know exactly what you mean. You can see it perfectly. The scene playing out in your mind, just like on a screen. You can feel the emotions of the characters, and everything that is going on," I told her, completely agreeing with what she said. And I had never even been that much of a book reader. Not too much, anyways. "It truly is amazing."

"Especially when you can put yourself in the place of the characters you're reading about, in your own mind," Morinth acknowledged. Then she made a face as a thought came to her. "Some works of literature are just horrid, though. I hope you stay away from Twilight."

...that existed here?

"Don't worry, I hate it. That kind of stuff is a bit too crazy for me. Not into the whole gigantic vampire love story thing," I assured her, and again, it was the honest truth. Twilight had never been to my liking.

"I see we share similar tastes," she said in a tone of approval.

She inhaled deeply, as though enjoying the general atmosphere of the club. She didn't seem overly relaxed though; she seemed invigorated. "I've always enjoyed the music here," she finally said. "When I focus on it, it just seems to speak to the darkest places in me. But there are ways to _enhance_ that, if you're interested." She smiled at me again-I was growing to love that smile in spite of myself.

It took me a moment to remember the dialogue from the game. Ah, yes, Hallex was next. "What do you think of Hallex?" I asked, swallowing hard. This woman was getting harder and harder to resist.

"It slithers into my soul," Morinth replied eagerly, her tone getting huskier. Her face lit up in delight as if we were discussing chocolate. "Somehow I didn't think you would have tried any... or have you?"

"Actually, I've heard of it, especially lately. I was a little...curious about it," I replied, trying to stay on track. However, Morinth's question was unexpected, but she was seducing a sixteen year old. "I was just wondering if you knew anything."

"Yes, it's an excellent mood and sensory enhancer," she replied. "I have some back at my apartment-it's not far from here. Would you like to go over there with me, right now?"

Oh boy. Here we were...after a bit of a discussion, she was ready to head back to her apartment. I could feel my nerves increase, slightly, but at the same time...not as much as before. I felt almost like I wanted to go over there, for reasons other than to just kill her. I felt safe and secure around Morinth, I felt like I was with some great person. I felt like it was impossible to refuse.

"Yes," I answered sincerely. "I'd love to go there this instant."

She beamed-and the way she looked, for a brief moment I felt as though I wanted nothing more than to be alone with her. "Let's go," she replied, and then she rose. Then, just as I stood up fully, she walked around to my side of the table and touched my hand, grasping it lightly.

Even touching her hand gave me a sensation I thought unimaginable. The closer I got to her, the better I felt. I clutched her hand as I turned to walk out of Afterlife with her. I knew, in the back of my mind, that Samara and the others were watching right now, but that didn't matter so much anymore.

All that mattered was _Morinth_.

* * *

Morinth's apartment was very nice and very spacious. This was one of the more expensive apartments and obviously well-suited to her tastes. She had the walls and furniture decorated with things she'd no doubt gotten from her past lovers... souvenirs-or "trophies", perhaps-from her hunts.

She locked the door once we entered, saying that she didn't want to risk any uninvited guests coming in. I knew that the door wouldn't be a problem though; Samara always got in okay in the game.

Though part of me really began to feel... sad, even a twinge of anger, at the fact that she needed to die at all. She seemed... sweet in her own way, and she was so beautiful. Surely she wasn't all that bad...

I realized I was beginning to feel confused.

"You have some nice stuff around here," I said, admiring the fancy items around the room, trying to distract myself from the inevitable. This was all way too complicated. "I like it."

Morinth sat down on her large couch, leaning back against the cushions and placing her hands on her lap. She then crossed her legs. "Feel free to look around if you want," she said, looking at me intently. Part of me felt repulsed-she was looking at me as though I was a piece of juicy meat. Yet at the same time... I found that part of me definitely liked it-and that part of me was growing.

I began to look around the room. I glanced at the Hallex on the small table beside the couch. "So that's what it looks like," I murmured.

"Have one if you want," Morinth told me, still watching me from the couch. "But wouldn't you rather have your senses sharp right now? I know I do." Her voice was low, soft and enticing.

I nodded in agreement. "Probably for the best. This feels...too great to mess up with a drug," I remarked, actually sincerely. I tried to turn around to look at the other things, but I could not turn my eyes away from her. I just...no, no, I had to try to break free of this. I turned around, and looked at the sword on the wall. "Nice sword."

"I used to go for dueling matches," she murmured. "There's something... enticing about seeing the look in your opponent's eyes when he knows he's about to die."

_Like the look in my eye you expect to see?_

I glanced at her again, and knew I needed to go look at the other items, but...there was something so seductive about her. I couldn't stand to get away from her to bother with everything else; she was so beautiful and even...kind. I slowly walked over to the couch, taking a seat close to her.

"This is our chance to be alone together," she murmured with approval as I sank down next to her. "I've always loved clubs; they are a wonderful place to meet new people-and interesting people. I think I can guess that's why you were there." She inched closer to me, extending her arm-but she didn't put it around me, not yet. She simply rested it across the top of the couch, behind me. She did lean toward me a little, though. "I'm glad we were both there tonight, otherwise we wouldn't have met."

I nodded in agreement. "Yes, otherwise my life would have continued on its...almost boring journey," I said, even if that wasn't entirely true. I stared long and hard at Morinth. "You've treated me better than almost all of the people I've ever known. People like us are...misunderstood."

She leaned ever closer to me-and now she allowed her arm to slip down and around my shoulders. She looked directly into my face, and somehow her mere presence seemed to suggest she could give me anything in the world-and right now I felt like the only thing I wanted in the world was Morinth herself.

"You want me, don't you?" she asked, and her eyes began to glow. Her face began to shine with an odd, almost mystical light-yet somehow it only made her look more... human. Like the most gorgeous human I'd ever seen-except she was more than human. She could be more than a human girl ever could.

No, I...wait, I...I didn't know. Morinth had been so smart and kind in her words, in how she explained her interests. She made me feel comfortable and safe; she gave such a sense of security without doing anything. And she was so beautiful and attractive. Even more attractive than someone like Miranda or Jack.

_"She impresses with sophistication and sex appeal."_

Samara's words radiated in my mind. I had to get a hold of myself; Morinth was a disgusting predator who killed anyone she could sleep with. She ruined so many lives. Just like she had ruined Nef's and devastated Nef's mother. Or those quarians on the Migrant Fleet or that tribe that she made worship her. Yet at the same time, she was irresistible. She had just so understood. She was like me. She talked so smoothly, so sweetly.

_"Then she strikes."_

Was I just falling into Morinth's trap? Part of me wanted to say yes, but that part was diminishing. Why would she be so nice to me, impress me so much, if she just wanted to kill me? Maybe Samara misunderstood Morinth? Maybe she wasn't that bad.

_"The hunt interests her as much as the conquest."_

No. Just no. This couldn't actually be some game to her; she had almost helped me. I intended to lie my way through my conversation with her, but I didn't. She helped me put how I felt into words...I did feel isolated. I did feel like I didn't have that many friends and it got to me sometimes. I could never figure out how to be personal and not so business-like on the Normandy, but with Morinth, all of that faded away. And I had never been more attracted to someone in my entire life.

_"Morinth speaks to you on many levels. Her body tells yours that she'll bring unimaginable ecstasy. Her scent evokes emotions long hidden."_

I couldn't do this. Samara's words kept creeping back into my mind, and while I liked Samara, I had to listen to what I was truly feeling. And I felt like Morinth was what I wanted. Morinth was what I _needed_. Morinth could give me so much.

I finally snapped out of my thoughts. "Yes, Morinth, I want you, so badly," I replied, staring at her utterly sexy body.

"Shhhhh, darling," she whispered to me as she moved her lips closer to mine. "Stay very still." She then kissed me. The moment between us lingered... a long, savory moment.

This felt so great. I gave into the kiss, unlike when Jack kissed me. It felt just amazing in so many ways. Morinth was far better than I thought she was, and I couldn't resist her any longer. I was ready to give myself to her at _any_ moment.

She began to slide her arms around me and our lips broke apart as she looked into my eyes again. I found myself longing for what she was going to do next...

Just then her head snapped up. She gasped softly and pulled back from me so suddenly that I ended up falling backward against the cushions. Then there was a bright flash of light and Morinth was suddenly plastered against her own window. Cracks had formed all around her body, and she squinted as she looked across the room at her attacker.

"Wha..." I began, almost forgetting that Samara would be paying us a visit. I turned around to see the Justicar, ready to kill her daughter. My eyes darted back to Morinth. No more than an hour ago, I wanted her to die so badly. But now, I felt like I didn't. I needed Morinth. I wanted her. "Samara, wait, no!"

Samara barely cast me a glance-her attention was focused on Morinth.

"Mother," Morinth said her tone full of bitterness and animosity.

"Do not call me that!" Samara's cold, firm voice cut through the room. Her entire body was glowing with raw biotic power.

"I can't choose to stop being your daughter, _Mother_!"

"Samara!" I called, trying to stand up, though I felt slightly unstable. It was probably from being yanked out of what almost became sex with Morinth. "You have to understand! I know what you think, what we all thought. But it is different! She's different!"

But she ignored me. "You made your choice long ago!" the Justicar said, staying focused on her daughter.

Just then a brilliant burst of light exploded from Morinth's form, sending Samara staggering backward a few steps. "What choice?" Morinth yelled as she hopped down onto the floor, landing cat-like on her feet. "I was only born with the gifts YOU gave me!" She used her biotic power to throw a footrest in the direction of her mother, who promptly ducked it-it went sailing over her head.

"ENOUGH, MORINTH!" Samara yelled, sending the younger asari crashing into the floor so hard that she rolled a few feet.

Morinth was up on her feet in the next instant and both women began to glow brightly. Their biotic power glowed and swirled from each other's hands into a powerful biotic globe that formed between them-their stance made it so that their powers intertwined and merged together, making it so they were using up their energy and creating a temporary stalemate where neither had the advantage, but neither could let up.

I watched both, my eyes wide with worry. I couldn't lose Morinth...she and I could be happy together. She was just misunderstood, but she and I understood each other. She was enormously beautiful on the inside and outside, she couldn't die now.

And I knew that this was the scene in the game where Shepard made her choice. However, I liked Samara. I couldn't just kill her...but did I have to? For Morinth's sake?

"HK, grab her," Morinth snapped. "Keep her distracted for a moment-then I can be yours forever!"

"You know what she is and what she's done, HK," Samara shouted. "Let us finish this!"

This obviously wasn't going to end diplomatically. Someone was going to die, but I couldn't kill Morinth. I hated the thought of killing Samara, it repulsed me, but Morinth could take her place on the Normandy, just like in the game. We could be so happy. She'd understand me, I'd understand her. It could be just like her and Shepard, but better. Her smart mind, her sultry, hot body could all be mine, and I could be hers.

_"You and I can share something so intense, so deep that it will change your life," Morinth calmly said._

Those were her words to Shepard on the Normandy as they discussed this. She could say that to me, and then we could be together. She could share something so deep with me, and our lives would be changed forever...

I looked up at the two. I had an extremely difficult decision to make, but I knew which one I had to choose. For my own sake.


	37. And thanks for stalking me

**(HK)**

"DID YOU KILL HER? DID YOU KILL HER?" Abby screamed through the earpiece, running towards the apartment; I could hear her footsteps in the hallway. Supposedly, Shepard and Miranda were right behind her, but she was first, anxious to get in here.

I was still reeling, so I couldn't exactly respond. I stared at the dead corpse right in front of me; I didn't know what to feel. Had I done the right thing by killing her? Or did I make a grave mistake? I still felt so conflicted, despite the decision that I made just moments ago. I did it for myself, which almost felt selfish, but it wasn't. I had to do it. Someone had to go.

We both turned when we saw Abby enter. "Uhh, hi," I slowly said, still exhausted from all of this.

A split-second later Shepard and Miranda burst into the room. They had their weapons drawn and they each wore a determined look on their faces. Then they looked at me, then Abby, and the surviving asari, and then their eyes locked on the dead woman on the floor. It was a gruesome sight to behold: her body lay at an awkward angle and her neck was twisted in an unnatural way. It looked as though pure energy itself had erupted through her throat and chin, leaving the flesh torn and scarred.

"It is done," Samara said in a low, almost reverent whisper. She stared down at her daughter's limp and lifeless body for a long moment. Something between wariness and relief seemed to settle about her like an invisible cloak draping over her shoulders-her very expression seemed to whisper,_ "It's finally over."_

Abby's eyes sharpened, and she shot me a harsh look. "Is it over?" Abby demanded.

"Yes, Morinth is dead," I assured all of them with a hard swallow. "No more lives will come to harm because of her defect, and Samara can have peace."

Killing Morinth had not been easy, and I had barely been able to come to the decision to kill her, but as I thought about what she told Shepard, I also remembered that Shepard died after Morinth soothed her with those words. It was then that I realized that, despite my growing fascination with her, the same thing would happen to me. And so I had to kill her, for myself and everyone else, including Samara.

She had called me 'heartless', and it stung slightly, after all of that time we had spent talking, after how attracted I was to her. However, as more and more seconds went by after her death, I felt her spell wearing off. And, although I could not deny the fact that Morinth did have a lot of 'sex appeal' as Samara termed it, I just felt creeped out and disturbed. That woman had played me like a puppet, and I barely resisted at all.

It showed how much actual control and resolve I had, which was disappointing.

Shepard moved towards Samara, extending a helping hand and placing it on her shoulder. "You three wait outside," she informed us. We exited obediently. I threw a last glance back at Morinth's dead body before the door closed behind us.

Abby's arms were vice-like around my shoulders. "I'm so glad you didn't die!" she squeaked. "When I heard you on the radio I thought you were going to-I thought you might have-"

"I know," I stated sadly, a frown growing on my face. I still felt so...icky from all of this. "I didn't like any of that. Well, actually, the thing that I didn't like was that I did like it. Morinth totally got me under her thumb. We're lucky that Samara came out alive."

"She had the charm on, all right," Abby stated with a frown, withdrawing from the hug. "I could hear her talking to you... Her voice made me want to come over and join you. I wanted her to feel the same way about me as she did to you. It was really, really hard for me to resist, and I wasn't even around her."

"We're just lucky you both came out of that alive," Miranda said, glancing down the hallway. She placed an unexpected gloved hand on my shoulder and nodded sharply. "You pulled it off flawlessly. That's what we train for. You've learned a lot."

"Yeah," Abby said fervently.

I blinked in shock. That was an unexpected complement. "Why...thank you, Miranda. That means a lot to me," I told her sincerely, with a nod. "I am not quite sure what to think, or what to feel right now. I think that entire thing exhausted me in ways that physical combat doesn't."

Miranda nodded. "Samara owes you one. You've gained the Justicar's undying loyalty now, you know. That would be a useful resource, considering her power. It would have been better if Shepard had been the one to secure it, however."

"Samara will still be loyal to the cause - to us!" Abby interjected. "HK didn't make a mistake about that. He did the exact right thing."

"I intended for Shepard to secure it. Our visions showed us as her being the one that did, bit circumstances changed everything," I explained with a heavy sigh, though Miranda knew this. "Once Morinth approached me, I couldn't turn her down. I was her target for the night; I highly doubted that I could say 'No' and she'd immediately turn her attention to Shepard. I had to roll with it, and now she's dead. Samara should be okay."

"Still, it was a horrible situation," Miranda remarked. "You did well, but we were wrong to bring you both in there. If you aren't seducing the Ardat-Yakshi, then Abby is putting a man into an armlock."

I would have laughed if I still wasn't so shaken up after the Morinth incident. "I don't know whether it was a good idea or not for us to go in there," I admitted with a sigh. "I...I don't know. All of this was just too crazy and weird for me."

"Too many strippers," Abby muttered. "Too. Many. _Cojones."_

I simply agreed with a shudder. "I don't think I want to see this place again for a long time," I muttered.

"I'm going to stick to regular old human nightclubs," Abby agreed.

"Well, I definitely don't mind all the asari and-wait," I said, something suddenly hitting me like a cold splash in the face. "Did you just say_ cojones_?"

"Yes!" Abby said with a shudder. "It was bad. Bad, bad, bad."

"Okay then," I said hesitantly.

"Do you even know what _cojones_ are?" Abby asked.

"Yes, Abby, I do," I replied simply, not wanting to explain what they were right here on Omega...or anywhere, for that matter.

"I think one guy had an infection," she grumbled, turning away from us with a shudder. "Either that or the thong was cutting off circulation to the important parts."

"I don't need to have those thoughts!" I snapped.

"Well too bad!" Abby shot back. "You're not the one who had to watch! It was like a bad car accident waiting to happen."

Miranda bowed her head, a small smile on her face. "I've never had much time for strippers myself," she said. "A loathesome profession, to be honest."

I nodded. "I agree, but I guess there are some who enjoy it. Male and female alike. However, not to worry; I doubt we'll run into any more on our journey to stop the Collectors."

"Good," Abby said, turning back around to look at us. "But I like whatever that dirnk was that I had. A... White Russian? I think that was the name."

Miranda sighed. "Your lucky that Shepard didn't kill you. It was a necessary cover, but that doesn't mean that you'll be drinking one any time soon."

"I think it had rum in it," Abby said.

"It probably did. But how do you know?"

"Because rum always makes me tired. Vodka doesn't, though."

"And how, exactly, do you know this?" Miranda asked with a few furious blinks.

"Whenever I get a sore throat, I would get hot tea and put vodka in it," Abby stated. "We ran out once and put rum in it, and it would put me right to sleep. Is that normal?"

"...lets get back to the Normandy," HK said.

"We're still waiting for Shepard and Samara," Abby said, who, thankfully, looked ready to let the subject go. "I wonder what they'll do with Morinth's body..."

"Cerberus could use it," Miranda chimed in. "The study of an Ardat-Yakshi would-"

"No," I suddenly interjected. "Whatever Shepard does with it, she doesn't need to give it to Cerberus."

"If Cerberus wanted to know more about the Ardat-Yakshi, they could go buy an asari medical book," Abby agreed.

"I believe it would be best to incinerate the body," Samara's soft voice chimed in, seemingly out of nowhere. Her voice was even quieter than usual; almost like a soft echo. I turned around-apparently the door to Morinth's apartment had opened quietly behind us.

I nodded. I then lowered my voice very low, so that no one would hear it and report it back to anyone connected to the Pirate Queen. "Good idea. We shouldn't let Aria's people get ahold of it, either."

Samara simply nodded. Then she walked over to the twisted, broken form of Morinth's body. She regarded it coldly for a moment, almost as though she were analysing a discolored lump in the floor. Then she smoothly bent down and scooped the dead asari up into her arms and held it, cradling it a little.

She held her head-and especially her eyes-up high, refusing to look at what she now carried. "I shall think about the time when Morinth was born... and treasure those memories," she whispered. Then she moved toward the door, matter-of-factly carrying her daughter's corpse as though it were merely a log.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

It wasn't long before I learned the details of how the mission went. Hey, it wasn't every day that a few people set out to attract a perverted stalker for the sole purpose of taking her down. Who wouldn't want to know the details of that? I also couldn't help but think that this would be a very juicy story for that racist reporter on the Citadel if she'd ever gotten wind of this somehow.

I heard all of the details when I shared lunch with HK and Abby a couple of hours after they got back, and I was pretty dang creeped out about the entire thing. Who would have imagined that Morinth would want HK of all people? Nevermind the fact that it spooked me that one of my friends had been made a target by her, but it was just... I couldn't really see her going after him for some reason. Abby, maybe. But... HK?

But apparently it had happened. It actually took my nerves a few moments to settle down after hearing about that. It did unnerve me... not to mention it really creeped me out.

Unfortunately we didn't have a chance to hang out for long. HK went off to take a shower, (I might want to take one too after THAT kind of experience) and Abby went off to see Jacob or Zaeed or... whatever it was she was going off to do.

So that left me alone with the responsibility of cleaning the kitchen floor and washing the dishes. Of course, washing dishes merely consisted of rinsing them off and putting them into the dishwasher.

Within a couple of hours I had everything finished in the kitchen area-I even dried off the dishes and put them away. Then I spent the next fifteen minutes doing a thorough job of sweeping up the floor around the tables and chairs-apparently there had been a few messy eaters in there this time-and I had to scrub one area to get something up off the floor. I don't know what it was, but it looked like somebody had spilled something down there.

Then again, we were in orbit around Omega. Who knew what kind of things people could buy down there? Plus I had heard mention that we were staying in orbit for a little while in order to pick up supplies. I really didn't care much though what was going on... unless it effected my work. It wasn't like I would ever set foot off this ship again, after all.

Then of course I needed to clean the bathrooms-that wasn't so bad though, because they were mostly clean anyway-and then I needed to clean the medical bay. For the most part it wasn't too bad either, but I did have to dust and mop.

And by the time I'd finished cleaning all of the areas I needed to clean, it was almost time to start cooking the third course of the day. I began by scrubbing my hands thoroughly, and then I began to cook the assortment of foodstuffs that Rupert had left out for me.

During all of this, I felt as though everything was going by very slowly. When you got right down to it, I really didn't want to be here right now. I just didn't feel like doing any work. I wanted to be back in "my" room sitting on the edge of my bed and listening to music. I didn't want to be out here around people.

But the evening went by as it always did, with everyone eating and chatting at the tables, with me cooking food and serving it, and then having to collect all of the dishes and wash them all over again after they were all done. At least the floors weren't quite as messy this time in the mess area.

When I was finally done with the cleaning, I simply plopped down in a chair at one of the tables that was out of sight. It was one of the ones in a position where you had to walk into the mess hall and be looking right at it in order to see it. I just felt moody and like I didn't want to see or talk to anyone. I hadn't even made any form of eye-contact during dinner. I felt like I simply wanted to avoid people and just get through the day. Then I could go listen to music for a while and then crash in bed...

...Just for the sole purpose of getting up again tomorrow and doing it all over again, I supposed. I sighed heavily and rested my head on the table, wrapping my arms around them.

Well if nothing else... Thank GOD HK had survived his encounter with Morinth. Frankly, what happened on Illium was enough. I didn't think that he or Abby would be threatened quite like that again in any way. I definitely owed Shepard and Samara a lot.

"Surprise."

I just about jumped out of my skin. I twisted around, a squeak of surprise building in my throat, just to see Kasumi standing there next to the refrigerator, arms crossed. Her lips were curved in an amused smile.

I stared at her for a long moment. I wondered what she was doing here. "Uh... hi," I said a bit blankly, although some of my sour mood began to fade. At least she was talking to me, apparently.

"Don't worry about getting in trouble," Kasumi said. "Shepard and I talked. I want to see if I can fix things."

I slowly rose from my seat and slowly walked toward her. I stopped about four feet from her-then I moved and leaned against the counter, resting one elbow on the edge of it. "Yeah um... I'd like to do that, too," I finally said.

"So the way I'd like to say this," Kasumi said, "is that... I get it. I forgive you. You did a crazy thing, you had no respect for us at all, and you're getting your punishment for it. You deserve it. But you don't deserve me holding a grudge over it."

In a way I couldn't believe it. I'd almost completely resigned to the fact that she wasn't going to talk to me, now she wasn't just talking to me-she said she forgived me. "Thanks," I blurted, before my throat could completely close up from shock and relief.

Kasumi almost looked disappointed. Her mouth opened, then closed. "Good," she said, turning around and opening the refrigerator. "I would appreciate it if you stayed out of my room, though," she added almost as an afterthought. "I don't stay secluded in there all of the time, so no worries about not being able to talk if you need it."

I cleared my throat, trying to get my voice to work again. I just felt awkward in these kinds of situations at times. "No problem," I said quickly. "And um... can we talk for a few minutes? At one of the tables, please?" I looked at her earnestly. I knew I had to say something if I didn't want her to simply walk away again.

"Sure, that's why I'm here, after all," she said with a kind smile.

"Okay," I smiled in return. "Can we sit over here?" I asked, already moving toward the slightly secluded seat I'd been in a few moments ago.

Kasumi shrugged and led the way, taking a seat in the corner that would give her the best overall view of the mess hall. "Okay," she said, placing both elbows on the table. "How are you?"

I actually chuckled a little. "Been better, been worse," I murmured. Then I clarified, "Well... it sucks being stuck on this deck and knowing I won't be able to go anywhere off the Normandy anytime soon, but... I guess I made my bed and so I have to sleep in it." I ran a hand through my blue hair... and for the first time since I'd gotten it dyed, I actually felt a little silly and self-conscious with it. "How're you?" I asked.

"Doing good," she said. "Shepard's been very good to me, and so has the rest of the crew."

"Yeah, Shepard is awesome," I agreed with a nod. "Though I think I've pissed her off pretty good... more than once." I narrowed my eyes thoughtfully. "Part of me doesn't get why she doesn't just throw me off the ship... or lock me up altogether, so to speak. But she just keeps me confined to this deck."

"Well, I think it'd be pretty obvious," Kasumi stated matter-of-factly. "You already know why."

"Heh yeah, because I know so much." Why was I beginning to re-hash this, anyway? I'd already been over this with HK and Abby. Perhaps in some ways, well... I just had this flaw or weakness where I wanted attention. Maybe that was one of my main problems, and something I really needed to work on.

I sighed softly and placed my hands on the table in front of me. "Well, I've made a promise not to do anything stupid or crazy until all of this is over," I told her sincerely. "I'm just going to stick with my chores and such. And hopefully come out of all this alive."

"If you know so much, it should be a no-brainer," Kasumi said offhandidly. "My advice is: stop worrying about living or dying on this thing. Extend the first bits of trust to us, your team, and we might begin to do the same for you again. We all know we're probably going to die, and quite frankly I'm expecting to lose people. I'm not expecting to make it out alive, either."

"Yeah, and I know everybody knows it's probably going to be a one way trip," I said. "But the fact is, I know that there is a definite chance all of you can survive. It's just... myself, HK and Abby I don't know about. But I'd say HK and Abby have a better chance than I do."

"I don't know," Kasumi said. "From what I've observed it seems pretty straightforward. They don't know if they'll die or not on ground missions, right?" I nodded. "Then if they stick to Shepard, they'll be okay. And you should stick close to somebody you know will survive, and then you'll have a better chance."

"Joker," I murmured aloud in spite of myself. I hadn't meant to say it aloud; I simply did. Once again, I was thinking ahead to a specific attack.

"So stay close to Joker," Kasumi reasoned. "It's not exactly rocket science, Sarah," she said kindly, as if realizing that her previous words may have been slightly cold. "And if you dwell on it all the time you'll only be depressed."

"Yeah," I said with a nod. Then I leaned forward a little, looking at her. "So... can you tell me something?" I asked. "You notice more about the crew than anybody else. What do they think of me, and what are they saying?" I grinned a little.

Kasumi pursed her lips into a thin line. "Why so curious?"

I leaned back a bit and shrugged casually. At least I hoped it looked casual. It might have looked non-so-casual somehow, though. "Just wondering... it's just something I'm always curious about," I answered truthfully.

"Why?" she asked curiously.

"Just curious about the thoughts and opinions of others, is all," I said, still smiling-though my smile was starting to feel more sheepish than anything.

"Worrying about what other people think isn't the best way to go through life, you know," she said lightly. "Everybody does, once in a while, but it's best to just go your own way. The thoughts and opinions of others shouldn't shape your life-unless they're people you want to allow. Parents, family, best friends, those are the people whose thoughts matter. Everybody else? They don't. You have to build up some confidence for yourself."

I just looked at her for a long moment, considering her words. Finally I said, "Yeah, I guess." I paused for a moment, then decided to change the subject altogether. "So what have you been doing for fun?"

"Everything," she said with a grin. "Jacob's been helping me out a lot with the finer aspects of ranged weapons, I've been talking to Kelly on her down time, Mordin sometimes, too. I go downstairs to help Tali sometimes. She's teaching Thane and I about shield overlays in case something goes wrong and she's not there."

"That sounds awesome," I replied, feeling a little envious once again that everyone else could go everywhere they want on the ship. "Just curious... do you think Shepard will ever lift my ban?" I asked on impulse.

Kasumi sighed. "Honestly? I don't know. You deserved it, there's no question of it, and since we've gotten back you've made it worse by mouthing off to us in the office, then to Shepard just the other day. So... I'd say, don't expect anything. She's a military commander, not a kindergarten teacher. I know it sounds harsh, but that's how she is."

Right then for some reason-maybe it was because her words had a ring of truth that hit me in an odd way, or because there was just something overly amusing about comparing Shepard to a kindergarten teacher, but... I cracked up, right there and then. I turned my face away, trying to conceal and contain my giggles without much luck.

"What's so funny?" Kasumi asked warily. I must have looked like a mental patient to her.

I managed to get enough control of myself to blurt out between breathless pants, "Just... the thought of... Shepard... being a schoolteacher... and the Normandy... full of children!" I laughed again.

"That's what it probably feels like sometimes," Kasumi muttered, still watching me suspisciously. "Nobody's really making it easy on her."

I quickly sobered and leaned forward on my elbows. "Yeah and I know I haven't been giving her-or anybody-an easy time. I've been kinda... self-absorbed, I guess." I looked at her seriously. "I came here-I mean, when I first showed up here and HK and Abby, we actually wished that we were here, and then we did get here. And um..." I shook head my head. "Nevermind, you'd probably think what I'm thinking is stupid." I couldn't exactly tell her that all of this was just a game where I came from, could I?

Kasumi must have learned from Commander Shepard-she was silent, and I could've sworn she was giving me the Shepard Eyebrow.

"Never mind," I finally said with a shake of my head. Then I decided to change the subject-and I said the first thing I could think of quickly. "So uh... what do you think?" I ran my fingers through my hair, indicating the blue color.

"It's certainly vivid enough," Kasumi stated. "Why blue?"

"Because it's... probably the weirdest color out there," I said with a shrug. "Next to green or something, I guess."

"So you wanted something to symbolize you being weird?" she guessed.

I snorted a little. "Read it that way if you want, but I was trying to symbolize a... change."

"What kind of change?" she asked curiously.

"That I'm going to at least try to accept the way things are and not cause as much trouble," I replied with a small shrug. Somehow I felt almost... irritated that I had to spell it all out like that, but then again I kept forgetting that Kasumi was observant but she was no mind-reader. She determined some things by the way people said them, most likely.

Kasumi chuckled. "Well, that's a start," she said. "A good one."

"I guess I'm sorta having second thoughts about it being blue, though," I muttered. "But I guess it's too late now, right?"

"No," Kasumi said. "You used Kelly's stash, right? The only reason she even brought those is because Shepard might have to go undercover. If you wash it with the dye remover, everything will go back to normal. Until then... it'll be blue until the day you die."

I blinked several times. "You're kidding," I blurted. "I thought that the blue hairs would just shed like normal hair does and then brown hairs would grow back."

"That's so outdated," Kasumi said with a laugh. "You have to be kidding."

I stared at her in shock. "Uh... b-but where I come from..." I shook my head furiously. "You mean this is PERMANENT?" I touched my hair and flinched slightly at the thought. I was going to-but how did that even WORK?

"Yes..." Kasumi said with a frown. "Wait a moment, did you even read the bottle?"

"No I didn't, I just assumed..." I shook head again, trying to absorb this information and figure out what to do with it. "I don't get it!"

"When you want it to wash out, you remove it by washing it with the conditioner Kelly has," Kasumi said gently. "It's for undercover missions. Shepard could go underground for a year with green hair and come back as green as ever. If you don't like it, you can remove it whenever you can."

"Yeah well... I'll definitely think about that," I replied dully, still feeling stunned. "Just... wow, I had no idea such a thing even existed!" Just then, a sudden thought struck me.

"Hey..." I said curiously. "What color is your hair?"

Kasumi raised a hand to touch the brim of her hood. I hoped for a moment that she would reveal her entire face for the first time, but she lowered the hand just as quickly. "It's... dark," she said. "The only people who probably know now are Keiji and EDI. And since Keiji is dead..."

I squinted slightly, thinking back to a youtube video I'd seen back home. There was actually a video that showed Kasumi with her hood down. It was actually from a game mod or something, I think... that someone had made before the Stolen Memory DLC had been made ready for purchase/download. It made it clear that Kasumi was in the game regardless, in a way.

"I think... you have short black hair," I said, focusing on the memory for a moment. "Like... it's kept short-perhaps shorter than mine-and brushed back."

Kasumi laughed. "Nice try. I plead the Fifth, Counselor."

I grinned. "That's still not denying it!" I accused.

Kasumi snorted. "It's not," she assured me.

I leaned back in my seat and sighed a little. It was nice to be talking to Kasumi again, and to know she wasn't mad anymore. At least one thing was definitely going better. I also chose to forget about my... blue hair for the moment; I could always talk to Kelly about that later. And since I was the one who'd insisted on making it blue in the first place, I had to live with it for the moment.

I thought briefly of the Collectors, then decided to shove that thought aside, too. Seriously... if I kept dwelling on it or worrying about it... I would miss out on renewing-and possibly deepening-a perfectly good friendship. Instead I decided to think ahead a bit.

And then I thought of something really random.

"Hey," I said, "suppose we all do survive this. Like... we blow up the Collectors and then return with nothing more than a few burn marks on the Normandy's hull. Do you think Shepard will let me off this deck... maybe even off the ship?" I chuckled.

"Not on any important planets," Kasumi said, "and definitely nowhere with krogan."

"That was pretty stupid, wasn't it?" I muttered, thinking back to Tuchunka. "I'm... not sure what I was thinking, to be honest." Hey I figured... we probably did need to talk about it a little, just to make sure we had it behind us.

"You wanted to make a difference in the exact wrong way," Kasumi said. "Either that, or you just wanted to die... or secretly hope that Shepard would save you."

"Yeah well... I won't do that again, definitely," I said earnestly. "And... I'm sorry again for... you know. Pointing a gun at you."

"I know," Kasumi said dryly. "That was probably the dumbest thing you did out there."

"Well at least now I don't feel quite so bad about what happened during my first week here with Shepard and the crew," I said with a forced chuckle. "Shepard actually took me out on a mission that first time she set out with one of us. And... I went into Afterlife with her-because Shepard needed to talk to Aria-and I drank some ryncol. Left me sick for a few days, I think."

Kasumi blinked. "You _do_ have a death wish."

"I just... like to take risks sometimes and see what happens," I said off-handedly. "I still remember when I slapped Jack because I was... well, trying to get out of going somewhere. She knocked me out."

"Trying to get out of saving your two friends," Kasumi said. Her voice held a hint of disgust... or was I imagining it? "I heard."

"Oh yeah. Um, yeah." I swallowed, suddenly unsure if that was really the best thing to bring up. "I could explain, but um... well I'm not sure you'd understand." I was also thinking she might think it was just an excuse, but I didn't say that aloud.

"I may." Her tone said that she understood a lot of different, more diverse things than a janitor's issues.

I decided to simply tell her what I had told Thane, back on that shuttle when I left the Citadel with him. I mentioned how I had never fit in very well... except as a janitor. Of course I left out the part about how I could get captured by Collectors, because I could not warn anyone of the Normandy being boarded later on. But I did make a vague reference to it, like I sometimes did around anyone other than Abby or HK. I mentioned how it was easy to take everything for granted... HK and Abby ALWAYS came back from the missions. But I was the one who couldn't fight or defend myself. I mentioned that I was able to convince Shepard to take me on just ONE final mission... Haestrom, and it nearly killed me.

"I never told anybody," I whispered. "But what happened there haunted my dreams for several nights... I never mentioned it and even tried not to think about it. It seemed like... I was-am-the most fragile thing on the ship. I was useless on a mission and I also knew that when I finally do encounter the Collectors... I might get captured or die."

I paused for breath. Kasumi was listening intently, I could tell-and she never took her eyes off me. I took a couple deep breaths, then continued.

"Like I said, Haestrom was a nightmare for me. I tried to... focus on other things to keep from thinking about it, even if it meant dwelling on the fact that I might get captured by Collectors or die elsewhere. I actually managed to forget that it happened, but this other crap I had filled my mind with lingered because I'd dwelled on it for so long, I guess." I let out a breathless, humorless chuckle. "HK and Abby actually told me recently that a lot of this crap that happened might have been avoided if I'd talked to them more instead of just... bottling it up.

"But anyway," I went on, "I just... um, I guess I got so... pre-occupied with the thought of dying. I don't know, maybe obsessing over the idea of becoming a good fighter like Shepard gave me something to focus on so I could shove aside all the other crap that I just didn't know how to deal with. But then I started to LIVE it. I think that's what happened on Tuchunka, when I... pulled that stunt."

I felt my voice catch in my throat. I knew I was getting a little off-track. I wanted to explain everything to her so she would understand, but I also wanted to explain my actions when I... well, didn't help HK and Abby as much as I should have.

"So yeah, back at Illium... I tried to get out of helping. Because Shepard wanted to drag me off the ship and put me on another mission. And then she wanted me to sit on the bridge and watch through her eyes as she and the others went to rescue Abby and HK. I was trying to keep what happened on Haestrom OUT of my mind. But she wanted me to sit there and watch through her eyes as she was fired upon and fired back at enemies. I... didn't want to relive that, not again."

A soft gasp escaped my throat-or maybe it was a gentle sob, I wasn't sure. I felt embarrassed by the noise and I felt even more embarrassed when I realized how close to tears I was. Not to mention how... emotionally drained all of this left me. In a way I'd just told Kasumi more than I had told HK and Abby, and more than I had told Thane. I was... sort of getting all of it-or most of it, at least-out.

Then again... somehow it was always easier to talk to HK and Abby when we just talked on msn, back when we lived normal, everyday lives. I missed those days... things were so damn different now. We didn't have the luxury of simply sitting down at our computers with a snack or some music and simply goof around in msn convos, co-writing stories or talking about everyday things. Right now, Abby and HK were a couple of fighters and advisors in a war, and I was the janitor as well as a fellow "psychic".

"Ugh I miss the normal days," I muttered. Why not? Might as well keep going while I was getting it out. "You know, me, HK and Abby used to just... talk, live normal average lives, and goof around. I think something big changed when we ended up here. Something I wasn't expecting or ready for. I think... our friendship changed, too. I wasn't sure how to talk to them anymore in some ways. They seemed like different people and I just seemed different, too. Our whole lives are different, now."

I swiped my eyes with my sleeve. DAMN IT, I did not want to tear up in front of her. I didn't like to tear up in front of anyone. "I probably sound pathetic," I finished. I half-rose, sniffled a little and trying to blink back the moisture I felt in my eyes. I thought about simply slipping back to "my" room.

"I think I can understand," Kasumi said when it became clear I wasn't-couldn't-say any more.

I'd managed to get ahold of myself a little more. But I wasn't entirely sure what to say. I just looked at her in silence, feeling... grateful. I was glad she understood where I was coming from, or at least seemed to.

"Sarah," Kasumi said leaning forward, "you're not going to die."

"How do you know?" The question escaped my lips before I could stop it.

"Well you're not stupid!" Kasumi said with a laugh. "You know what's going to happen. I don't have that luxury!"

"Well... yeah," I said lightly. I couldn't say this out loud, but that was actually the problem in some ways. That I knew so much, yet didn't know-

Oh geez. It was starting to get really old, rehashing that over and over again in my mind. And like I'd already told Kasumi, that was a big reason why a lot of this... trouble, so to speak, had happened.

"Maybe after all this is over I should see a therapist or something," I muttered out loud. I meant it as a joke... well, sorta.

"If that'd make you feel better," Kasumi said. "I could refer you to that asari I told you about." But her tone said she was joking.

"Oh God," I laughed. "Just... please tell me that that's not the asari Consort on the Citadel." I sure as hell hoped it was not the same person.

"The Consort is still on the Citadel the last time I heard, I hear it all" she said. "This woman is on Omega... recently she got on article in Fornax, talking about her interesting... job."

"Oh I see," I said with a little nod. Of course I'd forgotten that the woman Kasumi had mentioned was on Omega, not the Citadel. "Have you ever seen the Consort?" I asked curiously.

"She's a very unique person," Kasumi confirmed.

"Wow," I gushed softly in spite of myself. "I know Shepard's met her, too. I believe she even helped her out, and then the Consort gave her a gift of words."

"And a trinket to unlock Prothean ruins on an uncharted world," Kasumi finished. "Shepard told me."

I blinked. Somehow... I never knew that. Come to think of it I believe HK and Abby mentioned that to me, but... I didn't realize that it was THAT trinket they were talking about, when they mentioned some Prothean ruins being unlocked. "Wow, so THAT'S what that trinket was for," I murmured.

"The ruins never really unlocked," Kasumi said. "Apparently they just gave off some strange vision or something. Different from the one on Eden Prime and Virmire."

"What kind of vision?" I asked curiously.

"She never told me," Kasumi said wistfully. "I don't believe she's told anyone except Kaidan and Ashley, actually. They were with her."

"Oh," I said, disappointed. I sat there silently for a moment, then I decided to change the subject. "So uh... what kind of music do you like?"

"Everything," she said happily. "Well, everything but salarian jazz." She gave a playful shudder.

"Hey I never even thought about what kinds of music other species' make," I said thoughtfully. "I have a CD player that keeps me amused by my bed, but all of that is Earth music." I sighed thoughtfully. "I'd love to hear some turian music... or even some krogan music," I laughed. "But hey, have you ever listened to Lady Gaga?"

"Heck yes! Who hasn't?" she asked. "I liked the music video for Telephone. I thought it was cute."

"What do you think of Bad Romance?" I couldn't help but ask. "That's the one that I first heard from Lady Gaga."

"She had issues," Kasumi stated truthfully.

"Yeah I guess she did," I chuckled. "You know... I wonder if her videos could be compared to Vaenia at all." I just couldn't resist asking. "Not that I've ever seen Vaenia," I added quickly.

"Neither have I, actually," Kasumi said. "Heard it was a hit, though. But I'm determined to get Grunt to watch The Lion King before everything goes down." She laughed.

"Oh... my... gosh," I breathed, amused at the thought. "I'd love to see how that goes." I grinned. "You know, I almost wonder if it might be fun to have some sort of movie night-or even a few movie nights, somehow, before we go after the Collectors. That might be fun and it might help take people's minds off things." I thought back to some Star Trek: Enterprise episodes I'd watched where the crew actually did have movie nights, even a lounge set up as a theater. Although I knew the Normandy didn't have anything like that. But perhaps something could be set up...

"There's an idea," she agreed. "Maybe we could tlak to Shepard about it. I have a collection of vids."

I grinned. "When do you think would be a good time to talk to her about it?" I asked. I was liking the idea more and more.

"I'll mention it to her next time I see her," Kasumi promised. "I like this idea. It'll do wonders for moral, too."

"Definitely," I agreed. "Hey, have you seen Alpha and Omega?"

"No," Kasumi said with a frown. "Is that an action movie?"

"Um... well I've never seen it or anything, but it's about some wolves," I said. "I guess there's these two main characters who are from opposite sides of the social class, and they fall in love."

"Animated," Kasumi guessed. "And... let me see... Disney, right? If it's mushy, it's Disney. Talking animals, it's Disney."

"Yeah pretty much," I said with a nod. "So how many Disney classics have you seen?" I wondered aloud.

"Not many. I like the older ones better, but around 2008 they began to get really boring," Kasumi said wryly. "You?"

"I've seen all of the old classics," I replied. "Bambi, Snow White, Cinderella, Fox and the Hound, Robin Hood, you name it." I frowned slightly. "In some ways I don't like some of those movie anymore, though. Like Cinderella and Snow White especially."

"I liked the Lion King," Kasumi mused. "That's always been my favorite one."

"What did you think of the sequel?"

"Didn't see it," she said with a light laugh. "I didn't really have time for movies, though I've seen some of the classics. Star Wars was a great series - ever hear of it?"

"Oh man," I grinned. "In a way you could say it's because of Star Wars that I met Abby and HK in the first place."

"Really?" she asked, curious. "How so?"

"Well, first of all... did you know that there were games in the Star Wars franchise too?"

"Knights of the Old Republic," Kasumi said with a nod. "Blame Keiji, he was such a Star Wars nerd. Apparently Knights was one of the first Star Wars RPGs out there... not that I have been indoctrinated by him at all. I haven't! I just pick these things up."

"Yeah, that game was the one that we all played," I said with a nod. "Then we met at this forum that was devoted to talking about it and writing fanfiction for it. Sometimes we would waste hours and hours doing stuff at that website, even staying up until 4:00 in the morning." I shook my head slightly at the memory. It seemed like we had way too much free time on our hands back then... and no lives.

Kasumi opened her mouth to say something, but her omni-tool beeped. Holding up one finger, she accessed it and read whatever had alerted her. "Sorry," she said, closing it down. "Just an update on the flight plan." She stretched back nonchalantly. "Okay, so obviously you guys aren't stupid enough to have your names on the internet. So did you have strange usernames or something?"

"Oh yeah," I said with a chuckle. I figured there was no harm in sharing. "Abby was Starwars Chick, ArenKae, ForceFlow... HK was... well, HK47FAN, which is why he goes by 'HK' around us. The nickname stuck. And I was Walruseater-though I later had my name changed to Crystal001."

"Walruseater?" Kasumi echoed. "What made you think of that name?"

Now I laughed. I'd been asked that question before. "It's kind of silly," I admitted. "That was one of the very first usernames I ever came up with. When it came time for me to choose a username, for some reason my mind thought back to this book summary I'd read somewhere, where someone was describing the violent content in a book. I don't even remember the name of the book now, but one of the parts in the review said that the book went into great detail about how a couple of people ate a walrus, picking out the eyes and everything. So I just randomly typed, 'Walruseater'." It had been so long since I'd gone by that name, or explained the name, it felt funny to tell the story again.

Kasumi laughed pleasantly. "Nice," she approved. "Seems kind of gross, though. It's crazy to think of what people write sometimes."

Abby came around the corner and reached for some food in the refrigerator. She glanced back, saw us sitting there, and paused in the act of opening a can of a fizzy orange drink she'd taken a liking to early on. Kasumi waved cheerfully and Abby, her brow furrowed with concern, returned the wave and brought the drink to her lips. I hoped that she wouldn't come over here. I kind of liked having Kasumi to myself now, to be honest. This was the first time I'd talked to her since... well, outside Doctor Chakwas' room.

Abby didn't come over, instead raising her drink to us in a kind of salute and left back the way she came, a very confused look on her face.

Kasumi chuckled.

"I still can't believe Morinth chose HK," I murmured as an afterthought after Abby left. "I mean... that's just gross and unnerving. In our visions," I added quickly by way of explanation, "we saw Shepard being the one who got hit on by her. And you know, Shepard is a grown woman. It's just creepy that she chose one of my friends."

"Shepard's disturbed," Kasumi said quietly. "She was worried. She doesn't show it, but I sincerely think that if Samara hadn't called her off she would have rescued HK early on and allowed Morinth to escape... You guys really have her wrapped around your fingers. That was closer than even HK knows."

"No kidding," I shuddered. "And you know... I really love Shepard, too. She's definitely like the crew's mother... sorta like Captain Janeway of the Starship Voyager." I grinned, wondering if Kasumi had ever watched that show or heard of it.

"Shepard looks out for us," Kasumi agreed. "She's a solid woman. A good friend." Her lips twisted in a grin. "A moral compass."

When she mentioned a "moral compass" that made me think of something in spite of myself. "Hey Kasumi," I murmured, leaning forward a little, "tell me something... do you believe there could be such a thing as a mirror universe?" I had seen the concept in several episodes of Star Trek-basically an alternate universe existed where everyone was the opposite. So that good people were bad, and bad people were good. I figured... if the Mass Effect universe really existed, maybe a "mirror universe" version of it also existed.

I had to make sure she knew what I was talking about, though. "You know, sort of an... alternate reality, that exists in an alternate universe." I just had to tell her something. But I needed to be careful and do it in a way that didn't just scream, _"Oh, all of this is a game where I come from!" _

"Not particulary," Kasumi said with a shrug. "I believe that we're a pretty small galaxy compared to some others out there. There are things that we can see, we can't see, the whole thing. But I'm just a sneaky person, not a particulary educated one. You'd probably want to ask Mordin, he's the resident genius."

"Yeah he definitely is," I agreed. "But well... what if I told you-" I leaned forward just a little more, planting my elbows on the table and lowered my head a little, then I began to whisper-heavily implying that this was something she NEEDED to keep secret. "In our visions... we've seen a kind of alternate reality like this, where Shepard is... different?" I stared at her, wondering if she was curious or intrigued. I was dying for her to ask me about it.

"Different?" Kasumi asked. "Oh, this sounds fun."

"Yeah," I said, then I had to remind myself to keep my voice down. "Can you imagine a very different Shepard, one who does whatever she needs to do to get the job done even if people get hurt? Even if they die? Someone who let the Citadel Council die instead of saving them, who killed Wrex on Virmire, and treated her entire crew like they were just_ things_ under her command to be bossed around?"

"That's not very nice," Kasumi said. "Glad it turned out the other way. It's like one of those choices Shepard makes that decides the rest of your visions, right?"

"Yep," I replied with a nod. "Trust me... she could be a real jerk to everyone if she chose to, here. And she could still get the job done, defintiely, but... she would rule by fear and intimidation, not... charm and diplomacy." I actually shuddered as I really thought about it. "If she was like her bad version... I probably would have been thrown off the ship and given to the Illusive Man a long time ago." The thought actually scared me a little.

"It's good she's not," Kasumi said. "Though I could see if happen a different way... she'd probably just keep the three of you locked up. If she still got the job done, then she would still need you."

"Yeah," I said. "Hey," I said, leaning back a bit in my seat but still keeping my elbows propped on the table, "can I ask a favor?"

"That depends on the favor," she said lightly.

"Well... first I want to say thanks for listening to me and whatnot," I began. "I think I feel a lot better now. And... I do want to try and think positive and hope for the best. But just in case something does happen to me in the end... I was wondering if you could promise to just... remember me? Please?" That sounded so silly, but it felt important somehow.

"I don't think any of us could forget you," Kasumi said gently. "And you're not going to die."

I chuckled. "Let's just keep that positive thought in mind," I said. I still had some doubts or skeptisim, but I chose to push it away for once. It was easier to do so now. "But hey, also..." I sighed. "I noticed Tali and Garrus... really seem to like each other." Hey, it was a good idea to get all feelings out in the open while I could, right? It was probably a good chance to clean out the closet, so to speak.

"You're asking more in a romantic sort of way, aren't you?" Kasumi guessed. "Yeah, I thought so... But I doubt it. Garrus and Tali are just good friends. They're both what's left of the old crew. Everybody else just went off in their seperate directions, but Tali and Garrus both tried to keep the crew together."

"Yeah, without Shepard... I doubt there was much to keep everyone together," I murmured. "But you know, on the subject of Garrus and Tali... I almost wish they would try it."

"A lot of people on the ship would be happy to see them together," Kasumi said.

"That's nice," I smiled humorlessly. "I guess it's just... I want them to get together because then I'll be able to accept that Garrus would never be interested in me like that, you know? If he's with someone else, I can let it go. It'll hurt, but I'll get over it. But while he's not seeing anyone... part of me keeps hoping, I can't help it."

"I can't force him to be with anybody," she reproached softly. "Besides... I'm pretty sure he's got his eyes on the Commander; he's got competition to worry about, though."

In spite of myself I laughed. "Is it just me or do a lot of people have their eyes on the Commander? Jacob, Garrus, Thane... Kelly." I almost rolled my eyes at that last name.

"Kelly's... Kelly," Kasumi answered. "But she understands that it wouldn't happen."

"Yeah," I said. "Though... I kinda think that Shepard still has a thing for Kaiden. I might be wrong though, of course. And um... of course that is her business."

"Too true," Kasumi agreed. "Shepard is her own woman, and she gives everything she does a pretty good comittment."

"Heh yeah. And this may seem silly, but... sometimes it's almost too easy to forget that, I guess. Like... maybe that's a problem with our, erm, 'visions'. It's almost too easy to think-at least for me-that it would be such a simple thing to try and take control somehow, you know?"

"I'd like to think I... kind of understand, but I honestly don't," she said with a laugh. "But knowing what you do is kind of normal for what the Commander would usually know. Sometimes it's too easy to slip into the take-charge role."

"Yeah," I acknowledged. I found that I couldn't say anymore though, not without this conversation turning weird. I couldn't simply say, "Oh, this has been a weird experience because in our so-called 'visions', we actually controlled Shepard directly." Nope, that would simply not work here.

"By the way, I know you really like Jacob," I said teasingly. "I even know you wrote a poem about him and how perfect he is." I grinned. "Have you watched him in the shower at all?" Oh God did I REALLY just say that? Then again... considering some of the pictures I'd seen her take of Garrus, I wouldn't put it past her.

"Oh, no!" Kasumi cried, ducking her face into her hands. "Don't say that too loud!"

I sat back in my seat, suddenly feeling embarrassed. I really didn't mean to put her on the spot or spit out something private. Maybe I just felt like, well... since we had talked about Garrus in her room once, and she had agreed to take pictures back on that day, maybe this would be like an okay-subject. Then again, when I put myself in her shoes... well, I would have been thoroughly embarrassed if, say, she had gone out of her way to point out that I liked Garrus and that I'd done something goofy because of it.

"I'm sorry," I said blurted out quickly. "I promise I won't tell anybody. And I'm really sorry I didn't mean to embarrass you. I probably shouldn't have said that."

"I didn't even save the haiku to my hard-drive," she moaned. "How could your visions tell you that?"

"Uhhhh..." I scratched the back of my neck awkwardly. "I'm not sure how to explain that."

"Just remember, I still have the pictures you asked me to take," she threatened. "Don't tell Jacob I won't tell Garrus. Deal?"

I blinked a little, and I wasn't sure but I think I paled a little at the thought of Garrus knowing. Oh yes, perfect blackmail. "I promise," I said. "And well... don't worry. I've already been blackmailed by Abby." I winced.

"I kind of figured she'd do something with that information after Tuchanka," Kasumi said wryly. "Just be glad that the Commander didn't find it that day."

"Yeah... I wouldn't have wanted you to get into trouble or anything, too," I said honestly. "Honestly I'm sorry I ever asked you to do that in some ways, but..." I grinned mischievously. "I guess it was worth it." I put a hand over my mouth, trying to curb the stupid grin.

"It was fun sneaking around with an actual purpose," she agreed with a light chuckle.

"So I guess I'd better be a good girl from now on, definitely," I said. "Abby said she'd show the pictures to Shepard if I did anything stupid again. And right now, if this got out... I'm not sure who I'd fear the most." I certainly didn't want Kasumi mad at me again, but... there were worse individuals to deal with than her. I'd probably die of humiliation if Garrus ever found out... and I didn't even want to imagine what would happen if Miranda and Shepard caught wind of it.

"I'd say Garrus," Kasumi said wryly. "No I take that back - I'd be afraid of Shepard. She may not think of Garrus in the same way he thinks of her, but she still has a soft spot for him. But none of the pictures I sent were actually... well, porn! They were just teaser images."

"Haha yeah," I laughed. "You know... Garrus is kind of like a big teddy bear. He's good in a fight, but... there's something about him that just makes you want to hug him."

Just then I noticed Rupert coming into the mess hall. He glanced in my direction and then called out to me. "Hey Sarah, I need your help with something."

I glanced at Kasumi. "Well, duty calls," I said to her. "But hey, thanks for talking, I've really enjoyed this."

I saw her smile. "I've enjoyed it too," she told me as we both stood up. Then she lowered her tone and stepped toward me. "Just remember what I said," she added, most likely referring to our "deal" about me not telling Jacob anything.

I nodded. "Yep," I said, and then I went off to join Rupert. I was then very busy for the next few hours, but I had to admit... it felt as though a great big weight had been removed from my shoulders somehow. I felt... more content, and more at peace with everything. I hoped that the feeling would last.

And I was looking forward to seeing Kasumi again sometime.

* * *

**(HK)**

_"Tell me you want me. Tell me you'd do anything for me," Morinth ordered in a seductive, sweet tone. We sat on her couch, and she was right up against me. I was amazed by her, and just couldn't break away. "Tell me you'd kill for me."_

_"I-I would...I'd do all of that for you," I promised, leaning up against her._

_She smiled. "Embrace eternity, HK..."_

I shot up in that instant, breathing heavily. I looked around at my actual surroundings, and realized that it was nothing more than a nightmare. Some nightmare about Morinth, of course. I shuddered.

This shouldn't have still been haunting me, but it was. It still nagged at me; how I let myself fall for her, how I was ready to do anything for her. And I could tell that I wasn't going to get back to sleep for awhile after that.

Quietly slipping on my boots as to not disturb Abby or Sarah, who were both sleeping quietly, I proceeded to slip out of the room. Most of the crew was asleep right now on this Deck, so I didn't want to do much here.

Maybe I should talk to somebody. Maybe that would get my mind off of things. But who would be awake at this hour?

I sighed. "I know who," I muttered to myself, almost in a frusterated way. Though, she was far better than Morinth.

Getting on the elevator, I headed down to Deck Four once again. I stepped out and then went down the stairs that I had gone down so many times now, only to find some weird incident awaiting me...but nothing could be worse than getting seduced by Morinth.

Sure enough, Jack was awake.

"Hey," I greeted softly and nervously, approaching the woman.

Her head turned in my direction. She raised her eyebrows at me, then scowled. "What do you want?"

"Once again, I'm just wandering down here," I explained. "No one else is up, except for the crew members who are on a night shift or something."

"Whatever." Jack finished whatever she'd been doing at her table-it looked like she was going through a few datapads of information-then she turned to look at me and folded her arms. "So are we going to Pragia soon, or what? I want to get this shit behind me as soon as possible." She sounded annoyed and agitated.

I thought for a moment. We were staying on Omega for just a bit to re-stock on supplies, but I was sure that we'd be gone soon. Heck, maybe we had left already, I wasn't sure. But, now, Samara's loyalty mission was down. Only Zaeed and Jack were left. "Don't worry, you'll be there soon," I assured her. "Shepard only has to help you and Zaeed out. Everyone else is done."

"She better help me with this," Jack muttered. "I don't know how much longer I can take this." She began to pace back and fourth in the space between the table and the bed. "Every moment I spend thinking about that place, the more I want to blow the shit out of it. I NEED to go there." Her hands clenched into fists at her sides.

"She will. You know that Shepard has helped every single other person on this ship with their problems if they needed it," I told Jack. It felt like I was slipping right back into that 'advisor' personality that I had with so many of my friends over the years. It hadn't come into play too much here, but it was now. To Jack of all people. "She'll do the same with you, I'm sure."

"Yeah well... she better." Now Jack stopped pacing and turned to look directly at me again. "So, I hear you had a little fun on Omega," she said, then sneered a little.

I should've known that she would bring that up eventually. Word had likely gotten around to the whole ship by now. "Unfortunately, yes. I got seduced by some sex-crazed woman," I explained to her very matter-of-factly. "Then I helped her mother kill her."

"From what I hear you fell under her spell," Jack mused. "I guess you actually do have some primal urges in spite of what you said, hmmm?" Her voice sounded slightly taunting.

"Jack, of course I have primal urges. Everyone does," I snapped. I did not need her to start going on about that again. "Just because I refused to sleep with you doesn't mean that I don't have primal urges. I'm not so blunt about it."

Now she actually laughed. "You're so defensive about it," she said. "Is this a sore subject with you, or just an uncomfortable one?" She still sounded a little like she was teasing-only now she seemed a bit curious as well.

"Neither...well, maybe. I don't know," I replied, actually admitting that it may be. "Not for the reasons you think, though. Just...after today, it may be."

"Ha! So the little goodie-twoshoes is finally growing up!" Jack chuckled and went to sit down on the edge of her bed. "Well HK, this sort of thing changes you for life-it helps you stop being niave, for one. Too bad it couldn't have gone all the way, though; you could have learned a few things."

I glared at her. "If I went all the way, I'd be _dead_."

She snickered. "I know that. But if she'd been a regular woman you would have learned something." She now looked at me with a keen interest. "Must say I'm surprised, and impressed. I heard some things I never would have thought you would have the balls to do."

I sighed. "Not sure if that is what I want to hear. Morinth made me want to literally worship her, yes, but it isn't a good thing. It shows that I didn't have enough resolve to resist it. And all of it is just disturbing," I explained to Jack, though she probably wouldn't even understand.

"That's not all I heard," Jack told me. "Apparently Samara was watching you when you stood up to that krogan. She mentioned she'd almost been tempted to step in and help, but she couldn't risk Morinth catching wind of her."

I actually did chuckle when I recalled that. The Morinth fiasco caused it to slip my mind. "I tried to be a tough guy because I didn't want anyone to come and save me. It was vital to kill Morinth, which was why I went to sit with her in the first place," I said. "So I had to stand up to that krogan. He didn't seem to like my insults very much."

"Doesn't take much to get under a hot-headed krogan's skin, but it does take balls to stand up to one like that." She smirked. "I thought you were just a whiny little girl when you rejected my offer, but now... I think you're just a mama's boy who's finally starting to take some intiative in life. Up until now it seemed like Abby was the man out of the three of you; now you're becoming more of a man yourself."

"...excuse me?" I shouted in pure shock. "_That's_ a little harsh."

She guffawed. "It's so easy to get a reaction out of you!" She stood up and stepped closer to me. "Did your mother keep you indoors all the time and teach you how to knit and sew stockings?" She gave me a playful punch in the shoulder.

"No," I replied simply. "You and some others think that just because I didn't accept some offer to have a one night stand that I am a girl or some wimp. I'll have you know that is not true; I'm just being me, and that kind of stuff is not in my taste. May be in yours, but isn't in mine."

She seemed to study me for a minute. "Can't say I ever met a guy like you before," she finally said with a slight shake of her head.

"Well, now you have," I told her.

Jack snorted. "Well if nothing else you've been amusing to me tonight," she said. "And you've taken my mind off of, well..." She glanced toward the table where all of her datapads were scattered. "It's not often that somebody can actually make me stop thinking about the things I'm after. So," she said as she moved to sit down on the edge of her bed again, "fuck you. And thank you."

That was probably an indication that it was time for me to leave.

"Um, goodbye," I said, once again turning and awkwardly leaving this strange, crazy biotic woman behind.

"Yep," I heard her say as I started to climb the stairs.

Abby was waiting for me by the elevator, a smirk on her face. "Talking to Jack?" she asked innocently. She looked tired, her hair was tangled, and she still wore the clothes she'd gone to bed in. Obviously she must have followed me down here when I left.

_...how many times can this girl stalk me and me not notice a thing?_

"You know, you really need to start getting other things to do in the midst of the night," I remarked, stepping into the elevator and motioning for her to follow me. "I think you'd get a little bored with following me around by now, even if we are lovers."

"Yeah, no," she said, stepping next to me. "Actually, I didn't follow you, but you woke me up when you left. It's this weird thing I have. I'll sleep through everything, but if somebody twitches in their sleep or gets out of bed or something I automatically wake up. Bad for sleep-overs." She laughed. "So I was wandering around. What woke you?"

"So instead of going back to sleep, you decide to follow me?" I asked, blinking. "And, uh, well nothing too much...just an, um, nightmare about Morinth."

"That lady's gotten into your head," Abby said with a frown. "And before you start accussing me of following you, I could tell something was wrong when you left. I wanted to see if I can help."

"You know, if one night I wake up to find my bladder full and have to use the restroom, I hope you don't detect something 'wrong' and follow me in there," I commented as I pressed the button for Deck Three. "And yes, she has. It doesn't surprise me, just...disturbs me. I want her out of my head."

"I have a better 'Something-is-off' detector than you give me credit for," Abby grumbled. "And I was right, therefor, you can shush up about it." She sighed tiredly, and I realized that she has gotten just as little sleep as I had. "Morinth's never going to get out of your head," she said. "The way I see it. It's a bad memory and it's going to follow you around for a while. Just... I wish it wouldn't. Maybe we could ask Samara if she could help out. Make a mind-link with you or something."

I shrugged. "Maybe. I don't want to make a bigger deal out of this than is needed, though, but I appreciate you wanting to help," I told her, smiling lightly. "Everything just still gets to me. The fact that Morinth got into my head in the first place, and how great she seemed...it's just insane. In the dream, she and I were together again, about to have sex. All of it gives me the creeps."

"Well... you could always go for Miranda." She turned her head away, hiding a grin.

"No," I bluntly refused.

Abby snorted. "Fine, fine, fine," she said. "I wouldn't want to do that, either, if I were you... Sarah told me that Miranda's sheets had varren scale itch on them."

My eyes went wide, even in my slightly tired state. "Ew, ew. Okay, don't want to know what was going on in her office."

"Two random crew members, a dare... I'll ask Ken tomorrow. He's the man of shipboard dares."

"Are you saying that he and Gabby...?" I trailed off.

"No!" Abby objected. "No, no, no. I'm saying that he's the one who would dare somebody to do something... like that."

"I see," was all I had to say to that.

"Yeah, well, I hope you don't see everything," Abby muttered.

I snorted, and the elevator came to a stop at Deck Three. I stepped off of it with Abby in tow, and yawned. "Right now, I think I just need sleep," I told her.

"Have fun," Abby sighed. "I think I'm going to wander around for a while... take a shower or something."

"Alright," I told her with a nod. "And...thanks for stalking me."

"No prob," she replied tiredly.

With that, I went back into our joint quarters, and immediately plopped down on the bed, ready to drift off into a nice, deep sleep.


	38. Subject Zero

**Author's Note: **OMG, wait... we have a chapter? No way! Sorry for the longish wait, mi peoples, we haven't had much time to write lately. I've become more involved with my school's band and I'm rarely on the computer these days thanks to the boatloads of homework the teachers are giving me. (They just love us, as normal. My fault for taking more classes than ALL of the other freshmen!) Anyways, here is Chapter 38. Thank you all!

Happy b-day to me, happy b-day to me... ^0^ The big 1-5, baby! 

* * *

**(Abby)**

"So you got that datapad?" Ken asked in a low voice, sliding into the seat next to me.

"You know it." I brought it out and handed it to him over my bowl of cereal. The room was a little crowded as the night shift left off and the day shift took over. "I highlighted the ones I liked the best. They're _good._"

"Hell yes! Gabby's working on something – we'll give her some time to finish." Ken stuffed the datapad into his pocket and began to dig into his eggs with gusto. "There are some others, too." He chuckled. "Man, if Shepard saw what we were doing, I'd be more worried about her killing _me_ instead of the Collectors."

I grinned, swallowing my food. "It's a quiet thing; Jacob thinks it's hilarious."

"Yeah, he's in, too," Ken said proudly. "Didn't expect Shepard's right hand to jump in like that. I like him."

Our conversation was cut short when Garrus and Thane took their seats next to us. "G'morning," I said pleasantly. It was funny to think about how normal this seemed – being in the Mass Effect universe, conversing with turians, drell, and men with Scottish accents as though this was all ordinary. It was funny: I could go a day or a week without thinking about how utterly _abnormal_ this entire thing was, and then it would hit me and it would be _all_ I could think about.

_Weird._

"Greetings," Thane said.

"You up for some sparring later?" Garrus asked, digging into his meal.

_We're all here. We're all _fighting. _For Shepard, for each other. Wwe're not just separate units any more—we're a team. We're tight. Damn, I'm going to miss this. _"Definitely. You want to join in, Thane?"

"Yes," he said. "It was my idea, actually. I would prefer to move around; I haven't left the ship since wrapping up my business on the Citadel. There are only so many things I can do to entertain myself."

_Poor man. I feel so bad for him sometimes. _"I can believe it," I said honestly. "It's hard for Shepard to rotate through everybody effectively."

"No, I understand," Thane said, raising one hand in a deterring gesture. "I didn't mean to sound so morose." He chuckled, relieving some of the tension with a calculated movement. "Besides, the Commander warned me about that after I spoke to my son. I do not find myself so foolish as to expect to so much fieldwork when so many other things are going on."

"How's Kolyat doing?" I asked. I'd been wondering it for a while, but I'd never seemed to have the time to ask him.

"He is… adjusting," Thane said, bowing his head slightly. "We will never have the relationship we should have had, but I am trying to make amends."

Oh, did he have to break my heart? _Shepard should go for him,_ I thought. _Or Jacob… or Garrus. Gah, they're all too wonderful! _"Things will get better," I assured him. "Trust me." I smiled slightly, trying to sound more sincere about it.

Was I safe in telling him that? _Probably not…_

Thane's entire countenance relaxed and he nodded shortly. "Thank you," he said quietly. Fervently. "It means a lot to hear those words and believe them."

"Nice to have our own fortune-tellers aboard," Ken said, leaning back in his seat. He flashed a charming smile my way. "I don't know why, but I keep expecting for them to say something like _'You will have to use the bathroom at three in the morning if you eat that_.' They're insane."

"We live to serve," I joked, ducking my head modestly.

"And we thank you for it," Thane said seriously. I gave him a brief, one-sided hug I was tempted to give everybody aboard this ship. He tensed slightly, blinking rapidly, and then patted my shoulder awkwardly until I let go. "Thank you."

We finished up, chatting unconcernedly, and finally cleaned up. We were hitting Pragia soon, so the training couldn't be too hard or else I probably wouldn't be able to, you know, _walk_. We were arriving in six hours and though I didn't exactly appreciate the idea of heading downstairs to be near Jack before it all came to a head, I wanted to practice with Garrus and Thane.

Maybe I could work off some stress.

Ken and Gabby came down a bit later to see how we were doing, and then, at Garrus's invitation, they did a little practice as well, laughing and joking around as they punched and shoved each other. Garrus and I exchanged a knowing look.

_The two people who obviously like each other, yet don't know it,_ I thought humorously. There was a sudden, swooping sadness in my gut as I remembered for the millionth time that Gabby could very well die on this trip, and Ken would be sad, alone, and broken. Garrus seemed to catch my preoccupation and called the practice over early, stating that we all needed our rest. He and Thane glanced at each other, and Garrus motioned for the drell to follow Ken and Gabby out. _Private conversation. I'll fill you in later._

Garrus and I were left alone in the cargo bay, and I busied myself by collecting the weapons. "You look distracted," Garrus noted quietly.

I forced a smile and looked at him sadly. "I'm good. I'm always good."

"Are you sure?" Garrus asked.

"Thanks," I told him sincerely. "It's always great to have friends who care enough to notice. But really, I'm fine. I've worked out my issues with all this – mortality, death, whatever." I made a vague motion with my hand towards the wall. "I just… finally realized something. How if one person dies, it's really going to affect the other one. Imagine if Gabby died on Ken. Just please, for a moment, imagine that we didn't go perfectly on this thingy. Ken would be _so_ sad."

"That would be horrible," Garrus noted gently.

"It would be," I told him, ashamed of how my throat seemed to be closing. "Just… I don't… I don't know if I can pull this off. I'm not _important._ I'm not Commander Shepard – I'm just me. Just me." _Now I sound dumb. Wonderful. _"I'm not going to quit. I'm going to give one-hundred and ten percent on this. I'm just not sure that it'll be enough."

"We've done well so far," Garrus pointed out.

"Easy stuff," I mumbled, turning my back on him under the pretense of arranging the heatsinks in a neat stack. "Not even close to the crappy parts yet." I realized what I was doing and quickly stopped. "I'm not looking for… positive reinforcement. Seriously. I'm good. Really. Just nerves."

"Nerves can get you killed," Garrus said. "And it's not like I don't understand what you're going through. Frankly, I'm surprised you all have held up this long."

I chuckled.

"If you need anything, need to vent or anything, we're all here for you," he continued. "You're not going through this alone. You are allowed to lean on friends sometimes."

I turned right around and gave Garrus a huge hug. He returned it a little hesitantly, and I said, "Thank you."

"Yeah... no problem."

* * *

**(Sarah)**

Another day on the Normandy; that's what this was, definitely, but somehow I felt a lot more relaxed than usual, especially after that talk with Kasumi the other day.

My morning and afternoon duties seemed to pass by blissfully. Nothing-and I mean absolutely nothing-weird or troublesome happened. In fact, I even noticed that some of the crew were starting to like me serving them breakfast-they said I had a nice smile.

After I was finished with everything-and after I'd made sure that Rupert was doing fine on his own-I asked EDI if Kelly was available. A few minutes later she contacted me personally on my omni-tool.

"Hey Sarah, what's up?" she asked.

"I want my hair back to normal," I told her. "Do you have some dye-remover?"

"Definitely! I can be down there in about forty-five minutes. That okay with you?"

"Yep," I said with a smile. "See you then."

"Okay, see you!"

And that was the end of that conversation, leaving me with almost an hour to kill. I considered either taking a shower or just going back to "my" room to listen to some music for a while, but a soft chime from my omni-tool interrupted either of those plans for the moment. I almost hoped it was Kelly contacting me, saying that she could come down sooner.

Instead, it was EDI contacting me directly. She said, "Sarah, you have received a message from that krogan merchant on Tuchunka."

I felt my throat constrict. What now? I gave him all of my credits to try and make it up to him. What could he possibly be contacting me about now?

"Um... what does it say?" I asked nervously.

Suddenly, a recording began playing in the krogan's voice, similar to last time:

_"I really don't want to talk to you ever again, but I feel like I have to. Ever since you gave me that ridiculous amount of credits, I've been rebuilding my store and it's better than ever. Don't get me wrong, you are a lunatic, nutcase, and a dumbass all wrapped into one pack. You belong in a nuthouse. And why the hell you gave me all those credits I'll never know. But I don't want to waste time finding out. But still, even if I think you're insane, I wanted to thank you for the donation. Don't come back to Tuchanka. Ever."_

Then EDI's voice chimed in again: "He has also forwarded a sum of five thousand credits to your account."

"Um... wow," I murmured. I wasn't sure what to think-or say. I then decided that it was definitely nice to have some credits again. But what exactly could I do with them?

That was when I got an idea. I checked my omni-tool, and then noticed that I still had about forty minutes to kill until Kelly came down to see me. I figured that was enough time to do what I had in mind.

"Hey, EDI," I said, approaching the nearest terminal where her blue "head" could pop up so that I could talk to her more directly.

Surely enough, the blue hologram did pop up. "Yes?"

"I'm not sure where Kasumi is, but I know you know. Could you ask her if she'll see me?"

"Miss Goto is currently unavailable," EDI told me simply. I wasn't sure what that meant, or what Kasumi might be busy with, but... I decided not to press the issue. I was trying very hard now NOT to make a nuisance of myself, after all.

"Okay, nevermind," I told her. I turned on my heel to move toward the weaponry-then stopped in my tracks. I remembered that I was still in lockdown. When I wasn't attending to my duties, I had to go back to "my" room. I couldn't just wander the halls anymore.

"EDI," I said, "please pass on a message to Garrus, would you?"

"What kind of message?" EDI asked. I thought I detected a wary note in her mechanical voice.

"Ask him if he's free right now, and if he is... please ask him to meet me at my room? I want to talk to him about something."

"Garrus is currently unavailable," she told me.

I sighed. Of course I couldn't expect everybody to be free all the time, or to simply drop what they were doing, of course. This was a real, military ship now; people were not always hanging out at the same places waiting to be spoken to, like in the game.

"Then is Tali busy?" I asked, trying not to sound too annoyed-or desperate.

"At the moment Tali is finishing a shower," EDI told me.

I couldn't help but blink a little. "It's possible for her to take a shower?" I asked, dumbfounded. "But what about-"

"She decontaminates the entire bathroom before she steps into the shower," EDI informed me, satisfying my piqued curiosity. "Then she puts a filter on the shower nozzle to purify the water even more than it currently is."

"Oh," I said, intrigued. I checked my omni-tool-I still had about half an hour or so to kill. "Well... when she's finished, can you ask her to meet me at my room? I just need her help with something."

"Very well."

With that I headed back to the room I shared with HK and Abby. I plopped myself down on my bed and listened to some music for a while.

Finally, after about twenty minutes, Tali came in through the door.

I smiled and waved. "Hi, Tali!" I said cheerfully. "Thanks for coming."

"Hello, Sarah," Tali greeted kindly with a nod. "Did you need something?"

"Yeah," I said with a nod. "I want to do something nice for Shepard, as a surprise, but I don't know what. You know her pretty well so... do you have any ideas?"

"Sarah, at this point, I believe doing something nice for her would not be causing chaos for a good month or two," Tali replied seriously. She paused for a moment, before continuing. "If we're even alive by then."

Well... I couldn't exactly argue with that line of logic, could I?

"I am doing my best to be good," I assured her. "I just felt it would be nice to give her some kind of gift or something," I shrugged. Hey, what could I say? Giving people presents was my key way of showing I cared, and that I was trying to make amends. "Is there anything she might like that I could buy for 5000 credits? Something kind of nice that she wouldn't just buy herself?" I didn't add that I wasn't going to even TRY to buy a weapon or anything like that... because that might just cause more chaos at this point, especially if EDI caught wind of it and made the wrong assumption.

"Unfortunately, I can't say that I'd know. Though I do know that it wouldn't be a dress," Tali commented with a chuckle. "However, I do like your idea. It is nice that someone would think about getting her something nice. Out of all of the hard workers on this crew, Shepard works the hardest. She is strong, but I know her. I know that this has to be hard on her in its own way."

"So do you have any ideas?" I gently pressed. I knew that Shepard was a military woman through and through, and probably didn't want or require a lot of possessions. For that matter, she wasn't really all that "girly" either. I couldn't imagine her wanting or wearing jewelry... with the exception of that party she went to for Kasumi's sake, of course.

Tali seemed to think about it-although it was hard to tell since I couldn't see her face. But before either of us could say anything more, there was a knock on the door-and then Kelly came in.

"Oh," the red-haired woman exclaimed softly. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."

"Not at all," Tali told her.

"Hi Kelly, thanks for coming!" I said. Then I turned to Tali. "She's gonna help me... get my hair back to normal," I said by way of explanation.

"Oh," Tali said. "Well then perhaps I should leave you to it-I have work to do anyway." She began to move toward the door, then paused, glancing at me over her shoulder. "I'll be sure to let you know if I think of anything, Sarah," she said simply, and then left.

"Think of anything?" Kelly asked curiously. "About what?"

"Oh nothing," I said with a small smile. "It's kind of private. So anyway," I cleared my throat, trying to get back to the subject at hand, "can we get on with this?"

"Certainly," Kelly said.

It didn't take overly long to get that done. Basically it just involved me going into the shower and having to wash my hair with this... stuff she gave me. Next thing I knew the water pouring down over me was turning blue, and the blue color was streaking down my skin as I continued to wash it out. Next I had to use regular shampoo to make sure I'd gotten all of that gunk out of my hair-along with any residual dye-and I used regular body soap to get any stains it had left on my skin off.

Once that was done I got dressed, brushed my hair out, and then stepped out of the bathroom where Kelly was waiting. Once she assured me that my hair was brown again, I thanked her and we each went our seperate ways. She went off to... well, wherever it was she was going, and I simply went back to the room I shared with Abby and HK. Because there was no where else I could go at the moment.

Once there I sat down on the edge of my bed and then called out to EDI. "Hey EDI, is Kasumi still busy?"

"Miss Goto has just returned to her quarters," EDI informed me.

"Could you ask her if she'll see me?" I asked.

"Very well."

Kasumi didn't take her time coming over. The door opened, revealing her slim form. "What's up?" she asked.

"Hi," I said, getting off my bed and walking over to greet her. "I want to do something for Shepard, and... I sort of have an idea. I was wondering if you could help me out?"

"Oh really?" Why did she _have _to sound so suspicious? I was trying to do something nice! "Like what?"

"Okay well," I said a bit warily-I couldn't help but feel slightly deflated by her tone. "Basically, I'd like to get pictures of everybody on the ground team and put them together into a collage. Then frame it, and put the words 'Normandy Family' underneath it." I folded my arms. "What do you think?"

"Hmm... that actually sounds plausible," Kasumi mused. "I could probably scrounge something up."

"Great!" I said with a grin. "I'll bet you already have at least one picture of Jacob."

Okay, I just couldn't resist... though I did regret that as soon as it left my mouth.

"This is not helping your case," Kasumi warned.

I put my hand over my mouth. "Sorry," I said. My voice sounded slightly muffled through my hand. I ran a hand through my hair-gosh I was glad that it was brown again.

She started a bit, as though she were surprised. "Oh. Your hair-it's not colorful any more. Change of heart?"

"I just... didn't want to go around with blue and purple hair for the rest of my life," I told her. "I will admit I considered a different color... maybe blond or something, but I don't want to be compared to Erin or anything." I snorted at my attempt at a joke.

"Who's Erin?" Kasumi inquired.

My face scrunched up a little as I tried to figure out how to explain that. "Um... well... basically she's a stupid blond bimbo who does nothing but drool over 'hot men' and go shopping. HK knows her really well."

"Hook-up?" Kasumi guessed.

I laughed. "Actually, I would love to see that!" I blurted.

"Okay then!" Kasumi didn't press more on the issue. "So what kind of pictures are you looking for? Family-esque? Or can they be somewhat lewd? I don't think Shepard would mind."

I felt my cheeks heat up a little. After what happened recently, I did not want to run the risk of... well, more embarrassing pictures getting taken. I already had enough blackmail piled on me and I didn't want to risk any more, in any way whatsoever.

"How about just normal pictures, of people at their stations?" I asked. "I think it would be awesome to get one of Shepard to put in the center, and then put Tali, Garrus, you, Zaeed, Thane, Jack, Samara-"

"Okay," she interrupted. "Ground crew, some other people? And maybe I could set up the pictures to change every few minutes at different intervals? I did a project like that back in school, and I still remember the basics."

"That sounds awesome," I said with a smile. "Say, are you gonna take a picture of HK and Abby, too?" Somehow I found the thought of her sneaking up on them very amusing.

"Why not? You, too," Kasumi added.

"Oh um," I said, suddenly feeling nervous. Well, at least I was glad I'd changed my hair back-I didn't want to be immortalized on a picture with blue hair. "Are you gonna sneak up on me sometime while I'm cleaning?" I asked warily.

"Now that would be telling," Kasumi said. "And I don't tell anybody what I'm up to." I could've sworn she winked, but I wasn't sure.

"Oh boy," I said nervously. "You know, you're gonna have me looking over my shoulder from now on and being paranoid!" I accused, though I felt the corners of my lips spreading into a smile.

"That's the plan," she said. "Is that all you wanted?"

"Yeah pretty much," I nodded, not wanting to keep her too long. I was sure she had things to do. "So wait a minute," I said after a moment, "you're gonna make me paranoid on purpose?" My eyebrows shot up.

"Why not?" she asked, turning around to leave. She chuckled, closing the door behind her... but before it closed again, I noticed that she'd disappeared completely underneath her cloaking shield.

I stared at the entrance, my eyes growing wide. Was she still in the room, or was she not? I found myself staring for several moments, wondering.

"Kasumi?" I asked out loud. There was no answer, but that didn't mean anything. Damn it she was doing it already!

I slowly walked over to my bed and sat down... then I grabbed my planet and threw it over my head. Okay, so it was a silly thing to do. But I also knew that I was going to have to keep my guard up from now on. For all I knew, she might catch me when I was picking my nose or taking a shower or something.

What the hell had I gotten myself into?

* * *

**(HK)**

A few hours had passed, and we were now on Deck Five once again. For a place that you were only actually in once during the entire game of Mass Effect 2, I had really gotten familiar with it, in between sparring and leaving on the shuttle.

It was now time for the loyalty mission that I was glad to get over with, but I almost dreaded: Jack's. Though, on the other hand, it would no doubt be better than the last one. I was still struggling to forget about Morinth, but everything still got to me. Nonetheless, this was about Jack; no one else.

Abby, Thane, Shepard, Jack, and myself all boarded the shuttle one by one. Garrus, Jacob, Tali, and Miranda watched us go, each saying a few words to Shepard before heading for the elevators. Shepard just smiled and pat their arms as she said goodbye, and they retreated to the elevators. I could even see Grunt watching from his room above. Garrus and Abby waved goodbye to each other, and I turned around to glance at Thane and Shepard; Thane gestured for Shepard to enter.

"You first, _si'ha_," he said.

_Oh dear._

Though, I knew that both Thane and Jacob were developing feelings for the Commander. I had discussed it with Abby more than once, and I just feared for whomever's heart she broke. Both Jacob and Thane were strong, though. They would get through it...but I had a sinking feeling that Thane would be on the 'losing' end of this one.

Ah well, not my business. We'd just have to see.

I glanced at Jack. "We're finally going to destroy the Cerberus base. Happy?" I asked, with a hint of humor in my voice.

Her eyes snapped in my direction, although she looked very distracted-and very on edge. "I won't feel anything until I plant the bomb and blow the fuck out of it," she told me tersely. Yet there was something different about the way she spoke this time. She didn't sound annoyed or angry... the edge in her voice merely sounded like... impatience? Nerves? Perhaps both.

I frowned. Despite how much this woman had insulted or teased me, I did feel slightly bad for her. Just...slightly. "Ah, I understand," I said.

I turned to glance at the others, as the last person, Thane, entered the ship. Shepard gave the order for the crew member who piloted the shuttle to lift off, and we all sat down and strapped ourselves in, feeling the shuttle leave the Normandy.

"The mission should be simple enough," Shepard stated, breaking a silence in the room. She looked at Jack. "Get in, plant the bomb, get out."

She looked at Abby and I. "Right?"

I glanced at my friend, then back at Shepard. "Uh...we'll see."

The Commander's eyes narrowed a little. "Is there something you're not telling me?" she asked, pressing the subject a little.

Abby spoke up just then. "There's going to be some krogan and vorcha down there," she said offhandedly.

"I knew it," Shepard murmured. "Nothing's ever easy." She sighed and shifted her position a bit in her seat; it was a little uncomfortable to sit in a seat with armor on. "Who's down there, and why?" she asked.

Well, I guess the secret was out, now. No point in holding back.

"Well," I began with a heavy sigh. "It's the Blood Pack. They are pretty much on the far side of the base. They shouldn't be too hard to take down, but there will be some fighting."

"Yet why are the Blood Pack at a deserted Cerberus facility in the first place?" Thane inquired curiously.

I glanced at Jack. "Some guy, who's name I can't remember, hired them. He grew up there, like you, Jack," I explained to her, before looking back at Shepard and Thane. "He is very disturbed, and wants to rebuild and restart the Teltin facility."

"That's not true," Jack snapped angrily. Her eyes narrowed as she leaned forward, her hands on her knees. "I'm the only one who escaped there alive."

"That's what you think," I argued, though I kept my tone very controlled and calm. "Some things went on there that you didn't know about, Jack. One guy did escape, and now he's back, because he is trapped in his past."

"I think," Shepard said, her voice cutting in before Jack could do more than open her mouth, "we should wait and see what's going on there once we reach the facility." She frowned slightly, though it was a thoughtful expression. "I just need to know one thing and I need to know it now. Will this help Jack resolve her past?" Somehow an unspoken question hung in the air after she stopped talking: _Or will it only make her worse?_

I shrugged. "That's up to Jack."

Jack still looked angry. "I'm going to plant that bomb and I'm going to kill anyone who gets in my way," she said. It almost sounded like she was speaking through gritted teeth.

That may give Jack peace...it always did in the game, but I'd prefer we did the Paragon route. That would give her more peace than she realized. "It is your choice," I simply said.

"Wish you would have accepted my offer," Jack growled. "But no, I have to find out about this just before we get there."

"What offer?" Shepard asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I believe I heard," Thane murmured thoughtfully. "Word gets around quickly on a small vessel such as the Normandy."

"That's what I thought," Shepard said with an eye roll. "Jack, I know you don't like it-I don't like it either. But we've come this far and everything has turned out alright. We just need to trust them." She indicated me and Abby with a slight tip of her head.

Jack muttered something incoherent under her breath.

A few moments of silence passed as we continued onward in the shuttle. Jack stared out the window, and after a while she was the one who broke the silence. "I'd forgotten how much I hated this place," she said. "See that landing pad? It has to be on the roof or the vegetation would overgrow it in a few hours."

Shepard gazed out the window where Jack was indicating; I knew that we were getting close.

Just then, EDI's voice chimed in over all our commlinks. "Shepard, I am picking up thermal signatures everywhere, except at your landing zone."

"Something's distorting the sensors," Shepard said.

"This was a secret Cerberus facility," Thane commented.

"Yeah they build their equipment to last," Jack replied. "Assholes." She looked even more tense now-I didn't even think it was possible. "Maybe it was a mistake to come back here, Shepard-but no," she shook her head furiously. "If someone is trying to rebuild this place..." Her hand clenched into a fist and she scowled at me. "I need to stop it!"

"When we start a mission," Shepard's voice confirmed, "we finish it."

"Yeah, okay," Jack said, strengthening her resolve. "Let's get on the ground."

I took a deep breath as the shuttle sat down on the landing pad, and the hatch opened to drenching rain. We all stood, and exited the shuttle, Jack leading the pack for once. I looked around the area; it certainly was a hidden, deserted facility. It looked like it hadn't been touched in years, and I suspected that the Blood Pack and co. had only arrived here about a week ago, if even that.

We all removed our weapons and readied them, just as a precaution, before continuing on towards the walkway that would lead us inside.

"Let's just get in there, off the bastards trying to rebuild the place, and plant the bomb in myself. I want to watch this place _burn_," Jack stated, as she always did in the game. Though, her dialogue would be slightly altered now, since she knew that others were here.

Shepard took the lead, as we turned a corner on the walkway and descended down a ramp, but I could see that Jack was right on her tail. Abby, Thane, and myself were all just a few meters behind them.

I felt the rain hit my face, drenching my head and my armor, but tried to brush it off for the most part. I was sure that if I stayed out here for too long, I'd start freezing, but we'd be inside in mere seconds.

We all walked through the open entrance, and proceeded into the room before us. As always, Jack began to speak.

"I never saw this room. I think they brought new kids in these containers," she remarked. "They were messed up and starving, but alive. Usually."

"This is...unbelievable," Thane whispered.

I looked around and nearly cringed. It was very creepy. The thought of little kids, likely stolen like Jack was, being brought in here, already going through enough pain, before being subjected to more torture just to accomplish Cerberus's goals was utterly atrocious.

But that was how Cerberus operated. Miranda or the Illusive Man could excuse it all they want, even if this particular facility did some things that even the Illusive Man didn't know about, but Cerberus pretty much wasted lives just to get to some ridiculous goal. What they would do to Paul Grayson was enough explanation, and there were so many other incidents that could easily be recounted.

I just shuddered, and turned as Shepard opened the door to the next room. Jack looked at me.

"Please. Get some thicker skin, this is nothing compared to what I went through," she stated matter-of-factly.

"Don't pursue it," Abby warned. I didn't bother to argue.

We walked into the next area, and headed down another ramp. This time, it was into the small room where that log was playing. We heard the guy start to talk about the Illusive Man was getting suspicious, until Jack suddenly shut it off.

We all gave her confused looks.

"I'm not here to listen to this shit. Anything that they say, these two can just tell me later," Jack told Shepard, motioning to Abby and myself. "I'm here to kill whatever lunatic is trying to restart this place, and then blow it the hell up. Nothing else."

"You may want to hear it," Abby pointed out with a shrug. "It could help you. You never know."

"It may shed some light on things. It sounds like somebody was operating beyond their contract," Thane commented.

"He didn't say _what_ they were hiding from the Illusive Man," Jack argued.

"I won't make you listen to anything, Jack. It's your choice," Shepard said calmly. "This is more about you than it is us."

"Let's just get moving," Jack grumbled.

Shepard nodded, and opened the door to the next room.

"I remember escaping to this room. Fighting here. I saw sunlight in the cracks through the ceiling; only a half-dead guard between me and freedom. He was begging for his life," Jack commented.

"I take it he didn't get it," I whispered, almost sadly, though you could say that he deserved death. I was just a sucker for the mercy type of stuff.

"Nope," Jack simply replied. "Bastard never stopped anyone from torturing me, I just returned the favor."

Nothing more was said as we pressed on, until we heard the familiar varren roars at the other end of the room. They charged at all of us, and we began shooting; I suddenly got loads of flashbacks to the Rite of Passage on Tuchanka.

Jack was the first one to make a move as the pack of varren came at us. She yelled out softly and sent a biotic burst of energy rippling through the middle of them, sending about four of them flying. Part of me wondered if she was using that as a way to burn off some pent-up energy and emotion.

The stunned varren were easy to pick off. Thane and Shepard each made a precise shot to pick off two more, and then Abby got the final one.

Once everyone was positive that the coast was clear, we began to move on.

We came to a familiar area from the game nearby-and Shepard made it clear what it was when she observed the area, "This looks like an arena."

"That's right," Jack replied, looking at the area intently. "They used to stage fights here and pit me against other kids." Her expression changed into a mixture of bitterness and savory delight. "I _loved_ it. It was the only time they let me out of my cell."

"What were they studying?" Shepard asked.

"Hell if I know." Jack's arms and shoulders moved in a vague shrug. "Maybe it's how they got their kicks. I never understood anything that happened here."

"How often did they do this?" Shepard wanted to know.

"I was in a cell my whole life," Jack snapped, her eyes narrowing. "Sometimes they took me out, made me fight, filled me with drugs. Other stuff. Time gets funny in a cell."

"Did other children die in these fights?" the Commander then asked.

"I was a kid," Jack replied. "And I was filled with drugs. I got shocked when I hesitated. Narcotics filled my veins when I attacked."

"They actually rewarded you for attacking?" Shepard's tone held a trace of disgust. Thane said nothing, but he was obviously listening to every word-and keeping a general eye and ear on their surroundings, in case we were attacked.

"I still get warm feelings during a fight," Jack confirmed.

"What the hell was wrong with these people?" Shepard said disgustedly.

"I don't know," Jack shrugged. "Doesn't matter now."

"Let's keep moving," Shepard told all of us, apparently having heard enough.

"Hell yes," Jack acknowledged eagerly.

Once again Shepard took point and led the way to the nearby door. Everyone had their weapons at the ready, and she cast a glance toward me and Abby as though wondering if we would point out where the vorcha and krogan were. No one said anything, and we kept going.

We went down another corridor and found another terminal. Shepard approached it and activated it. An impatient look crossed Jack's features, but we all listened to it-including her-as the recording began to play.

A security officer clad in full body armor-including a helmet-gave his name on the record and then went on to say, "The subjects are out of their cells! They're tearing this place up! Subject zero is going to get loose-I need permission to terminate! I repeat, permission to terminate!"

A voice responded, "All subjects besides Zero are expendable-keep Jack alive!"

"Understood," the security officer replied. "I'll begin the-"

Jack cut him off, stopping the recording and shutting it off.

"That's not right!" she said. "I broke out when my guards disappeared-I started that riot."

"You only saw it from your eyes, Jack. You were in a frenzy; you were just charging through, killing anyone and everyone in the midst of the chaos, so you could get free. And it is understandable," I told her. "But there may have been a lot that you didn't see."

"He's right, Jack," Shepard agreed with a nod.

She scowled at both of us-but especially at me. "The other kids attacked me, the guards attacked me-the automated systems attacked me. That doesn't leave lots of room for interpretation!"

"I know. We all know," I assured her. "But that doesn't mean that there wasn't more to it."

She then moved so quickly I didn't even have time to blink-her hand was suddenly on the front of my armor, shoving me a little-then she grabbed my shoulder. "I want you to tell me exactly what happened here," she snapped. "And I don't want you to play anymore games with me."

I felt a shiver run down my spine, but I tried to hold my ground. "No," I bluntly refused.

"Jack," Shepard's voice warned sternly. "Let him go."

Jack glowered in Shepard's direction, then scowled at me. "Fine," she hissed, then let go of me.

"We should be able to learn more by exploring the area further," Thane interjected. "And listening to more recordings as we come across them."

"Let's get moving," Shepard said in a tone that offered no argument and no more stalling.

We proceeded through the next door. Shepard cast a wary glance in our direction as she began down the stairs, as though wanting to make sure none of us would start something amongst ourselves while her back was turned. As we proceeded down the steps, we all noticed a gruesome sight down below. A dead varren lying in a pool of its own blood.

"Look at that varren, it's a fresh kill," Jack said as we reached the bottom of the steps. "Looks like our fortune-tellers were right about people being in this place," she added.

"Then we must be getting close to them," Shepard agreed. "Everybody keep your guard up."

And it didn't take long at all to get to them.

We continued on our path just a bit more, before finally coming upon the large room where all the vorcha and krogan were. Without a word, all of us darted for cover, and began firing whatever we had at the Blood Pack.

I tried to be quick with the vorcha, knowing that they could heal their wounds fast. Luckily, though, they didn't seem to stand much of a chance against us. Thane was good at taking them down in one shot, Shepard was amazing as always, and Jack was literally tearing them apart with biotics. In fact, she looked like she was pushing her powers to the maximum.

Abby and I were doing well, too. I also saw Shepard shoot down a krogan, and Jack took out another, with assistance from Thane and I. However, out of the corner of my eye, I could see one charging at Abby.

"Abby, look out!" I cried instinctively.

Abby gave a simple nod, not saying a word, as the krogan charged at her. However, instead of firing off even one bullet...she put her gun aside, and actually stood. The krogan charged at her, rifle in hand, but right as he got close to her, she sank deeper into her stance and stepped out of the way. The krogan couldn't change direction fast enough, but he did attempt to clothesline her as he ran.

The exact wrong mistake. And to me, who had enough experience with Abby to know exactly what was going to happen to him, it was _bad_. She gripped his elbow, spun her hips, and the krogan was suddenly in the air.

The krogan's rifle fell to the ground, and he toppled over, as well. Before he could move even an inch, I heard Jack scream, "I'll kill you!" a millisecond before there was the grossest, nerve-grinding crunch from the center of the krogan's body. He remained limp.

Abby gasped and jumped back, glaring at Jack with wide eyes. Jack just nodded and walked away, and Abby let out a deep breath. "Wow," she muttered, scraping a sweaty piece of hair out of her eyes. "Wow."

"Wow, good job," I told Jack, amazed, and looked around. It seemed the area was clear.

Jack basically ignored my congrats, examining everything as we approached the next door. "Why'd they need a morgue?" she wondered out loud. "This was a small facility."

"The other children must have died in great numbers. Even then, they were part of the experiment," Thane suggested, while Shepard began to bypass the lock on the door that would take us further into this travesty.

"Bullshit," Jack immediately shot back. "I had the worst of it, and_ I_ made it out alive."

Thane didn't respond. No one ever did in the game, but it was easy to tell why: No one wanted to get into an argument with Jack here, and it would be so easy to infuriate her with the wrong words. Shepard would know that well enough once we all returned to the Normandy.

_Ugh, the catfight. I hope Shepard makes the right choice._

Shepard finished picking the lock on the door, and like so many others, it swung open. We all walked out onto another walkway, continuing to take in all of the unique and horrifying surroundings.

"So strange to be back here," Jack murmured while we walked into the next room. "I feel like...I'm pissed off. I'm a dangerous bitch, but then I'm a little girl again. Shit, it's complicated. Let's just go plant that bomb."

We progressed a little ways, until coming upon that long staircase that led downwards. Yet, like always, before we could go down it, a couple mercs showed up. I saw Jack's face harden, and she immediately sent a wave of biotics their way, while the rest of us just fired at them. They were down within the minute.

"Come on, we don't have time for this," Jack instructed, heading down the stairs at a rapid pace. Shepard was right behind her.

"There's going to be varren down here," I said as we all stepped off of the staircase. "Be ready."

Jack let out some kind of battle cry, charging forward, and the varren came right out. However, they stopped right when they saw her. If it was possible for varren to have fear, I figured that they were filled with it right about now.

"I'll kill you all!" Jack screamed, taking them all out with another blast of biotics.

After the varren were dead, we walked through the long hallway, and I felt myself shudder. All of the cells we walked past looked absolutely horrendous, so torn up. I knew that some of it was from the varren and lack of use, but I highly doubted they were top-notch before the facility's collapse.

"They kept children here?" Thane said, equally horrified.

Shepard said nothing. She peered into the rooms as we passed them. Each room was far too small to fit anyone comfortably. "Come on, let's keep moving," the Commander urged us. I wondered if she was simply anxious to keep going and complete the mission, or if she didn't want to stand around and think about what happened here. Jack gave no argument; she moved ahead and for a moment I thought she was going to take point, but Shepard maintained her position in the lead.

We walked out onto yet another catwalk, and only just now, being at this place in person, did I realize how many platforms this place had. It felt like you were barely on the actual floor at all. I could also see Jack's cell up ahead, and apparently she could, too.

As we approached it, she began saying her usual lines. "This...it's a two-way mirror? My cell is on the other side," she remarked, as we glanced at the large 'mirror' before us. "I could see all the other kids out here. I screamed at them for hours, and they always ignored me."

"Like I told you, it's not always as it seems," I chimed in softly.

Jack didn't respond.

We headed to the other side of the walkway, and then opened the door into the next area. I knew we were getting close to the large group of mercs, as well as Jack's cell. We walked some more, and Jack spoke again.

"I must have come through here when I broke out, but I don't remember it," she commented. "This is a bad place."

We wasted no time, and we headed into that small room with the two security logs. We began playing the first, that was right to our left when we entered. We all stood and heard as the Cerberus man described how more children had died, and how they 'wouldn't try that on Zero'. I felt a shiver run down my spine.

This place was an _abomination_. They tormented Jack endlessly, they killed loads of other children just so they could further their experiments to build one biotic super soldier. As the logs on the Shadow Broker ship revealed, Jack's mother was told that she was dead just so Cerberus could get their hands on her.

The log ended, and I could see the rage boiling on Jack's face. "This is bullshit!" she exclaimed, turning away from all of us. "They weren't experimenting on the other children for my safety!"

"This whole place was built to turn you in to what you are," Shepard pointed out.

"You don't get it, Shepard. None of you do. I survived this place because I was tougher than the rest," Jack argued, turning back around. "_That's_ who I am."

"You move on, harder and tougher," Shepard countered calmly.

We then turned to the second security log, and listened as the Cerberus agents here finally admitted defeat. I almost wanted to laugh at the notion of piggybacking onto the Ascension program; Cerberus would come to do that, in a way, years later with Gillian Grayson.

Jack looked at Shepard after this recording ended, immediately alert. "Shepard, they started up somewhere else!"

I immediately shook my head. "No, they didn't. Ascension is an Alliance program, and they don't torture kids there. It has very good leaders," I said, in a small reference to Kahlee Sanders. "Who would never let Cerberus touch the place."

"A lot of this...isn't the way I remember it," Jack said slowly.

"Jack, you were getting tortured every single day. You were in a gigantic frenzy to escape once you got out of their cell, there was no way you could have known about Cerberus' true agenda. I think the only person who knows right off the bat what they are up to is the Illusive Man himself. No one else, not even Miranda," I explained to Jack, surprisingly speaking for Shepard at the moment.

"Maybe," Jack said thoughtfully. "We're getting close to my cell. The place I came from. Let's keep going."

Shepard cast Abby and I a glance, then looked at Thane for a brief moment, before turning to lead the way again. Without a word, we approached the next door, and I knew that we'd have another fight on our hands in a matter of seconds. Krogan and vorcha...now I was flashing back to Omega.

"Be ready," I whispered softly to everyone. Shepard nodded, and opened the door. We all walked in to see that one Blood Pack krogan talking on his comm.

"Hey, Aresh, it's Kureck," the krogan began. Finally, I remembered their names. "Yeah, the intruders are here. You want them dead, we have to talk creds-"

Suddenly, in something that never happened in the game, the krogan literally got shoved back a few steps, thanks to a wave of biotics. I didn't even have to look to know who did that.

"No more talking," Jack growled.

Shepard's face was alarmed and alert; not that fighting was anything new for her, obviously, but this was not Renegade Shepard. She likely did not anticipate a fight right as we walked in. "Jack, wai-" she started to say, but Jack didn't listen.

The biotic woman hopped forward, sending out another blast to the vorcha right in front of us. They were slammed into the ground, and in the next instant, Jack was literally tearing them apart. I looked back above to see a very angered Kureck.

"Get them!" he screamed.

All four of us didn't have time to say a word to Jack, we all just had to jump for cover as gun shots rang out in the large room. I quickly loaded my assault rifle, and began firing rapidly at the vorcha. To my left, I could see Abby doing the same, and to my right, I saw Thane take out his sniper rifle and beginning to carefully take out the mercs, one by one.

Shepard was fighting them all in a way that only Shepard could, taking down a flurry of krogan and vorcha within an instant, using an assortment of bullets and biotics. I had to say, even in reality, no one could beat Shepard.

"Jack, get back here!" Shepard ordered. Shepard usually wasn't particular about battle positions, but Jack really had dove into this one. She was out on the 'battlefield', tearing through mercs left and right, but she was barely missing the bullets that we were firing at the others.

"I'll be fine!" Jack shouted to her, jumping over a box and using her gun to shoot a few vorcha to the floor. She tossed one krogan right into the wall, smashing his head in, and made a sharp left. It was then that I realized where she was going: To deal with Kureck.

Apparently, Shepard realized that, too: she leapt over her cover and broke out in a run after Jack. "Cover me!" she commanded.

"Right!" Abby yelled. All three of us turned to the remaining krogan and vorcha on our level that were firing rapidly at Jack and the Commander. We all turned our bullets-and in Thane's case, biotics-on the Blood Pack mercs, throwing everything we had at them. It wasn't long before they were all down for the count.

Right after the last krogan fell, my eyes turned back to the situation with Jack and Shepard. Jack was rushing up the ramp to the elevated part of the room where Kureck was. She cried out something about how he would die now, before unleashing a shockwave on him. You could hear it move through the ground until finally hitting him, and he was once again stumbling backwards.

He grunted, then shot an angry glare at Jack. "Little girl thinks she's so tough," he muttered, turning his gun on her. He began to shoot at Jack.

Jack managed to avoid it at first, continuing to hit him with constant biotics, but I could tell that she was draining a bit. Finally, the bullets began to hit her kinetic barriers, and it was mere seconds before I heard her shields go down. I felt dread well up in my chest.

However, in that instant, Shepard jumped forward, firing rapidly at Kureck with her assault rifle. A heat wave seemed to engulf her features, turning away Kureck's bullets with a biotic barrier that would have made Jacob proud. Kureck charged at her, but Shepard was prepared; she went right up to him and, with all of her might, punched the krogan in the mouth with one armored hand. He stumbled backwards-apparently she must've charged that strike up with even more biotic power, because there was an indent in his cheek that fit the contours of her knuckles perfectly. She finished him off with a squeeze of her rifle.

We darted up the ramp; the fight was over.

Shepard turned to Jack, breathing heavily. "What were you thinking?" she snapped. "Unless we're attacked first, we don't just jump into a fight like that. You should know that by now."

"We didn't have time to chat, Shepard. We've already wasted enough time listening to Cerberus talk about what they did here. I was just speeding it up a little," Jack argued.

"If we're going to complete any mission, let alone stop the Collectors, we _have to _cooperate," Shepard thundered. "Making random moves without informing _anyone_ doesn't help that. We are a team-_remember that_."

"Fine, get off my damn case" Jack snapped. She then turned and began to walk down the ramp, with Shepard at her side. "Let's just get to my cell and get this shit over with."

I sighed, though I knew that this definitely was Jack. It was so like her to make a move like that...I just hoped she refrained from it in the future. Though she probably wouldn't if Shepard took Miranda's side on the fight that was approaching quickly.

We entered the next hall, and I gave a passing glance to the blood on the wall. I turned my eyes back forward, staring straight ahead as Shepard opened the door into Jack's cell. Both Shepard and Jack immediately darted inside.

"Come out. We know you're here," Shepard said coolly.

Aresh, the man behind the chaos we just had to endure, emerged from his small hiding place, and looked at all of us. For the first time, I saw how his face looked up close: worn, disturbed, depressed. It was obvious that this man had gone through a lot of mental and physical torture, and it was evident, even all these years later.

"Who are you?" Jack immediately asked.

"My name is Aresh, and you're breaking into my home," he replied calmly. "I know you, Subject Zero. So many years have passed, and I thought I was the only survivor."

Jack pointed her weapon at him. "My name is Jack. How the hell do you know me?"

"We all knew your face, Jack. They inflicted horrors on us so their experiments wouldn't kill you. You were the question, and I'm still looking for the answer," Aresh explained, eerily calm. He was more affected by this than Jack was.

"Looks like you're not the only one pulled back here, Jack," Shepard commented.

"I tried to forget this. But a place like this...it doesn't forget you. It follows you," Aresh continued. "I hired these mercs and came back almost a solar year ago. We're rebuilding it, piece by piece. I'm going to find out what they knew: How to unlock true biotic potential in humans. I'm restarting the Teltin facility. It will be _beautiful_."

I nearly shuddered. Yes, Aresh truly was creepier and scarier in person than he was in the game. I knew that it was because he had endured so much, just like Jack, but still. Jack was more stable than him.

"I wanted a hole in the ground! He's trying to justify what happened by using it!" Jack screamed, her gun still carefully aimed at Aresh.

"You'd do the same thing to new kids?" Shepard spat, sounding disgusted herself. "Wasn't this forced on you?"

"Some were brought from poor families on Earth or kidnapped from colonies," Aresh told us, still unmoved by anything that had been said. "Most ended up here the way I did: Batarian pirates. They did such horrible things to us. They must have had good reasons."

"There's _no_ reason good enough!" Jack snapped, growing more frustrated with everything Aresh was babbling on about. "Are you nuts? You lived it!"

Shepard looked from Aresh to Jack, then she calmly spoke again. "We can blow up the place, but that still leaves him. What do we do with another you?"

Jack put the gun down and walked forward, approaching Aresh. "That's easy," she replied as she stepped behind him.

"Just leave me here. This is where I belong," Aresh stated.

"Fuck that," Jack simply replied, throwing a small burst of biotics Aresh's way. They immediately sent him to the ground on his knees, and she pointed her gun at him again.

"Jack, he's trapped in his past," Shepard interrupted, before Jack could inflict anymore harm on the disturbed man. "You need to move on from yours."

"He wants to restart this place!" Jack exclaimed. "He needs to die!"

"He's crazy, and he's never going to restart this facility. You have to let it go," Shepard pressed, very firm but still calm, as always. Even after spending so much time actually in her presence, it still impressed me. Shepard's influence was definitely not exaggerated. "Your past doesn't have to control you."

Jack was silent for several seconds longer than in the game, as she thought on what Shepard said. She looked back to Aresh, and finally blurted, "Fuck."

I let out a breath of relief. Things were going the way they should, at least in my view.

"Get out of here!" Jack ordered to Aresh, as he slowly stood up. "_Go_!"

We all stepped aside so that Aresh could dart out of the room. I watched him leave, and I began to wonder what actually happened to him after this. I didn't recall the game saying, unless it was slipping my mind. This was yet another thought that had not crossed me while playing it and not actually living it.

"He's not worth chasing," Jack commented with disgust. "None of it is."

"You did the right thing, Jack," Shepard assured her.

"Maybe," Jack murmured. She looked at our surroundings. "This room was my whole childhood. Give me a minute to look around."

"Go ahead," Shepard encouraged kindly.

"Nothing's changed, but it's all different," Jack commented, beginning to glance around her old quarters.

I looked at Shepard, and gave a slight nod. "It all went down how it was supposed to," I whispered. She just nodded back silently.

I turned to Jack again, who was examining the room herself, unlike in the game when Shepard had to initiate it. She was now at her bed. "Sometimes I dream that I'm back in this bed being tortured. I used to tie the sheets around my wrists and try to rip them off. I want to stop coming back here."

Nonetheless, despite her previous comment, Jack turned and continued her walk down memory lane. She was basically ignoring us, and I wasn't sure if she was trying to tell us about what went down in here or if she was just recounting it to herself. Either way, it was still depressing to here it all; I couldn't imagine being tortured for all those years like she, and everyone else in this facility, was.

Next up was the table. "I used this table for everything," Jack said. "It was like my best friend. I'd crawl under it to cry. I was pathetic."

"Not necessarily," I chimed in, with a slight gulp. She didn't reply.

Jack looked at the two-way mirror next. "I thought that room out there was the rest of the world. I'd pound and yell," she commented, just staring at it for a moment. "Never did any good."

I knew that we were reaching the end. We followed as Jack led us out of the room and into the hall that we had come through to get inside her old quarters. The blood stain immediately attracted her attention.

"See the scarring on the wall here? That's where I killed my first man," Jack told us, lightly touching it. "One of the guards tried to stop me. Instead, I stopped him."

She stepped back, and she took a long, hard look around. She stared back into her room for a moment, before just looking at the bland walls before us. There was a long silence, yet it was not awkward at all. We all could tell that she was just taking her last view of her former home, and in fact, her horrifying past.

Finally, she took a deep breath. "Okay, no more wallowing," she stated. "Let's blow this place to hell."

Within a matter of about ten or fifteen minutes, we planted the bomb, which you didn't get to see in the game. After that, we quickly ran all the way back to the landing pad, boarded the shuttle, and took off. Minus a small comment from someone like Abby or Thane, it was quiet the whole way.

Now, we were in the shuttle again, heading for the Normandy. It was still quiet, and all of our eyes were locked on Jack, who was playing with the detonator to the bomb. She looked partially fulfilled yet partially...sad. This was harder for her than any of us would ever know, I was sure.

Shepard banged on the door to the cockpit for the pilot to hurry up, and in that instant, Jack finally pressed the button. Even miles away, you could hear the explosion, and just about all of us were thrown aside as the shuttle rushed to get out of its radius. As the explosion ended, I glanced at Jack again, and I knew she was thinking what I, and probably everyone else, was thinking:

It was over.


	39. Happy birthday!

(Abby)

"How'd it go?" Jacob asked in a low voice.

"Tell you later," I said in a low voice. "Ain't over yet."

We were all in the Medical Bay going under a mandatory check-up by Doctor Chakwas. It had been her stipulation, not Shepard's; apparently Pragia had trace amounts of toxin spores within its atmosphere that could pose a threat, and even though we hadn't been on it for as long as someone like Jack, the Doctor was insistent on running her check-ups.

It wasn't like I was going to go complaining about it, though; if she caught some weird virus and saved me coughing up chunks of my own lungs, I'd be very, very grateful.

I was more concerned for Thane, though - apparently he'd been the one who volunteered to go groundside on the humid, rainy planet despite Shepard's concerns about his Kepral's Syndrome. Right now he was sitting on the bed farthest from the door next to Shepard, an oxygen mask on his face. HK and I had both expressed extreme shock and disbelief when we realized what had happened - what we had _allowed_ to happen - and we couldn't stop apologizing. Thane, of course, seemed to think that the reason we hadn't made a mention of it was because we knew he would be _fine_.

The only one missing from our little group was Jack. Apparently she'd built up immunity to the groundside toxins and had retreated into her little cubbyhole downstairs. Shepard had mentioned she was going to go talk to her soon... I was just glad that the medical bay offered a wonderful view of the walkway to Miranda's office, because crap was about to go _down_.

Things were beginning to calm down somewhat. Chakwas was still pissed about our serious misjudgment bringing Thane to Pragia, but she'd calmed down under Shepard's soft words. Now she was running our biometric scans on the computer terminal, paying special attention to Shepard. "Everything's normal," she said. Her voice still held a hint of the bitterness, but there was no way that Doctor Chakwas could remain upset at Commander Shepard for long. "Actually, better than normal. You're getting stronger, Commander."

"I feel stronger," the Commander answered. "I don't feel weak anymore."

"I doubt you were ever weak, _si'ha_," Thane said quietly.

"Actually, the Commander_ is _getting stronger," I said. "She's going to be a complete bad-ass by the end of this thing."

Sarah had been standing inside the medical bay, inconspicuously cleaning one of the tables with a rag while keeping an eye on us and an ear on the conversation. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw her shift towards us a bit more and, almost lazily, I glanced towards her.

That's when I noticed her hair. She'd walked in around the same time as Jacob, though in our fervent apologies to Thane, HK and I had only been able to say a quick hello. Now, however, I found myself staring at her hair-her normal, brown hair-with an open mouth. I pointed excitedly at it. "It's normal!" I crowed.

HK's jaw dropped. "Wha-when-why?" he stammered.

Sarah looked slightly puzzled for a brief moment. Then a slight mischievous look crossed her face as she said, "What's normal?"

"Obviously not you three," Jacob muttered.

"Looks nice," Shepard said unexpectedly from her bed, causing Sarah to flinch. "I think I prefer this."

Sarah blinked at the unexpected compliment, and then grinned. "Hey thanks," she said. "That means a lot coming from you, Commander."

"Abby," Chakwas said unexpectedly, breaking me from my train of thought.

"Yes?"

Chakwas was frowning at a read-out on her terminal. "How old are you?"

"Fourteen," I replied promptly. "No, wait. Just turned fifteen... uh, todayish. I think." I frowned. "What is today?"

"October eleventh."

"Oh, sweet!" I said with a surprised chuckle. "Okay, I'm fifteen." _And forgot about it. I wonder if I can drive the Normandy now_. "Why do you ask?"

"The technology aboard this ship is very advanced," Chakwas said. "I knew you were fourteen just by scanning your retinas the first time you were in here, but now the information has changed. It seems I owe you a happy birthday."

"You've survived for fifteen years," Jacob said with a laugh. "Congratulations."

"Woohoo," I said sarcastically.

"Oh wow, that totally slipped my mind," HK said, turning from Sarah and her new - well, her old hairstyle - to me. "I've lost track of dates in all the time that we've been on the Normandy. So, uh, happy birthday!"

"Oh my gosh," Sarah said with widening eyes. "That means I'm turning 24 in a few weeks." She grinned at me. "Happy birthday!"

I ducked my head, embarrassed. "Thanks, guys."

I could feel Shepard's thoughtful eyes on me. When I glanced up, I could see her with her elbows on her knees, her head tilted slightly to the side in that puzzle-solving expression she wore when she let some of her usual self slink through past the N7 training. Sometimes I thought that the Commander had two personas: the special forces-trained tactician, and a nice, conservative woman who just happened to be thrown into all of this. She just nodded at me with acknowledgement, but I had the strangest feeling that she was doing some calculations.

A movement caught my eye, and I groaned. "I wouldn't get too comfortable yet," I told the assembled audience. "Shepard, you better go. Jack and Miranda are about to tear the ship apart if you don't stop them."

Shepard glanced out the window. Jack entered Miranda's quarters without knocking-always a bad move. "I'm on it," she said in a low voice.

"Uh oh," Jacob muttered. "That does not look like it's going to end well."

"Don't take sides," I warned her.

Shepard got up from Thane's bed, and I saw Jacob's jaw tighten slightly when he looked at the drell. "Oh, can I watch?" Sarah blurted out.

"You know what's going to happen, though," I said, though I was secretly pleased that I wasn't the only one who wanted to watch the cat fight.

"I still want to watch," Sarah said, then looked straight at the Commander. "Can I come, please? I'll stay out of the way, I promise." She looked almost like a kid pleading Mother to take her to the candy store.

"Hell no," Shepard stated, keeping her eyes glued on the door to Miranda's room. She was a smart woman-she wasn't going to dawdle and ask for more information. She was just going to roll with it. "You're saying don't take sides?"

"No sides," I repeated. "Be nice."

Shepard left the room, her pace quickening. "Should I prep the surgical theater?" Chakwas asked dryly.

"Dang," Sarah muttered. "It's gonna be a blast in there and I'm gonna miss it."

"True, I would almost like to see it," HK agreed. The guy always had some weird likings for all-out, drag down catfights. "But we do know what happens... and Dr. Chakwas, it may not be pretty. But if all goes well, it will be resolved peacefully."

"Doesn't Jack break both of Miranda's legs if Shepard sides with her?" I asked archly.

"Fuck," Jacob cursed. "I should be-"

"Relax," I said with a laugh. "Just a joke."

Sarah laughed a little, and then looked at Jacob. "Yeah everything's gonna be fine. And um..." She suddenly looked a little sheepish, but determined. "Can I ask you something?"

"Uh, sure, I guess," Jacob said, edging closer to the window. Miranda's door had closed behind Shepard, but not before I saw the shadow of an object fly across the room. "Jack's a piece of work," he commented.

"Yeah she is," Sarah agreed distractedly. She glanced out the window, and then focused on Jacob again; she was obviously determined to ask her question. "So um... I was just curious... can I, um, see your finger?"

"What?" he asked. "No!"

"Weird time to ask the question, Sar," I told her.

Sarah frowned. "I just wanted to see if it's all healed up," she said defensively.

"You're about a month too late with that," Jacob said, shooting her a look that sincerely questioned her motives.

"What do you mean?" she asked, looking confused.

"Oh I do hope Jack and Miranda both are alright," HK muttered.

"Please, I'd be more worried about Shepard," I said.

Thane moved closer to us, his oxygen mask conspicuously absent from his face. "She may need another biotic," he noted. He didn't _sound_ as though his trip to Pragia had left his health in a more detrimental state that it had been previously, but that wasn't exactly reassuring.

"Or two," Jacob said stiffly. "I can cover her ass better than you could right now."

"I've been in worse situations," Thane noted quietly, "but I don't doubt that you do have your uses."

"Thanks for the acknowledgement."

"Yes, well, if you both are finished, I'd suggest you stay alert," Doctor Chakwas said. "Is there really any threat of either of them getting hurt?" Nobody seemed to be asking the obvious question: why Jack would seek a fight with Miranda in the first place. It was no question that they both had mutual disdain for each other, but after the scene on Pragia it would only be natural that Jack would want to confront what she thought was the epitome of everything Cerberus stood for.

"Let's just say that when they're done, Jacob's finger will have suffered much worse than any of them," Sarah chimed in. Then she seemed to regret her impulsive speech; she ducked behind Thane.

"How did you injure your finger?" Thane inquired seriously, glancing down to see. "I did not notice any significant damage before."

"Sarah bit him," I said dryly.

"I... see."

"You should be proud of me," I whispered theatrically to HK, well aware that everybody could hear me. "I could've made an extremely funny dirty joke right there."

"Why is it that _we_ attract all of the dirty thoughts?" HK remarked under his breath.

I could hear Thane blink all four of his eyelids in quick synchronization. "Oh."

Jacob just shook his head, crossing his arms to hide the offending finger from sight as he continued to observe Miranda's office. "So how long is this going to last, exactly?"

"At the rate Shepard is going?" Joker's voice crackled over the Medical Bay intercom, infused with humor. "Maybe another few minutes. Basically Jack's bitching to Miranda about how Cerberus treated her and Miranda's hair got up. Shepard walked in before it got too out of hand."

"What dirty joke?" Sarah asked curiously.

"Doesn't matter," Jacob said. "What's going on now, Joker?"

"Hold it, still listening, here..." He whistled appreciatively. "_Owch_."

"What?" Chakwas asked.

"Jack just made a promise to see that Miranda survives the mission so she can screw her up later. Miranda's looking forward to it."

And as we watched, the door to Miranda's office opened and a straight-backed, smirking Jack stormed out. I saw a glimpse of Shepard and Miranda, standing side-by-side, watching her go before the door closed yet again.

HK let out a breath of relief. "Good, it ended how it was supposed to. Luckily, there shouldn't be any more Jack versus Miranda fights for a while. We didn't see any more in our visions," he told the rest of the room. "Shepard handled it well."

"What about after the suicide mission?" Sarah muttered off-handedly.

"Well, I'd say we shouldn't put them together until... well, after," I said. I nearly made a mistake and said 'until the ship is fully repaired,' but I didn't want to alert the others. They already knew that stuff was going to happen. They probably already guessed a tiny, marginal bit from us by insisting that they have all the ship upgrades. But the entire thing? Heck no.

And that suddenly reminded me of something. We'd assembled a packet of information during our off time, taking turns writing out different walkthroughs for each mission/side-quest in case all three of us were somehow out of commission. We'd finished it just before Jack's loyalty mission, and I needed to upload it to EDI from my datapad sometime soon (under strict instructions, of course.)

Chakwas let out a breath she must have been holding. "I don't know how I feel about having the two of them in my Medical Bay at any given time, peace or no peace. This type of behavior certainly wouldn't be condoned on an _Alliance_ ship."

"Shepard is doing the best she can," I said wryly. "Best we all can do it just try and get along."

"So," Sarah said, glancing around the room at each of us, "um... what's next? I mean... you know, the next mission or whatever."

"Zaeed," HK replied promptly. "The last personal mission, pretty much, before we go get that IFF. Kinda weird... we're really getting down to the wire."

Sarah inhaled sharply, and I knew what she was probably thinking; it wasn't much longer until the Collector incident. "Yeah um, I guess it won't be much longer then," she said with a little nod.

Their words only reminded me of my conversation with Garrus down on Five, and I pursed my lips. I was still worried. Still afraid. Still wondering. Basically, all of the emotions that would get me and others_ killed _out there.

How were we going to pull this off? How in the_ world _could I do the best I could?

I ducked my head, running a hand through my hair. "Nope," I muttered grimly. "Not much longer."

Sarah inhaled and then exhaled slowly. Then she smiled a little. "Yeah well... one way or another, it'll be okay," she murmured. "Now... I think I really should get back to cleaning. 'Scuse me."

Sadness hung in the air like a soft curtain. It was with an effort that HK changed the subject, saying, "So, uh...should we have some kind of... uh, party for Abby?"

"No!" I snapped just as Jacob said, "Sure, why not?"

"Because having a party is weird," I said, scandalized. "I'm fifteen. Yes. I'm fifteen. Just... I dunno. Parties are strange..."

But I'd just had a surprise party back on Earth, hadn't I?

Jacob punched my shoulder lightly. He seemed to be in a better mood now that neither Miranda nor Shepard seemed to be in immediate danger of death by biotic whup-ass. "No reason not to do it."

"No," I said flatly, then the thought I'd had earlier sprung back into being: "Hey, can I drive the Normandy now?"

"_No_," Joker said flatly.

"That would be most unwise," EDI noted, appearing in her blue spherical form near the door. "As of right now, only Mister Moreau is currently given the security clearance to operate the Normandy's controls."

"Abby driving the Normandy is a very scary thought. A thought that should never become reality," HK said very seriously, looking at me for a moment. I was surprised to see a smirk cross his face. "But we can still give you some kind of small party."

Sarah had moved toward the door, but lingered there; she was still listening to us. "Hey, maybe I could make a cake or something, if Rupert will let me," she said. "I know there's a few ingredients in there I could scrounge up."

"Cake," I said dreamily. I hadn't had cake in such a long time... "Okay, that _does_ sound like an epic idea..."

"We couldn't throw a full party anyway," Jacob said with a chuckle. "Just some cake and a few treats. Besides, it's not for you. The crew needs a moral boost."

I nodded, understanding where he came from. "Hey," I said suddenly, "didn't Kelly want to schedule a movie night? Maybe we could all eat cake and watch a movie."

"I'll make the cake if I'm invited too," Sarah said, folding her arms and smiling a little. "And we should totally invite Kasumi!"

"You both would definitely be invited!" I said. I was actually... getting a tiny bit excited by this. If it would boost the crew moral, Shepard was certain to go for it. "Everybody on the ship should be. It'll be a nice relaxer before we head to Zorya and get the Reaper IFF."

HK nodded. "I agree, and of course _you_ would be invited, Sarah."

"Of course she wouldn't!" I joked. "She is _so_ excluded from my birthday party."

Sarah simply rolled her eyes and then laughed. "If you'll excuse me," she said, "I think I'll go talk to Rupert about a cake." She began to move toward the door.

"So," HK said. "Who on all of the people on the ship would actually come to this thing?"

I shrugged. "I don't know," I said honestly. "Besides, where would we even show a movie? Kasumi's quarters?"

"Actually, Samara's room may be more adjusted to that type of gathering," EDI said unexpectedly. "I doubt that she would refuse you its use if you asked."

"Samara's awesome-she let me sleep in her room once. I bet she would allow it!" Sarah said. And with that she left-no doubt to go talk to Rupert.

"We'd still have to talk to Shepard about it," I said with a snort to no one in particular.

"I'll ask her," Chakwas assured us. "Besides, we all deserve a break once in a while. I think this is exactly what the crew needs."

"Glad to see you're on board, Doc," Jacob said approvingly.

HK nodded in agreement. "We probably won't see everyone, but I'm sure some of the more...upbeat people will come," he said with a shrug. He shot a glance at me which looked humorous. "Except for Kelly. I have no clue if she will dare show her face."

"We've cleared up that issue," I muttered, disgruntled. "I'll just be careful not to be seen feeding Sarah any cake."

"I heard about that," Thane said unexpectedly. "That was an odd conclusion for her to make. I would have thought a trained human such as her would have made a better insight into the situation."

"Well, to be fair, Jack thinks that all three of us are sleeping together," HK pointed out. "But I agree that it was weird."

"You know we all just say that to screw with you, right?" Jacob asked.

"Oh, I'd be seriously more concerned if I actually_ thought _that you all thought it was true," I said with a laugh. "But we ask for it." _Besides, it's not like I'm giving you any less stress about you, Thane, and Shepard..._

"Well, Abby does have a point," HK admitted. "And I know that you say that just to mess with us, and Kelly just made a brief, grave misjudgment. Jack on the other hand...well, it took some talking to convince her otherwise. In fact, I'm not sure if she _was_ convinced."

_Well, Jack tried to rape you._

"Sentient beings are prone to think of the most lewd things when faced with a scenario they do not fully comprehend," Thane said quietly. "I believe humans call it thinking in the gutter."

"That's true. We all have filthy minds," HK said, chuckling.

Thane chuckled. "I will return to my quarters and rest," he said.

"Feel better, man," Jacob said, offering him a nod. "Sorry about the thing down there."

"Your concern is unexpected... but appreciated." Thane bowed to us. "Is there a specific time you would like me to return, Doctor Chakwas?"

"Some time within the next day," she told him. "I'll give you your medication, as usual. Unfortunately I don't think that there's anything else we can do for you. Thankfully, the exposure to Pragia's atmosphere hasn't seemed to advance your disease at all, but I'd like to run a follow-up soon."

"I will return here tomorrow morning," Thane promised.

As he left, I sighed. "I wish I knew if he'd live or not," I muttered.

"I still can't believe we let him go down there without even a second thought," HK said. The whole incident obviously still got to him a bit. "I mean...I don't know. In our visions, details like that didn't exist, but they do now. We'll have to pay more attention in the future."

"We're not going to Pragia in the future," I told him. "We should've brought him to Tuchanka instead. Total drell environment."

HK sighed. "Ah well. Can't change the past, I guess," he said, before glancing to Jacob. "You're going with Shepard and Zaeed to Zorya, right?"

"Either me or Garrus," Jacob said with a short nod. He was leaning casually against the window now, keeping his body carefully angled so that he could see us and watch Miranda's office door for movement. "Shepard's choice. Seems to think that Massani would work better with one of us than somebody like Samara or Mordin on something as big as this."

"She's probably right. If we take Thane anywhere else, and that's a pretty big if at this point, I don't think it has any harmful environment. At least, out of what we saw in our visions," HK remarked.

"Either way, I am certain that the Commander will clearly remember his condition from here on out," Chakwas chimed in. Her tone said,_ I'll make it clear that she does._

"How about the rest of us, Doc?" I asked. "We fit to live?"

She gave us the go-ahead to continue respiration, so I took that as a good sign. "Nothing out of the ordinary," she continued.

"Great!" I said. "In that case, I think I'll go take a shower." I was _starving_, but I knew that if there would be cake involved later in the day I should probably keep myself in that state to save as much room for cakey goodness as possible. "And... Jacob?" I frowned, looking into his eyes as I tried to figure out what to say. "Okay, I just wanna say that I know you're a nice guy and you're just awesome, but the Illusive Man is crazy. What he did to Jack is his fault."

"I know, kid," he said heavily. "I try to be mad at Jack for the things she pulls sometimes, but the truth is that she just doesn't know any better. I'm not deluded by Cerberus, but they're the only ones doing something about the Reapers. They're the bad things trying to do something right for the good guys."

I nodded, sliding off of the bed I was currently sitting on. "I know," I said. "It's just sad sometimes."

"I have never liked Cerberus, and I still don't," HK told both of us. It was no surprise; HK always had a disdain for the human terrorist group since the day he started playing ME2. "I get that they are the only ones doing something about the Reapers, but the IM still can't be trusted. And _once_ the Reapers are gone...well, I would hope that Cerberus would go soon after. No offense."

"I'm with you there, brother," Jacob said, shaking his head. "But with an institution as big as the Alliance, there are bound to be the black sheep of the groups."

HK nodded. "I know, and I know that the Alliance is far from perfect, and that they are swamped as it is right now, but Cerberus has never been the answer. Not for me. It has good people, like you, or even Miranda, but the Illusive Man himself is a different story. I know that we of all people are not ones to talk about being mysterious, but his goals and methods are too dark for me."

"I can't wait to learn more about him," I said. They sure as heck were taking their time with the Illusive Man comic books. "I know we will, but how soon is a mystery."

"Right now, our goals just need to continue to be on stopping the Collectors and the Reapers, and I think the IM has some form of nobility to him, but otherwise...I don't know. He's just too creepy for me. He'd help a _human_, but he'd let a poor, bleeding salarian on the streets die, I'm sure," HK commented.

"Unless the salarian had something he wanted," I muttered.

"We're here for now," Jacob said in an obvious attempt to close the conversation. "We'll just make the best of it."

I nodded. This probably wasn't the best thing to obsess over anyway. "I'll see y'all later," I said, and went off to take a nice, hot shower.

* * *

"Hey."

I started, glancing over my shoulder. Commander Shepard had somehow snuck in behind me, unseen and unheard, and was sitting quite unconcerned on the top of Sarah's bed, her elbows on her knees. "Okay, Ninja-Commander," I said, pointing at her with my hairbrush. "You got me. Nice."

She merely smiled a little bit. "I just came to ask you about what you would like to do for your birthday," she said.

"Didn't Doctor Chakwas say anything yet?" I asked curiously. I had taken a _long_ shower, quite long enough for somebody to have had a nice conversation over lunch. When Shepard didn't answer and just continued to stare at me, I realized that I wasn't going to get much out of her from that angle, so I continued, saying, "I don't know... they thought it would be a good idea to do some stuff for the crew. My birthday could be an excuse for the crew to take some leave time, you know. Pick up moral."

"Interesting," Shepard said.

I wasn't quite sure what she thought of that, and it was beginning to sound more and more stupid as I pressed on, saying, "It'd be good for them all to have a break, follow some... human traditions. I'm not big for parties, but everybody's tight to the wire. They need a bit of a break."

"I agree," she said with a nod. "Things are getting tight. That thing I broke up in Miranda's office won't be the last if we keep this up."

"I can feel the tension," I agreed with a frown. "Omega was the last planet we went on with any real community. After this it's Zorya, the IFF..." The implications were there in my voice: After the IFF, things were set in motion.

Shepard nodded. "So a party it is." She didn't ask me about what happened after the IFF. I was relieved that she seemed to be keeping the conversation on one direction instead of allowing it to branch off that way. "What would you like?"

"Uh... well, crap, I don't know," I said, scratching the back of my neck uncertainly. "Maybe we could find somewhere with enough room to fit everybody and have them watch a movie? Popcorn, drinks, cake, you know. Stuff for Garrus, Tali, and Mordin."

"Five would be a good place for that," she said. "The trouble is, we can't have everybody abandon their posts for a small party."

"I see your point," I admitted. "I don't know what else to_ do_, though."

"I'll figure it out," Shepard said. I was a little bit relieved that she'd taken it upon herself to help me out with this, because if Shepard said she was going to do something, it generally happened. Shepard's word was law, after all. "Don't worry about it," she added with a wink.

Don't worry about it. Right. "Thanks," I said, thoroughly embarrassed. "You guys are way, way too good for me."

Shepard didn't acknowledge it and merely stood in one graceful motion. "I'll go get it set up," she said, making for the door.

"Thanks," I whispered, but I doubted that she actually heard it before the door closed behind her.

I sat down heavily on my bed, suddenly tired. The clock on the wall read 0900 hours. We'd taken Pragia overnight, and now, it seemed, the entire ship was beginning to wake up. Shepard didn't look tired, and neither had Jack, Chakwas, nor Miranda and HK. Was I the only one with absolutely no energy?

Apparently. "Hi, EDI," I said, stretching out luxuriously on my bed. I had a sudden urge to talk to somebody.

"Yes?" EDI asked, her blue head appearing immediately, as always, and just staring.

"I don't really need anything," I said, feeling, once again, embarrassed. "Just wondering if you wanted to... talk."

"What do you wish to discuss?" EDI inquired.

"I dunno, just normal stuff," I said with a laugh. "How are you doing?"

"I have yet to endure any malfunctions. All of my functions are at top capacity, except for the ones that are blocked. Therefore, no problems to disrupt productivity have occurred," EDI replied.

"Looking forward to implementing the Reaper tech?" I asked curiously.

"I am an AI. I am not programmed to 'look forward to' or 'dread' anything," EDI blandly answered.

"Are you anticipating the exchange of data?" I asked wryly. There was only so emotional you could get with an AI... unless she was just toying with me.

"There are many dangers that come with implementing unknown technology and exchanging data with it. It has rarely been done before. Cerberus only has a hypothesis on what could result from the IFF being integrated into the Normandy's systems, there are little to no facts. An organic life form would perhaps feel fear at the prospects of the different results," EDI explained, though she no doubt knew as well as I did that HK, Sarah, and myself all knew which result would come from getting the IFF.

"But you have a self-preservation system, don't you?" I asked. "You don't want to be destroyed. That's all fear is."

"With unfamiliar Reaper technology, nothing is certain. I do have certain defense systems and firewalls, but the Reapers may just as easily be able to break through them. They were capable of entirely re-designing a species; if they so wished, they could be able to do the same to electronics such as the Normandy, perhaps with much greater ease."

"True," I said wryly. "Some time in the future, Cerberus is going to capture a man named Paul Grayson after two years of him running around. They'll inject him with Reaper nanites. He'll be just as unstoppable as Saren, running around, doing crazy things... But he'll be killed."

EDI was silent for a moment, probably researching Grayson in her databanks. "Paul Grayson has been an enemy of Cerberus for two years. The Illusive Man will be happy to have him apprehended," she stated. "However, the prospect of a human being implemented with Reaper technology is disturbing, even to an AI."

"They did horrible things to him," I reprimanded softly. "It was inhumane."

"Cerberus' actions rarely aren't," EDI commented.

"What do you believe, EDI?" I asked, suddenly. "I mean, would you do some of the things they do?"

"As I stated, I am not programmed to have feelings, however, if I went over all of the information and processed it and was forced to make a choice...I likely would not follow Cerberus' methods," EDI responded.

"I'm glad," I said. "Don't get me wrong, Cerberus has a few things right, but I'd rather be... nice."

"I believe most would agree," EDI concurred.

"What's your favorite animal?" I asked, changing directions at the speed of light.

"The varren."

"Why?"

"Their hunger is attractive. I find their craving for any type of food and their brutality very intriguing. Their molecules are also particularly designed in a way that is fascinating," EDI told me.

I blinked, surprised. Did she really...?

"That was a joke."

I began to chuckle. "I love your jokes," I said. "I have a good one for you to freak out Joker later. He's not listening in, is he?"

"Mr. Moreau has dozed off at the cockpit controls for now. I expect he will be asleep there for the rest of the night, as usual," EDI answered. "You are free to speak."

"There's going to come a time when he's going to have to crawl through some of the vents I've been checking out," I said carefully, "and he's going to say something like, 'Grah, you're gonna make me crawl through the vents again, aren't you?' Then _you_ should say, 'I enjoy the sight of humans on their knees.' His reaction is really funny. You have to get me a picture of what expression his face pulls when you drop it, though."

"I will do so, and I will attempt to have one of the cameras catch a shot of his face in that instance. However, if Mr. Moreau has to crawl through the vents, I doubt that will be my primary objective," EDI answered.

"True," I said with a grimace. "Oh, wells. I'll understand if you can't get it. Sorry."

"I did not mean to imply that I wouldn't get it," EDI assured. "I was just informing you that it may not be a certainty."

"Oh I totally understand," I said. Sometimes I forgot how awkward it was talking to EDI. After all, she wasn't exactly human. I stood up. "I think I'm going to go and mingle with some people. Maybe help out with the party..."

"Logging you out, Abby," EDI said, before vanishing.

I nearly rolled my eyes, stretching out my arms. It was time to get the party started.

* * *

Shepard had managed to get it set up: Joker had offered to help out (swoon!) and watched over the shipboard operations so the deck crew could retreat to Deck Five. Ken and Tali had rigged up a large holographic projector against a metal wall for a movie; Rupert, Sarah, Kelly, Gabby, and Chakwas had gotten the food ready. Everybody had brought down their own little pillows and blankets and spread out over the floor, paper plates in front of them ladled with awesome, mouth-watering food.

I could see Garrus and Shepard talking in a corner. Jack and Grunt were isolated in a corner playing poker. I noticed Jacob and Miranda watching the crew, the latter's arms crossed and a satisfactory smile on her face. Mordin and Zaeed were in deep discussion, and when I drifted close enough to hear I realized they were talking about the multiple numbers of 'cloacas' they'd met within their lives. Samara and Thane stood together, murmuring low words to each other in a calm, controlled manner. Kasumi had drifted over to help Sarah.

HK waved at me from across the room, a 'well-isn't-this-interesting' look on his face. I stepped over the bodies on the ground, glancing up at the device Tali and Ken were putting together: it looked like it was nearly ready. Apparently Kasumi had picked out the movie, but I was completely clueless as to what it was. "Holy crap," I muttered to HK once I'd gotten next to him. "Full house."

He nodded, looking impressed himself. "I know. I think everyone needs this, birthday or not. It will be the first and the last before we hit the relay, I'm sure," he said to me, glancing around the large, filled room.

"Yeah," I muttered, pursing my lips. It would be good for everybody, I knew. Something as simple as singing 'Happy Birthday' would be enough to pick up the spirits of many on the Normandy. It wouldn't be any less weird and embarrassing, though. "I wonder what movie we're going to watch."

"Well knowing Kasumi, it could be anything," he said, continuing to glance around the room. I saw his eyes wander to Jack for a minute, but he turned away. "Didn't you want to watch the Lion King or something?"

"Did I?" I echoed.

Neither of us had noticed Sarah wander in our direction. She was just close enough to overhear HK's question. She got a mischievous look on her face as she blurted out, "Let's watch Twilight!"

"The sight of Grunt watching Twilight would be frightening, even for Shepard," I told her seriously.

Sarah laughed, then looked at Kasumi, who was still helping to set one of the tables. "Do you like Twilight?" she asked the hooded woman curiously.

"Which version?" Kasumi asked. She had two large bowls of popcorn in her hands: she seemed to be going around the room depositing them in strategic places like land mines.

"Um, any version!" Sarah said with a shrug.

"The latest elcor version," she said, raising her voice slightly. Grunt and Jack had began to argue loudly in the corner. "I'll be back, I have to go break that up!"

Sarah watched Kasumi go. "There's an elcor version?" she murmured out loud, more to herself than to anyone else. Then she shrugged and glanced at us. "Well, um, this seems like a great get-together so far," she added with a smile. "Happy birthday again, Abby."

"Thanks," I said, embarrassed. I rocked back and forth on my heels, watching Kasumi's progress through the crowd. The little ninja walked gracefully over the people spread across the floor as if there were no obstacles at all. I could see Shepard in the corner, her right fist clenched at her side. I knew what that meant: she was discreetly powering up a biotic charge.

Jack and Grunt were all swear words and violence. I watched Kasumi break them apart with calm words, and they resumed playing again. Shepard's hand relaxed.

"Glad Shepard did not have to intercede," Mordin said, materializing behind us. "Implications unpleasant."

"Hi, Mordin!" Sarah said cheerfully, walking up to the salarian doctor. "Haven't seen you for a while! How are you?" I had a feeling that she was taking advantage of having everyone in one place for once-and enjoying it. Especially since she wasn't allowed off this deck anymore.

"Doing well," he said in his typical, fast salarian cadence. "Shepard has been picking up new technology left and right. Finding the time to implement it into the ship's onboard weapons and still research the Collectors is very stressful. Luckily Tali'Zorah is here. She's taken a lot of the extra work, giving me time I didn't think I had before. For example, she just finished the new shield overlays with the engineers. Wonderful, wonderful. And you?"

Sarah grinned. "I'm doing great," she said. "This is really a lot of fun," she added, indicating the room around all of us with a gesture of her hand.

"Yes, I'm really glad we can celebrate Abby's birthday like this," HK agreed. He looked at Sarah. "Your birthday is not too far off, actually...but I, uh, don't know where we will be in the mission by then. We best enjoy this while we can."

Sarah shrugged. "Don't bother mentioning it or doing anything about it," she muttered. "I don't want to turn twenty-four anyway."

I could kind of understand where she was coming from. Birthdays still meant a little bit to me, personally, because surviving for a year-especially now-meant something good. It was just a number, after all... and seriously, I wasn't allowed to complain about getting old until I was at least twenty-five anyway. "That's on November third, right?" I asked. "That's only a few days away."

"Attention, everybody!" Kasumi said loudly. She'd apparently climbed on top of a large crate of supplies and was waving her arms in an attempt to get everybody's attention. "Thanks, I won't be up here long. Keep eating if you want. We're just about to start the movie. The problem is, we don't know which one we should play!"

Behind her, the wall flickered to life at a motion from Ken and a list of movie names I'd never even heard of appeared there. There was _The Lower Wards, Fleet and Flotilla, Milk Sheik, Dark Goddess, Akuze, Make It Look Real: The Lili T'Nigus Story, The Rise of Sister Ethea, Blasto the Jellyfish, Vaenia, _and a few other films I didn't recognize.

As everybody voted (by show of enthusiasm, of course) I couldn't help but notice Shepard and Samara talking quietly in the back. Apparently Shepard was using the party as an excuse to make all of her rounds. That was good. "What movie would you choose?" I asked HK playfully.

"I don't know...Akuze? Only name-wait just a minute..." HK said, one of Kasumi's choices hitting him like a sudden splash of cold water. "The _RISE OF SISTER ETHEA_?"

"Calm the hell down!" I hissed, pulling his sleeve impatiently. Everybody had turned around to shoot us curious glances.

"What, that crazy nun?" one of the guys, Hopefield, asked jovially.

"Uh, sorry about that," HK said to everyone, his face going slightly red. "Abby and I have just run into her once or twice and I never knew she had a movie made about herself. Very interesting..."

He looked at me. "I know which one I'm voting for after all."

My mouth was twitching with suppressed laughter. "I'm extremely curious," I joked.

And, one by one, each of the movies were eliminated from Ken's board, leaving a tie between _Blasto the Jellyfish_ and _Ethea._ I was completely torn between the two-on one side, there was Sister Ethea, who was a crazy lady I'd totally need to see the documentary of... and then there was my life-long dream of watching_ Blasto the Jellyfish._

Eventually, the choice was made. Sister Ethea trumped Blasto by one tiny vote-mine-and was activated. The lights were dimmed, the food was set out, and I maneuvered myself into a position laying between Sarah and HK. "You know," I said quietly as the previews began to play, "I think this is the first time we've ever had a chance to just relax."

"Yeah, I know what you mean," HK absent-mindedly muttered. It was obvious that he was not relaxed after learning that his insane character had a documentary about herself; he was anxious to see what all of this said about her. Suddenly, his face darkened. "Uh...if this documentary covers Ethea's life...you do realize who else will probably be in this, don't you?"

"Oh _fuck_ no," I breathed, the horrible truth dawning on me. "Not Erin. Please not Erin."

"Well...at least that part isn't my fault," HK muttered, a slight smirk growing on his face. "Considering you two started that...interesting relation in the first place."

"Erin's made more trouble for the galaxy than she's worth," Garrus muttered, squeezing in next to us and washing us with his alien scent. "She is _definitely_ a handful."

As he settled in next to us, I thought I saw Sarah cast him a small, dreamy look. Then she tore her attention away from him and glanced at us, then looked toward the screen.

"...what kind of stuff has Erin done, exactly? I know of her, but..." HK trailed off. It was troubling; we knew Erin all too well, but we only knew what she had done in the Star Wars universe and in our time on Earth, or in any other thing that HK randomly threw her into.

In Mass Effect...well, we had no idea.

It was going to be terrifying.

"You'll see," Garrus muttered.

"Wonder if she'll have the tail in this," HK muttered. "Ah well. It'll be interesting, that's for sure."

"I wonder how she'd get it removed," I mumbled back. "Hopefully the movie won't get into that part."

And with that, we settled in, making ourselves comfortable as the previews ended and the movie finally began.

* * *

"_Happy birthday to you-_-"

"Cha-cha-cha!"

_"-happy birthday to you_-"

_"-you look like a monkey_-"

"-_happy birthday, Dear Abby_-"

_"-and you smell like_-"

"-can it, Ken!"

_"-happy birthday to you!"_

This wasn't exactly how I'd pictured a birthday party on the Normandy: me standing alone in front of everybody else as they sat screaming their own versions of "Happy Birthday" while I blushed furiously and tried not to glare at a grinning Shepard as she sang, the loudest of the group and possibly the only one bellowing out the correct lyrics. Even Joker had joined in on the intercom. The only thing that could have made this even more embarrassing would've been if EDI had piped in Marilyn Monroe's song to Ronald Reagan over the speakers.

The Normandy crew began to clap furiously. "Where the hell is the cake?" I heard Grunt grumble in the corner.

"Okay, we've prepared a couple of cakes for you guys!" Kasumi shouted above the mess. She seemed to have been pointed at the unofficial speaker of the group. "I'll come and dish them around-just watch your step."

Sarah moved toward me and grinned at me almost shyly. "I helped make the chocolate cake from scratch," she said. "Hope it turned out okay-Rupert helped me make sure I had all of the ingredients right."

The conversation had started back up among crew members, making me feel safe enough that I could scootch over to the side and out of the limelight, my face burning. "Thanks," I said, genuinely touched. "I bet it turned out awesomely-I'll reserve that cake for our little group."

"Might want to watch out for the white cake," Sarah whispered, leaning in closer to my ear so she could speak even more quietly. "I don't think Rupert washed his hands before dealing with that one-You don't even want to know what he was doing before he baked it."

'Our little group' turned out to be myself, HK, Sarah, Kasumi, Commander Shepard, Kelly, Jacob, and Garrus. I was curious to see what the heck Grunt was going to eat, but it turned out that I didn't have to worry about it. Rupert had given him a large, white cake all to himself.

"Hey Abby," Sarah said as she slipped into a seat beside me. HK was now on the other side of the room; he seemed to be talking to Tali on the other side of the room. "Just curious, what's on that datapad?" she asked, pointing toward my pocket.

I blinked, glancing down. The Datapad (I always thought of it with capital letters, because I could surely receive capital punishment for having it in my possession!) was right there. Ken must have slipped it in there with some updated information when I wasn't looking. "Just some random stuff," I said vaguely.

Sarah looked curious. She served herself a piece of cake, then passed a larger slice to me. I knew that she didn't like to eat a lot of cake in one sitting; that was why she served herself a smaller piece. "It better not be like the kind of stuff you found on my omni-tool," she murmured in an undertone.

"...it might be," I muttered.

She narrowed her eyes at me. "Hey, since you know my dirty little secret, maybe I should know yours," she said. There was a look in her eyes, seriousness mixed with playfulness.

"Oh hell no," I shot back, suddenly frightened. "I'm not the only one who would get in trouble."

"Oh come on, I won't tell anyone," Sarah persisted. I saw her hand casually inching toward my pocket.

"No, Sarah," I said, a tiny bit more firmly. I took a step back.

Sarah slowly stood from her chair and set her untouched piece of cake down on the table. "Aw come on, are we friends or not?" She grinned mischievously-then made a dash-grab for my pocket.

"Oh hell no!" I cursed, backpedaling. I could see Commander Shepard approaching the group with a plate of food, and knew that the phrase 'shit hitting the fan' was about to apply very well in this situation.

Sarah didn't seem to notice Shepard at all. She looked like she was going to make another grab for it, but then she simply shrugged casually and turned away. "Okay fine," she said, "I'll leave it be."

Then as she started to walk past me-she suddenly slipped right behind me and grabbed me in sort of a hug. I knew her hand was reaching for my pocket again.

I maneuvered myself to the side, laughing so Shepard wouldn't intercede. "What the hell is going on here?" she asked dryly, taking a seat next to Jacob.

"Don't know. Wasn't paying attention," was Jacob's evasive answer. Good, at least he was still on my side.

Grunt lumbered his way towards us, carrying the empty plate his cake had once stood on. "Shepard," he grumbled. He didn't sit, as we were doing, but instead leaned against the crate.

"Grunt," was Shepard's genius reply. "Was the cake alright for you?"

"Good enough," he said. "Too sweet. Needs some meat. I'm going to head upstairs and find out where the dumbass cook's hiding it. Your human food is too... wimpy. Flimsy."

Sarah and I, still fighting over the datapad, didn't pay much mind to him. Unexpectantly, Sarah pushed me and I fell hard on to my back, knocking the breath out of me in a large, drawn out _belch_ of humongous proportions.

The entire area around our group was silent, and then Jacob, Kelly, and Kasumi began to roar with laughter, clutching their sides. Sarah started giggling so hard she actually collapsed into a nearby chair. "I want what she had!" Jacob said.

"Excuse me!" I said breathlessly. And I really was breathless... that had _hurt._

Grunt merely opened his mouth, surprising us with an even larger belch than the one I had inadvertently given. I giggled, embarrassed, and held my breath so I wouldn't get any idea of what his breath smelled like.

And then there was something even bigger, something so loud that I literally thought that a piece of machinery or something had grinded over or something. We all jumped, looking for the source of the noise, and then I noticed Jack standing behind me, holding a carbonated soda in her hands. "You all are fucking amateurs," she said proudly.

Sarah was roaring with laughter now-there were actually tears in her eyes. She was clutching her ribs and she looked like she was having trouble breathing.

Mordin was looking at Sarah almost curiously. "Hmm, have not seen this kind of reaction from her since I first came onboard," he mused out loud. "Regardless, happen to know that belching is not contagious like yawning, yet it seems that..." Then we were treated to a small lecture about the purpose and nature of belching in different species', as Mordin spoke up to be heard over the general laughter and chatter.

Only Shepard seemed to be listening to him. I was more interested in Grunt, who had suddenly seemed to have gotten taller as he stretched himself to his maximum height. "That's pretty damn impressive," he growled, coming nose-to-nose with Jack.

Mordin chuckled. "Grunt, I do doubt that Jack is interested in your advances."

"Huh?" I wondered.

"Jack and Grunt just exchanged mating calls," Jacob whispered in my ear.

Grunt snorted. "Human. Female or not, she isn't a krogan."

"What the fuck did I do?" Jack demanded, taking a few steps back. Her eyes narrowed in disgust and horror once she made the connection.

"I bet Jack is the only one woman enough on this ship to take Grunt," I heard Sarah say out loud amidst her laughter. Then apparently she realized she'd said it more loudly than she'd intended; she then slipped out of the chair and did her best to duck out of sight.

I was pretty damn sure that if Shepard felt the inclination, she could 'mate' with Grunt... after all, she could tap humans, asari, drell, turians, and by some extent even quarians. Who was to say if she could or couldn't have 'relations' with a krogan? I was about to say that to Sarah, then decided to keep my mouth shut. Jokes at the Commander's expense were not allowed... in front of her, anyway.

"Might want to stay away from this, Gabbs, looks serious," I heard Ken chortle from a few feet away.

"Well I'll be damned," Rupert swore, his face a mask of shock.

"You all are assholes," Jack cursed, and stormed off.

"She'll be back," Grunt chuckled.

Sarah had worked up her courage once again, and moved in my direction. She whispered quietly into my ear, "Rumor has it that Jack likes HK." She then covered her mouth, barely containing a snicker.

"No!" I whispered. "Everybody knows that HK and I are lovers."

"Oh right, and Kelly thinks that_ we_ are lovers," Sarah whispered with a snort.

"At least we'll never be like Ethea," I said-and then tossed the datapad back to Ken before Sarah's searching fingers could grab it. He caught it expertly and slid it into his pocket without even glancing at me. Thankfully, Shepard seemed to have missed the exchange-she had been distracted quite well enough by Jacob, who was pulling a strand of her hair and commenting on how bright it was.

"Oh here comes HK," Sarah murmured, noticing him wandering toward us. "Hey, how'd your talk with Tali go?" she asked with a grin. I glanced in Tali's direction-it looked like she was talking to Garrus now.

"It went well," HK said with a nod, but he was giving a weird look at every single one of us. "And just what was going on over here?"

"Nothing," Sarah and I said in unison. Sarah giggled.

HK gave us a look of pure disbelief, then just sighed and shook his head.

"Great party, huh?" Sarah said with another grin.

"Definitely," I said fervently.

"Hey," Sarah said suddenly, gesturing toward one of the tables. "I noticed there is ryncol here. For Grunt."

"Not for you!" I said crossly.

"Hey, what about other people?" Sarah then asked. She had that mischievous look on her face again. "Is there anybody else who can drink ryncol safely?"

"I wouldn't recommend it," I chuckled, shaking my head. Only Sarah would think of that. "I wonder how much longer this is going to go on for."

"Hmm, probably not too long," HK remarked. All of a sudden I was having mental images of HK dressed in extreme, rebellious gothic clothing; Jack would be proud. "I imagine the cake and the movie was the main stuff."

"You're an odd duck," I told him, blinking. I turned away and went over to the food area, grabbing another tiny slice of cake.

"Hey, do you think there would be any harm to just try a teeny tiny sip of ryncol?" Sarah asked with a mischievous grin. She seemed to be only teasing in her own, weird way-at least I hoped that's all it was.

"If you take a sip, I'll feel obliged to drink some, too," I called over. "And I don't think that would be the best way to tell Shepard that we appreciate her."

I saw Shepard snicker halfway across the room-obviously she must have heard.

Sarah cast a wary glance in the Commander's direction, then looked back at me. "How about some ice water instead?" she amended with a smaller grin.

"How about some of the good stuff?" a crewmember named Hawthorne said archly, a cup of something that smelled largely alcoholic in his hand. He gave it to Sarah with a smirk. "Take a sip, go on."

She looked at it. She wrinkled her nose a little, yet she looked curious for the most part. "I just want to know one thing first," she said. "What is it?"

"Rum," he answered promptly. "The human kind."

"What does it taste like?" Sarah said, sounding even more curious. She peered into the cup, examining its contents.

"Sip it and find out," he encouraged.

She stared at it for a moment longer, then she took the cup and brought to her lips. She took a very large sip-then made a face as she handed the cup back. "Wow," she breathed.

"Want the rest?" he asked.

"That's rum?" I asked curiously, coming over to examine the contents of the cup. "Man, that stuff has the weirdest affect on me."

"What's that?" Hawthorne didn't even sound surprised that I'd had some before.

"Yeah. I get really tired after drinking some," I said. "I might need that to get to sleep tonight."

"I think the Commander would have something to say about that," Hawthorne said knowledgably. "None for you." And he took the cup away.

"You didn't drink anything on Omega in Afterlife, did you?" Sarah murmured to me curiously.

"No way," I said fervently. "I don't want to _die_."

"Yeah, none of us do," Sarah murmured thoughtfully.

HK had his mouth open like he was about to say something, but a sudden crash from the back of the room had us all checking it out. The crowd made one of those whisper-quick movements, allowing me to see that a box had fallen off of the top rack and on to the ground. The crowd moved again and I lost my sight.

I moved around, trying to get a better look. "What happened?" I asked curiously to nobody in particular. I didn't get an answer, predictably, so I climbed on top of one of the crates and took a look-see for myself.

It appeared as though Zaeed and one of the other male crew members had been attempting to lift it for some odd reason. Either one or both of them had dropped it, and the other, not strong enough, had let go.

"How the hell heavy is that?" Zaeed cursed. "That probably weighs more than Grunt."

The commotion calmed down a little bit and I figured out that Zaeed and the other guy (Rolston, I thought his name was) had lifted it: they just wanted to see if they could.

The rest of the 'party' went smoothly, but we only had a limited amount of time and eventually EDI informed us that those on duty had better return to their posts. Those who weren't, however, stayed to help clean up, though there really wasn't much to do. We didn't pick up the food crumbs because Joker could just flip the gravity or something and siphon it through the air and into a corner for Rupert later. Or something. I didn't really know or understand, but I was okay with that.

Everybody took their own pillows and blankets back to their room, laughing loudly and pounding each other on the back. The mood of the entire ship had changed-I could feel it. They were happier. Much, much more happier than they had been hours before.

"It was a good idea," Miranda said, helping me clean up my general area. "Happy birthday, by the way. You've survived this long, it'll be a hell of a lot tougher to kill you now."

"Sheesh, thanks," I said with a chuckle.

Zaeed clapped my shoulder as he passed, but he seemed to be favoring his left wrist. Jacob and Thane were chatting across the way, giving me some hope that perhaps some of the resentment I could feel in him towards Thane was beginning to thaw out.

Sarah was on the other side of the room, and she appeared to be talking to Kasumi. Now that the room was thinning out, I found it easier to hear even as they spoke quietly to each other.

"Hey Kasumi," Sarah was saying, "I was just curious... how's project you-know-what going?"

Kasumi's own response was harder to hear. As I bent down to retrieve something I'd dropped, I strained my ears. "I got a lot of good work done today," she said quietly. "We'll talk about it later."

Kasumi was a ninja. She was absolutely a ninja. I just hoped that whatever hare-brained 'project' Sarah had come up with wouldn't get her kicked off of the ship. I doubted that it would if Kasumi was involved, but you ever really knew.

"Thank you so, so much again," I told Shepard sincerely. "That had to be the best thing that somebody's ever done for me."

"It's no problem," she said. She smiled a bit, but she looked like she wasn't really hearing what I was saying. She had the same look on her face that had crossed mine so many times before. It was the 'sure-this-is-fun-but-this-is-too-social-for-me' set of her face that made me think it was probably best to leave her alone now for some private Shepard Time.

Hey, we all needed our Self Time.

Eventually we were all cleaned up and back on Deck Three. Rupert took care of the dishes, and all three of us-Team Milky Way-were left alone sitting on the chairs of the mess hall. For once, we weren't surrounded by other people.

"I'm exhausted, and I didn't even do anything," I said ruefully.

"Did you have fun?" Sarah asked-she included HK in her gaze as she asked this, so I knew she was asking both of us. I nodded.

"Oh yes, it was very interesting," HK replied, almost absent-mindedly. "Seeing that movie about my character was...well, very intriguing. Not much more to say about it than that; I liked where she burst in on the Turian council member and beat him and his mistress up. Other than that, everything was fun. Talking to Tali was really nice, too."

"It was awesome," Sarah murmured. "Never thought I'd ever see a movie like that. But you know, I really think..." She snickered. "We ought to watch something like Twilight next time-I'm really curious about the Elcor version now." She smirked. "Can't be any worse-or any less boring-than the original Earth version."

"You loved the Earth version!" I accused.

"The first movie was so disappointing though," Sarah said with a shrug. "The others had more to them, at least."

"You're not talking about that dumb Twilight movie, are you?" Rupert called from his position at the sink. "Damn it, people have been talking about that thing recently like no tomorrow."

"Hey some people just like it," Sarah shrugged. "If you don't like it, good for you. But that doesn't mean some of us can't like it."

Rupert rolled his eyes and put one hand on the counter as if he were steadying himself. "Hon, there are a ton of crazy women out there drooling over an _elcor."_

Sarah actually blinked. "You've got to be kidding me," she said, baffled. "No offense to the elcor, but... they look like a bunch of huge, lumbering gorilla-lizard hyrbids."

"Exactly!" Rupert cried, shaking his head. "It's downright horrible. And disrespectful, too."

"I'm heading to bed!" I announced. "Good night or morning or whatever!"

Good afternoon was more like it. The clock read 1500 hours-approximately 3:00PM. I slipped right into bed, sore and tired after our mission to Pragia, happy and elated and filled to the brim with cake.

Maybe it would all turn out right after all.


	40. The Mercenary Veteran

Author's Note:

Nope, not dead! However, I do apologize for the lag in recent chapters. Why has this happened, you may ask? WELL, because HK, Abby, and Sarah are participating in what is called…

NaNoWriMo! What is Nanowrimo? It means "National Novel Writing Month." Basically, the entire point of what we're all doing is to create a novel in one month. Alone. No help. None of us know what the other is writing, which is all of the fun! We've all been so busy on it because the deadline for the book to be done is, you guessed it, November 30th! I have a pretty solid 31,345 words and 75 pages, but Sarah's beating me by about 7,000 words. That's okay, though… because I'm so totally going to kick her BUTT!

*gets 'net kicked by Sarah*

Ah, you're no fun! Grumpy. Pfft.

Anyways, we're SO sorry for the long delay in this chapter. We've all been juggling a few things round and round, so it's been a tiny bit hectic. Who here is thankful that Turkey Day is coming soon? :)

**EDIT**: Yeah, the formatting wasn't there a few hours now. Sorry if you get a new notification or anything, all that changed was the placement of bolds/italics. ;)

* * *

**(HK)**

So, the party was fun, but now it was over. It was back to good ole normal life on the Normandy; gearing up as we headed for Zorya to complete the last loyalty mission. There were already small rumblings about going to get the IFF afterwards, and others were wondering what Zaeed would do to Vido.

I knew dang well that he'd do absolutely nothing to Vido Santiago, because Shepard would not blow up a bunch of innocent prisoners just to chase down one man. Not Amelia Shepard, anyway, but we'd cross that bridge when we came to it.

The party was a good distraction, though, it really was; it gave the crew some time to just relax and hang out together, and enjoy a movie about my brilliant creation and her adventures. Ah, yes, yes, life was good when not trying to save the Galaxy. And as a plus, we got to celebrate Abby's birthday. Sarah's birthday was now mere days away, so we'd likely be around to at least see that, as well.

It was so hard to believe that we were approaching the end of all of this; so many weeks spent around the Normandy, doing random things. So many weeks going to planets or space stations and partaking in some life-threatening battle. There had been times here, in between all of the missions, that I felt as if we had too much free time. It was easy to get bored sometimes, but now, it really felt like our free time was running out.

So what was _I_ doing with my free time? Going to see Jack, of course. Yes, I was spending what may be my last days amongst the living seeing a wild biotic woman.

I didn't know what it was lately; it was almost becoming like Sarah's random conversations with Garrus in the gunnery. Only my relationship with Jack was not like that. I had no feelings for Jack...well, I hoped I didn't. She definitely didn't have feelings for me; she just wanted me so that I would give her information on her loyalty mission, and although Jack was definitely...sexy, I had refused to do that.

Yet something kept bringing me back to her. But then there was also some kind of...unique friendship growing between Tali and I. Was that just a simple friendship, or something mo-no, there wasn't anything there either. Tali liked Garrus; Garrus liked Tali; Sarah liked Garrus. But then Abby also liked Sarah...no, wait, that was just Kelly's misperception.

_This is Mass Effect. This is a ship in the military, not a soap opera. There is no romance going on here; not between Jack and me, not between Tali and me, not between Sarah and Garrus, and certainly not between Sarah and Abby. Who knows when it comes to Tali and Garrus._

But no matter what I felt for Jack, here I was, walking down the stairs that led to her little hole on the ship. Maybe I just wanted to check up on her, after the fight with Miranda and then after the incidents during the party. It had been several days since both occurred, sure, but better late than never, right?

I took a deep breath, walking into her room. "Hi, Jack," I greeted.

She looked sharply in my direction, looking surprised. Then her eyes narrowed. "Hey," she said. "What are you doing here?"

"I just kinda came to say hi," I told her. "And see how you were after all that has happened with you in the past week or so."

Jack shrugged. "Shepard already came down here a couple days ago to talk about it," she said. "I'll tell you what I told her. I'm glad I let Aresh go and I'm glad I blew the hell out of that compound. Seeing him down there made me see what I could have been-and I'm not getting stuck in the past. Now that I've blown it up, I can move on."

I nodded. "Yes, I know. I knew that was how you would feel, and it is for the best. Just...believe that," I said. I pretty much knew that was how she felt in the game after that, and I thought it was quite good. "I didn't just mean that, though. That is a big part of what happened, probably the biggest, but I also wondered how you were holding up after the fight with Miranda, and even what happened down on Deck Five."

She snorted. Then she moved to sit down on the edge of her makeshift bed, and she lounged back on it, appearing to relax. "Shepard told us to keep a deck apart at all times," she said. "As long as that bitch stays in her territory on the ship, I'll stay in mine." Then she shrugged a little-as best as she could while lying on her back, at least. "Not sure what you mean about Deck Five-oh wait, you mean that incident with the krogan?" She rolled her eyes. "He actually came down here yesterday. I told him to fuck off and I gave him a little biotic shove to make my point. All it did was give him a nose blood and a stiff neck, but I think he got the message."

I blinked. Okay, that was unexpected, but at least it was resolved. "You know, I watched you charge into Miranda's room. Why did you do that in the first place?" I asked curiously. "I mean, there was really no need to."

Now Jack pushed herself into a sitting position and scowled at me. "Because she's the Cerberus cheerleader," she answered tersely. "Ever since I first saw her she's done nothing but kiss the ass of the organization that did all of that shit to me when I was a kid. I wanted to see if she would admit what Cerberus did to me was wrong, or be able to look me in the eye and vouch for them." Her hands clenched into fists. "Should have known the bitch wouldn't back down."

"I know that Miranda's pimping of Cerberus is really strange, and I totally disagree with her on a lot of things," I said hesitantly. I wasn't even sure why I was talking like this, but this one thing had intrigued me ever since I saw how the fight got started. "But it just seems random and crazy to just barge into her office like that; you should've known it would do nothing. I understand your reasoning, but still."

"I was trying to make her see reason," Jack snapped, standing up and bringing herself to her full height. "Everyone else I've talked to-even Taylor-admits that some things Cerberus does is wrong. But not her. She even threatened to throw me out of her office-so I told her if she tried I would smear the wall with her."

Ah, now I understood that comment when Shepard entered. "I totally understand; I've tried to change people too, admittedly...but often enough, it just doesn't work. Not with people as stubborn as Miranda, so it is just not worth the effort, no matter how stupid you may think what they believe is. And trust me, I am probably one of the humans that hates Cerberus the most, aside from you."

Now she looked at me almost curiously. She still wore a light scowl on her features, though. She opened her mouth, looking as though she were about to retort or accuse me of something, then she closed it.

She was silent for a moment, then she folded her arms across her chest and said, "You know, I still don't get why the hell you're down here. You've made it clear you don't want sex, and I don't think we have anything left to offer each other. I already got what I needed." She stared at me, hard, demanding an answer.

I sighed, at that point. She was probably right; why the heck was I down here? Just to speak with her about the incident with Miranda? "I...don't know. I honestly don't. Heck, maybe I shouldn't even be down here; your mission is done and that is that," I muttered out loud. "I have no clue why I keep coming back here."

She continued to stare at me for a moment longer. Her lips curved into a small frown. "You're fucking strange," she finally said. She sat down again. "Still can't say I've ever met anyone like you, HK." She looked thoughtful as she gazed at me again. "Well, since you ARE down here... what do you want to do now?" She seemed curious.

"Well, I've never met anyone like you, either," I assured her, almost smirking. "And, uhh...I don't know. What is there to do down here?"

Now she actually laughed. "The one thing you made it clear you DON'T want to do," she replied.

"...well thank you, that was so helpful," I said, blinking. "I just don't take sex lightly. I didn't before, and I definitely don't after that fiasco with Morinth."

"Every other man I've ever met always came back to me because he wanted something, particularly sex," Jack mused. "Either that or they wanted me to kill someone for them. I guess that's why I'm here. But between you and Shepard... you're the only ones who've bothered to talk to me. Well, Chambers tried to talk to me a few times, but I think I made her piss her pants so much she finally stopped coming."

"Kelly is a very nice girl, but too strange for me. She means well, but...well, you probably heard about the whole Abby and Sarah thing," I said with a sigh. "And Shepard is a very caring woman; it may not show on her face or in her voice, exactly, but she is. Not in a sweet, old grandmotherly way, or even some harsh mother way...but it is some kind of different way that I can't explain. Probably the way a commander does it, but I still think Shepard is different than the rest. And as for me, well, you may be hot and sexy, but I don't jump a girl's bones the first chance I get."

"I get the sense you're telling the truth about that," Jack nodded a little. "I saw the look in your eyes when I kissed you, and when you talk about Morinth. It's... refreshing to see that in a guy, I guess."

_Nice to know that you saw something when you kissed me...I think?_

"Thanks. The situation with Morinth was so strange, so unusual for me," I admitted, though she probably already knew this. "She activated something in me that I had never felt before. I just wanted to be with her right then and there; it was past the normal thing that most guys have where they want to have sex with a girl. It was so...obsessive, so psychotic. I needed her, I wanted her. It is something that I never want to go through again."

"If Shepard had brought me along, I would have fucking killed that bitch on sight," Jack said. "But this is... all new for you." She looked at me curiously again. "Tell me something. After that... incident of yours, are you interested in doing it with another girl?"

I stared at her for a moment, the question catching me off guard. Not because of the answer, but because of the question being asked. "Yeah, someday. Not now, but someday, definitely...but it will have to be awhile. The experience didn't scare me away from sex or anything; I won't let Morinth win like that, but I don't intend on having sex in the near future."

Jack looked as though she wanted to say something, but then she yawned-and it was a big yawn, so wide I heard her jaw crack. She stretched her arms over her head, then she looked at me again. Weariness seemed to be settling over her like a fog; I figured she would need her rest soon.

"Hey," she said after a moment. "stay down here for a while."

"O...kay?"

She grunted and then sat down on the edge of her makeshift bed. She then indicated the spot beside her. "Sit down," she said.

I hesitantly took a seat beside her, hoping that she wasn't about to sexually assault me...again.

"Good boy," she said. "Now I'd like to try something a little different for once. I want to sleep with you-and I don't mean have sex. I just figure this will be interesting for both of us. For once, I can sleep with someone not interested in sex, and you can see what it's like to technically sleep with someone you seem to like. The only rule is that we keep our hands to ourselves tonight." She smirked again.

My eyes nearly went wide, but I tried to keep myself calm and controlled. It seemed like such a weird idea, but strangely, one that would not be totally out there. "Sounds interesting. I say we try it."

"Then shut up and lie down." With that she lay down and scooted herself to the side of the bed, as close to the wall as she could get in order to leave room for me. She also had her back to me. But she did glance at me indicatively-she was waiting for me to lie down next to her.

Very slowly, I lied down beside her. It felt so weird as I hadn't really done this before, but...it wasn't too bad. Not as bad as being seduced by Morinth, after all. So, nonetheless, I lied down and got comfortable.

"I expect you to still be there when I wake up," Jack muttered as she rested her head against her pillow, once again facing the wall. She shifted a little, getting comfortable herself.

"Don't worry," I simply assured her.

A couple minutes later... I found out something about Jack that I never knew before. She could really _snore._

I raised a very large eyebrow for a moment, but simply shrugged it off, before falling into a nice, calm sleep myself.

And then I woke up suddenly, my heart pounding. Abby was hanging from the vent, her eyes wide and her mouth agape. She must have been like that for a while, because I could see the drool gathering there. Then, as I watched, the drool dripped down from her mouth...

...and landed on Jack's face.

Jack moaned slightly as she reached up to touch her face. She seemed to be still asleep as she wiped the drool away. "Bad varren," she murmured lightly. "Sleep somewhere else tonight."

...Was that how scale itch got onboard?

"Abby!" I snapped, but tried to keep my tone low. "Just what do you think you are doing?"

Abby jerked a bit and placed her hand over her mouth. Her eyes, wide and fearful, flew to Jack and she quickly disappeared up the vent, so silently that not even I could hear her in the dead silence of the Normandy.

_She's insane._

I'd fix any wrong assumptions tomorrow; right now, I just needed to sleep peacefully, and fulfill this...strange deal with Jack, if I could call it that.

Still sleeping soundly, Jack suddenly moved a little and rolled onto her side so that she was facing me-she had been on her back for a while, and now she inadvertently touched me. Then, still in the depths of sleep... her arms encircled themselves around me and she rested her head on my shoulder.

"'Keep our hands to ourselves' my butt..." I muttered, gently taking her arms and throwing them away.

That caused Jack to awaken. She blinked several times, then looked at me. "I knew you'd give in eventually," she muttered. Then she grabbed my chin and kissed me.

My eyes went wide, and out of instinct I shoved Jack off of me, immediately leaping off of the bed. "I should've known this was a trick," I growled to her. "I went along with you, actually trusting you, and the minute you think I am making some move you kissed me. It is so useless trying to deal with you."

"Then why the fuck were you touching me just now?" Jack snapped, sitting up and glaring at me. "And why the hell is my face wet?" She swiped at her cheek and lips.

"I was touching no one, you threw your arm around me in your sleep. Or hell, for all that I know, it was some trick," I blurted out, staring at her angrily. "As for your face, take that up with my roommates upstairs."

"What the hell are you talking about? Were they down here?" She grimaced, looking a little disgusted. "What, did you decide you wanted a threesome after all? Or a foursome?"

I stared at her for a moment, just giving her a look of shock and dismay. "Did any of what I said to you just go in one ear and come out the other? About how I don't want sex?" I asked, raising my voice. "Listen to me and listen to me good, you bitch. I got taken advantage of once and I am not going to let anyone do it again; I don't know where the hell you think you get the right to kiss me or lure me into some stupid trap on the bed."

I could feel the rage boiling up in my chest. "Kill me or smack me around or whatever you want to do and probably will do, but I don't care, as long as you know this and know it good: People like you may get shocked at how I don't want sex or anything like that from someone as sexy as you or any other nice-looking girl out there. It is because I have _morals_. I have _values_. Unlike you, sex means more to me than a random hook-up; I nearly lost my virginity not too long ago and I could kick myself for doing so. It is a mistake that is probably going to affect me for awhile, but I refuse to ever make it again. So get that in your head and remember it!"

Before Jack could even do more than open her mouth, I heard footsteps behind me, followed by an all-too-familiar voice. "Joker says you're both having an issue down here. Care to tell me what the hell is going on?"

I turned to see none other than Commander Shepard standing there, her arms folded across her chest, raising the infamous Shepard Eyebrow at both me and Jack.

I glanced at Jack, before looking back to Shepard, trying to calm myself down. "Don't worry, no issues. Just setting the record straight on a few things," I replied in a bland monotone, beginning to walk past Shepard. "I'll be upstairs if anyone needs me."

"None of your fucking business," Jack snapped at Shepard even as I passed the Commander. "And if that pilot thinks he can spy on me and get away with it-"

"I don't want you going anywhere near Joker," Shepard stated firmly. "Especially not while you're in this mood. I don't know what was going on, but I want you to stay down here and cool off."

"Fine by me," Jack muttered, returning to the usual spot where she sat. "I'm done talking anyway."

Shepard looked at her for a moment longer, then she gave a satisfied nod and turned to follow me up the stairs.

Once we reached the second set of stairs-and I was pretty sure we were out of her earshot-Shepard asked me in a low tone, "So what may I ask were you doing down there?"

I whirled around to face Shepard, continuing to try to stay calm. However, the emotions in me were still very raw and powerful; I was not usually like this, and it was very rare that I got caught up in drama and went on a tirade like that. But all these incidents with Jack, and the one with Morinth...it was still getting to me, somehow.

"I was trying to be friendly. I made the mistake of trusting her, one I often make with so many people," I snapped, but kept my voice controlled. "I'll try not to make it again. I don't want any drama, Commander, I really don't."

She looked at me for a moment, then nodded a little. "I think you already know that Jack is someone you have to be careful around," she said thoughtfully. "But if you can't handle her or feel you can't trust her, just stay away from her. Hell, stay off this deck. I don't want either of you getting pissed off at each other and distracting yourselves from the mission. Is that clear?"

I sighed; I really was starting to feel like Sarah, but perhaps Shepard didn't have the wrong idea. "Yes, ma'am, it is," I told her. "I won't come near Jack again unless I absolutely have to."

"Good to hear." Shepard then indicated that we continue moving, and we made our way toward the elevator.

Once we were inside and the door closed, Shepard turned to look at me again. "I wanted to talk to you anyway. I've already asked EDI to tell Abby to meet us at my quarters. I want to talk to you both about this next mission we're going on, the one that involves Zaeed."

_Oh goody, I get to see the girl who helped start this little mess._

However, I didn't let my thoughts show to Shepard, knowing that I'd probably regret them later. No matter how many times Abby or Sarah made me mad, I seemed to forget about it later on. "Okay, good idea. Maybe it'll help me forget about this."

Then the elevator stopped for a moment, but only so that Zaeed could step on. Apparently all three of us were going to Shepard's quarters-Abby was already there, presumably. "Glad we're finally going to get this mess over with," Zaeed growled as he practically shoved himself in between us. "I've been waiting long enough."

Shepard pressed the elevator button to continue moving the lift. Then she turned to look at Zaeed, her eyes tightening slightly. "I gave you my word we would get it done," she stated firmly. "Just remember that you're not the only person on this ship."

"So I've noticed," Zaeed remarked. "Sometimes you have to wait in line for an hour to use the bathroom, especially with someone decides to use the goddamn shower."

"At least we're going to take care of it now," Shepard told him. "And very soon."

"Good." Zaeed then looked directly at me. "Hey kid, I want you to tell me something. This mission is going to be a success, right?"

"I can't say too much, but just...be prepared for anything," I replied, not wanting to be honest and cause another tirade from someone else, but not wanting to flat out lie either.

"I plan to do whatever it takes to bring Vido down," Zaeed said. "I just want to know if I'll get to do it."

"Zaeed," Shepard spoke up firmly, "save it for the debriefing."

Then, as if on cue, the elevator door opened. Shepard stepped out first and led the way into her quarters. Abby was already inside; she seemed to be admiring the aquarium. When I glanced at it I noticed that it had several bright yellow fish inside of it-I had no idea when she'd gotten those, but apparently she had them.

"Put it back, Abby," Shepard sighed softly as she approached my friend. I looked at Abby, puzzled, then I realized what was going on; she was holding a space hamster in her hands.

Abby grinned and said something about it being cute, then she handed it back to Shepard. The Commander then put the small creature back in its cage.

"Never saw much use for pets," Zaeed grunted. "I find better use for weapons."

"I've heard you talk to Jessie," Shepard muttered, a small look of amusement on her face. "Anyway we're here to talk about this mission," she finally said, getting down to business. Each of us took our seats-although Zaeed remained standing.

"So, what can you tell us about this place we're going to?" Shepard asked, looking at both me and Abby.

"I just have one request," Abby stated loudly. "I don't want Jack with us."

I rolled my eyes. "Isn't Jacob coming?"

"Yeah, but why wouldn't you want Jack to come with us?" Shepard questioned.

Abby looked away. "She's too hot-tempered for this. If we're going to do this, we need people who will follow the orders to the letter. Jack and Grunt will follow your orders, Commander, but they're not right for this."

"I'll take that into consideration," Shepard said slowly, "but I've already chosen Mister Taylor to accompany us down."

"He's a good choice," Abby said. "Now, as for the battle strategy, it's pretty straightforward. There are some guys with the flamethrowers, a heavy mech, and some tinier mechs. But really? We're going to kick their butts."

I nodded. "Agreed."

* * *

**(Abby)**

Things felt like they were spinning out of control - literally. I ducked back into our room, alone, thankfully, and had my own little private freak-out at the implications of what was coming up began to drift through my mind. Not only was Zaeed's mission very hard, emotionally and physically, but after this Commander Shepard was making it clear we'd only make one stop for fuel before hitting the Derelict Reaper and the IFF.

After that, we'd be getting Legion's loyalty mission down and then we'd... well, we'd be locked in.

I wasn't ready for this. I wasn't ready for this at all.

Eventually, though, I had to find some restraint and control myself. I hadn't been crying, but I had been in a fetal position on my bed, head against my knees, eyes closed. I had a mission - a goal - a plan. The entire mission hinged on every single one of us, including, regretfully, me, and if I screwed up, if I did something bad...

No, I couldn't think of that. I couldn't. Think. Of. That.

EDI appeared silently from the wall jack to my right, just hovering there with a silent, accusatory air. As soon as I saw the soft blue glow illuminate my feet, I knew I had best just get over it.

Get over it. Do my job. Do what I have to do...

I rose from the bed slowly, but at least I rose. I dressed quietly and quickly, placed the small shield overlays over the key areas, and made sure to put a brace on my right wrist as a preventative measure. I always seemed to hurt it somehow on nearly every mission, and unless I wanted to severely burn it, break it, sprain it, fracture it, or wound it in any way, it was probably best to just wrap it up.

At least back in Aikido we could put red tape over our injuries and people would leave it alone. Now it just gave people a dang target.

EDI's hologram watched me as I exited, which I found somewhat disturbing. Oh well. I made a quick trip to the armory and grabbed the rest of my gear, and then I went back to Deck Three... to wait. I didn't see HK.

About five minutes into my silent vigil, I heard a door open and close - it sounded like it came from my room. Bored and wanting to take my mind off of things, I decided to get up and take a look to see who it was.

And if I happened to catch HK in the middle of changing his underwear, I could only hope that EDI was still watching because the end result would be very beneficial to her sudden urge to make jokes based on human anatomy. (Hey, after seeing him sleeping with Jack I was allowed to make these jokes!)

But to my surprise, it was Sarah I found. And she was crying. "Hey," I said, surprised, moving towards her on the bed, "hey, what's the matter?"

She looked toward me, flinching as though startled-or maybe embarrassed. "Oh, hi," she said, hastily wiping at her eyes. "Sorry." She swiped her eyes-then her nose-on her sleeve. "I just..." She stopped then squeezed her eyes shut, pressing her lips into a thin line. She seemed to be trying to suppress her crying.

"Hey, what's wrong?" I reiterated, genuinely concerned. "What happened?"

"It's nothing bad or anything," Sarah sniffed. "It was just... oh, oh, _IT WAS SO SAD_!"

"What was?" I asked, startled.

"Kasumi... she let me..." Whatever she was about to say was cut off by a soft sob and another round of sniffles.

"Let you _what_?"

"It was so sad! That movie... I really loved it though! She suggested I watch it, because I wanted something to do during my free time. It was SO SAD!"

"_What?"_

"Toy Story Three!" Sarah sniffled.

I blinked. Was it really possible that both Sarah_ and _HK could make me speechless in the same day?

Yes, yes it was.

"You're crying over a_ movie?"_

Sarah gave me a look, and seemed to sober a bit. Now she just looked grumpy. "Hey, it was sad!" she exclaimed. "It was just... oh, you'd have to see it to believe it! Woody and the others had to deal with being... well, not wanted anymore. Then they got roughed up, and we got this terrible sob story from a teddy bear! He felt abandoned! And he became evil because of it! And then, thanks to him, everybody nearly burned to death! And THEN, at the end... Andy told this kid all about his wonderful toys as he gave them away." Now, having come to an end of her... melodramatic review, Sarah looked like she was on the verge of tears again.

"Sarah," I said, baffled, "are you... serious? You're seriously crying because a fictional character gave away his toys?"

"You'd cry too if you saw it!"

"Would not!" I argued. "Nobody died, right?" I'd only cried during two movies: Marley & Me and Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince.

"One of the toys CRIED!" Sarah protested. "It was so sad! It was... well..." She coughed. "A baby doll toy. A big baby doll toy."

"The baby cried and it was _sad_?"

"Yes!" Sarah said, exasperated. She looked at me like I was stupid or something.

"You are so WEIRD!"

"Well you're weird too!" Sarah huffed. She stood and began to move toward the door. "I want to talk to Kasumi," she muttered. "Maybe SHE would understand."

"_'Good luck on Zorya, Abby_!'" I huffed. "_'Hope you don't die_!' Aww, Sarah, don't worry about us, we'll be good. _'But I love you guys so much, I just don't want anything to happen to you!'_ Sheesh, relax, take a chill pill. We'll whack all the bad guys. Don't worry. _'But-but-_' Relax, Sarah. Don't sleep in any shuttles."

Sarah turned around, then walked away from the door and toward me. She looked at me for a moment-then surprised me by giving me a big hug. "Sorry," she murmured. "I do hope you'll be okay-but you always are anyway."

She pulled back and sighed. "It's just... today is MY birthday, you know? Seems like Kasumi is the only one who remembered! That's why we watched that movie together."

"I'm sorry," I said honestly, giving her another huge hug. "We're just running on the wire about Zorya - I'm sure we'll do something epic when we get back."

"That's okay," Sarah said, wiping at her eyes again. "I didn't mean to snap or anything. It's just that I got SO into that movie... it really made me take my mind off things. And I could really feel for the characters, you know?"

The doors randomly swung open, and none other than HK walked in. "Okay, before you two jump to any more conclusions, it is time to set a few things stra-wait, are you crying?" he asked, looking at Sarah.

"I watched the saddest movie ever with Kasumi," Sarah replied simply.

"And what was that?"

Sarah sniffled. "Toy Story Three!" she answered.

"I think I saw that movie but I'm too distracted to really think about it," HK replied. His eyes turned to me. "And just so you know, I did not sleep with Jack! Well, not in the sense that you thought I did. We just lied down together for a little while."

"Huh, what?" Sarah exclaimed, blinking. She seemed to sober quite a bit as she thought about what HK just said. "You what with Jack? What happened? What did I miss?"

"And what exactly do you call what you were doing down there?" I squealed.

"Chewing Jack out, that's what. I finally lost my patience with her and told her off!" HK promptly replied.

"What happened down there? I don't get it!" Sarah said, looking confused.

"HK and Jack were sleeping together," I said angrily. "No sex that I could see, but they were still sleeping together-cuddling!"

Sarah looked at HK with shock written all over her features. "Wow... you really like her that much?" she asked.

"Heck no, she's probably one of the worst people on this ship!" HK shouted furiously. "After Abby drooled on her and ran off, she threw her arms around me and I threw them off. She woke up and assumed that I was trying to make a move, and pretty much acted like it was all a ploy and kissed me yet again. I threw her away again and ranted at her before Shepard came down and broke it up."

"WHY WERE YOU EVEN SNOOZING WITH HER IN THE FIRST PLACE?" I crowed.

"It was a stupid deal that we made; we'd sleep in the same bed together, and just sleep. As long as we didn't touch each other at all, and obviously, that rule was broken. We were doing it to see how I'd fair sleeping next to someone after the Morinth fiasco," HK explained to me.

"Oh my gosh," Sarah said. And that was all she said. She simply shook her head and sank down on the edge of her bed, staring at both of us.

"What the hell did you make that deal for?"

"Did you not hear the last part of my sentence?" HK scowled.

"So you don't think you're traumatized _enough_?"

Sarah put her hand over her mouth but said nothing, still watching us with widened eyes. It seemed to be her turn to be speechless.

"It was a test, but I admit it was a stupid one! This entire...whatever it has been with Jack and I has been a fiasco from the beginning. I don't know why I keep going to see her," HK responded, shaking his head slightly.

Now Sarah finally spoke up. "I guess this just proves something," she muttered.

I shuddered. "You're not going to go have sex with the woman, are you?"

"No, I really would prefer not to speak with her again," HK coldly said. He looked at Sarah. "And what is that?"

Sarah coughed. "I don't think any of us have learned anything from all the internet drama we've experienced, that's all," she said, as if that somehow had a lot to do with what was being discussed right now.

"And just what does that have to do with anything?" HK asked.

"Well..." Sarah stammered a little, as though trying to get her thoughts together. Maybe she wasn't even sure what she meant by that. Finally, after a moment, she said, "You know... all that stuff we witnessed where people acted childish at each other on those websites, not to mention that stupid love triangle that happened amongst some people we knew?" She glanced heavenward toward the ceiling, then her eyes snapped in the direction of EDI's terminal. I had a pretty good idea what she was thinking; she didn't want to say TOO much because she knew that EDI was always listening. But I knew exactly what she was talking about-a lot of it was best left unsaid anyway. "And here we are... ugh, I think we've all done some pretty stupid things during this entire mission, one way or another." She shot HK a meaningful look-more of a smirk than anything. "Glad to see I'm not the only idiot," she muttered sarcastically. "Nice going with Jack."

"Well, gee, thank you. So encouraging," HK remarked with a roll of his eyes. "I am so glad that you both have been so supportive during this."

"I didn't mean anything by it," Sarah muttered. "I'm sorry. It's just... doesn't it seem like everything has been crazy since this adventure first started? I know that a lot of that is my fault, and I am trying to do better. But..." She shrugged a little, and looked slightly exasperated. "Just what is going on around here anyway?"

"It is a war," HK answered with a slight shrug and a frown. "A lot of things get crazy. People get crazy; I made a mistake with Jack. I let her get too close, or I let myself get too close to her or something. It was totally my fault, and I won't make such a mistake again."

Sarah spoke again before I could do more than open her mouth. "Yeah I know. I mean, I certainly got crazy... and now I'm stuck on this deck, and in this ROOM when I'm not working. But um..." She frowned. "Why does all the trouble seem to center around us mostly?"

"We're different than everyone else, obviously. I believe everyone else on this ship is used to either the military or just hard lives in general. People like Jacob, Garrus, and Miranda have been in militia-like environments for eons, so they are used to these events. People like Jack have had hard lives, so this is nothing new. For us it is an entirely new experience, and I think it bears down on us sometimes."

"Yeah... I sorta thought it would be... well, like a game." Sarah snorted.

"Obviously not," HK said with a small laugh.

Sarah frowned just then, looking deeply thoughtful. "You want to know something?" she asked aloud after a moment.

I shrugged. "Hmm?"

"I'm actually kind of... sad that all of this is almost over," Sarah mused. "Zaeed's mission is the last, and then... well, this just means all of this is going to end soon." Her frown deepened as she look at each of us. "You know, I've been so focused on, well... worrying about dying or whatever that I didn't even realize... I'm going to miss everyone when all this is over. I mean... what does happen when all this is done? Will we just go on straight to Mass Effect 3, or go home, or what?"

"I don't know," I said honestly, my own face deepening into a frown. I'd given this a lot of thought and had come up with no answer. "I really don't know. I... wouldn't mind staying here for a while, but afterwards... I'd kind of like to go home. I love these guys, but we don't belong here. We really don't."

"Yeah well... to be honest, I kind of miss home anyway," Sarah said, chuckling a little bit. "I kind of wonder if our families and friends back there are worried about us."

"I don't think they even know," HK replied with a shrug, looking thoughtful. "We are physically and mentally here, on the Normandy, but I think our lives on Earth are still going on as they would if we were there. It's how we know what is sorta happening in our real lives, I think."

"Hmmm yeah," Sarah mused. "Well, that might explain why I have the impression that I've had a marvelous birthday back on Earth," she added. "Hey, speaking of which..." She grinned at us, looking at us both. "After you guys finish helping Zaeed on his mission... I was wondering if just the three of us could do something. We haven't really had a chance to hang out much since all this started, and I'd like you two to do something with me-just the three of us, no one else."

She suddenly got a mischievous look. "And I have an idea on what we can do." Why did that look on her face make me feel scared?

"What?" I asked suspiciously.

"We're all going to sit together in here, eat snacks from the mess hall, and..." If anything, her eye began to twinkle evilly. "We're going to watch Bruno!"

"Uhh..."

"Oh come on, I want to see HK's reaction to it!" Sarah giggled.

"I'm out!" I declared.

"Aw!" Sarah frowned. "Come on, don't you want to see it again? You saw it when it first came out!"

"Oh dear..." HK muttered.

"HK, don't you want to see it? Just once?" Sarah pressed.

"NO! Just what I need when we are heading straight for the IFF," HK sarcastically remarked. "To watch _Bruno_."

"Okay... I guess Bruno is out there," Sarah said. She looked slightly disappointed, but then she seemed to shrug it off. "Well, then maybe we can do something else. Maybe we could talk about this a little more, when you guys get back? Um... then again I don't even know if only one of you is going, or both are going."

"We both are," I said. "Zaeed wants the maximum advantage on the field."

"So you're leaving me alone, again," Sarah sighed. "Just... be careful out there, okay?" She then hugged both of us. "I've only been thinking about myself for so long-I really don't want you guys to get hurt. And this mission is REALLY rough. I don't want to see either of you come back hurt, not even with a single scratch or bruise, you hear me?" Her face was dead serious.

"That would be a shocker!" I joked. "I think we get whacked every time we're out there."

"Yeah well... just try to keep it down to a few scratches." Sarah then turned away and went to sit down on the edge of her bed. "In the meantime... I'm going to keep myself busy, like usual, because I don't want to think about what's going on down there. The thought of people bleeding and getting killed makes me queasy. SO..."

She tapped her omni-tool. "Hey, Garrus?" she said, speaking into it. "Are you busy right now?"

"Uh, no, not really. Just finished doing some calibrations," Garrus's mechanical voice replied. "What do you need, Sarah?"

"Oh I don't really need anything," Sarah replied casually. She scooted herself further onto her bed, folding her legs in beneath her. "I was just wondering if you'd like to hang out a little. I mean... it's my birthday, HK and Abby are leaving soon, and there's this movie I'd really like to watch with someone. Are you interested?"

"Ah, sure. I don't think I have too much to do for the rest of the day," Garrus replied, sounding slightly uncertain, but mostly fine with the idea. "When would you like to watch it?"

"How about, say... twenty minutes, in my room?" Sarah grinned. She then cast me and HK another one of her mischievous looks. Oh no, she wasn't going to watch_ Bruno_ with him, was she?

"Sure," Garrus repeated. "I'll be there in just a little bit, then. Is that all?"

HK simply shook his head.

"Yup, that's it," Sarah beamed. "See you then!" She then cut off the link. "Don't either of you dare say a word to him," she told us as she scooted herself off of her bed, getting to her feet again. "I just want to have a little fun today, before things really go to hell. So do be a big, birthday favor and DON'T tell him anything about Bruno. Got it?"

HK just chuckled. "Fine, Sarah, fine."

"Thanks!" Then she grabbed my hand and shook it, and then grabbed Abby's and shook it. She must have been in a VERY good mood-or maybe she had simply gotten over her fears and worries and was being less reclusive; I had never seen her so touchy-feely before. "Good luck, both of you-now get out of here! I've got a date!" She then laughed, making it clear it was a joke.

"Crazy," I muttered.

* * *

**(HK)**

So, a little bit of time past, and we were already getting suited up and ready for Zaeed's mission. After all of us had the armor and weapons that we needed, we headed straight for the shuttle. Jacob, Shepard, and of course Zaeed were already there by the time Abby and I got there, and you could literally feel the intensity in the air.

Zaeed was very, very anxious. He kept making comments about how he was ready to get this mission done and how he was also ready to smash Vido's skull in; I nearly shuddered at the thought that that wouldn't happen.

You could also feel the, uhh...chemistry between Shepard and Jacob. Their relationship was definitely growing, and they didn't even have to speak for us to see that. This left me wondering where Shepard's relationship with Thane stood, too.

All in all, a lot was bearing down on us, and romance was the least of our worries. This was the last loyalty mission; like Sarah said, we were reaching the end. After this, we were heading straight for the IFF. The end could really be drawing near for us all.

Ah well, we didn't need to focus on it right now. At the moment, our focus was the mission down on Zorya.

The shuttle lifted off, zooming down towards Zorya and out of the Normandy. All of us were sitting down in what was something of an almost awkward silence.

"Everyone stay sharp," Shepard said in a voice of authority. She was checking over her assault rifle, making certain all of her weapons were locked and loaded. "I understand that this mission is going to be particularly hazardous." Her eyes locked with mine and then Abby's for a moment, then she finished inspecting her gun and put it away. "We need to stick together and get this done."

"Don't worry about us," Abby said. "We're good."

"We can do it," I encouraged. "It won't be a piece of cake or anything, but we'll just have to keep pushing through. Like we always have."

In the midst of all of this, I found my mind wandering to Jack...no, no, I could not think about her anymore. Especially not now; part of me wondered if I had gone overboard when I ranted at her, but I had to put it out of my mind. At least until we got back.

It was only a few minutes until I felt us entering the atmosphere of Zorya, and I tensed. This was going to turn into a circus real fast.

Abby shot a worried look towards Jacob - they'd both been observing Zaeed out of the corners of their eyes, and even I could tell the old man was restless. "Fun fun," I heard Abby mutter.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I received a confirmation from EDI-when I asked her-that the shuttle had departed. I knew that they were well on their way. For some reason... I felt worried about them now. Just because I knew that this mission was really rough.

But well, they would come through okay. They always did. Right now, I had something else I could focus on. Rupert had given me the day off as sort of a "birthday present", and I was going to spend a little of it with Garrus.

He arrived in a timely manner. I had gotten us both some fresh cut fruit from the mess hall... only then I remembered that he couldn't eat human food. I offered to go get him some water or something before the movie started, but he simply shook his head, saying he was fine.

So we both sat down in the chairs I'd arranged, in front of a small viewing screen I'd borrowed from Kasumi. It was the same one I'd watched Toy Story 3 on with her earlier. "This is so fun," I said with a smile. "I really wish we all could have done things like this more often. It would have made all of this a lot more fun and relaxing."

"Yeah well," Garrus commented, "this is not exactly a luxury liner, you know. We're out here to get all of the resources and upgrades we need, get everything else done, and then go kick some Collector ass."

"I know," I remarked. "I'm just saying... well, never mind. The movie's about to start." I leaned back in my chair and focused on the screen, stuffing some fruit into my mouth.

The movie opened just like I remembered, with the start of Bruno's fashion show. And then during it... we got to see some, shall we say, rather odd sexual scenes.

I found myself looking at Garrus several times, wondering what he was thinking. I definitely saw his eyes widen, and his mandibles twitched more than once.

"That..." Garrus coughed. "I don't see how that can possibly be pleasurable."

"Me neither to be honest," I said, looking away from the screen. That specific part had grossed me out the first time I'd seen it, and it still did. The part with the... fire extinguisher hose being shoved up that man's-well.

"Is this really the kind of thing humans do in their bedrooms?" Garrus asked me, looking in my direction with widened eyes.

"Uhh... I don't really know," I shrugged. "This movie was made back in the early 2000's, I think."

Garrus turned back to look at the screen. "Well, perhaps this could be interesting," he mused, his mandibles clicking a little.

I felt myself perk up a little. I'd actually been worried that he would hate the movie from the start and leave. "Really?"

"Yeah," he said. "Seems like I'll get to see a side of human behavior I've never seen before."

I stared at him for a long moment, then looked back at the screen. Okay... I wasn't sure if that was gonna be a good thing or not. But whatever, at least I was getting a chance to hang out with him. I shoved another piece of fruit in my mouth.

* * *

**(HK)**

Once the shuttle landed, I knew we'd arrived. Everyone was quiet for the most part, and I knew that the others-especially Zaeed-were anticipating this mission. His face was set and there was a fire in his eyes I'd never seen before. It looked very intense, almost as though he might be ready to rip the entire planet apart with his bare hands if he had to.

Then again, the man had been waiting twenty years for this. In some ways this almost reminded me of Jack's mission, at least when it came to dealing with the past and putting it behind him, only this was a matter of revenge. It wasn't about wiping a bad place full of torturous memories of the map.

...And why was I thinking about _her _again? I tried to shove those thoughts aside.

"Zaeed," Shepard asked as she unfastened her restraints, glancing toward the older man. "Why did you bring Jessie? I thought that gun didn't work."

Zaeed unfastened his seat restraints and threw them aside, standing up. "For luck," he said simply. "I once took a shot at Vido with this gun, before she stopped working. I actually managed to hit him in the chest with it. Obviously he survived, though." He scowled, moving toward the door. "And I'm going to do a lot worse to him than that this time. Let's get a move on."

However he hesitated at the last moment, as we began to file outside. He looked at Jessie for a long moment, then rested the old, broken gun on the seat he'd just vacated. "No sense in running the risk of losing her or banging her up out there," he murmured. With that, we headed out.

Zorya actually looked similar to Aeia, the world where Jacob's father and his crew had been marooned for ten years. And yet this place was a bit more jungle-like, and it somehow seemed... wilder, if that was the right word.

"Everyone stick together, and move out," Shepard ordered, taking point as she always did. Zaeed followed close behind her, as did Jacob; Abby and I stayed close but trailed a little behind.

"Tapping into Blue Suns communications," Zaeed said, tapping his omni-tool. "Stay tight, and look out for ambushes."

We continued to job along, then we suddenly heard Vido's voice over the comms. _"Squad Bravo,"_ the voice said,_ "a shuttle landed near your location, Check it out."_

"Here we go," Zaeed announced, tightening his grip on his assault rifle. "Keep close."

Abby had decided to stay in the rear, a sniper rifle resting in her hands. I already knew without asking that there was probably a round in the chamber already, and that there probably had been since we entered the shuttle. "Fighting's about to start," she commented wryly. "Nobody breathe too loud..."

Shepard began to jog forward, forcing the rest of us to quicken our pace to keep up. She came to a halt when we came across a small pile of bodies laying on the ground. The Commander looked at them for a moment, then she stepped forward and crouched down to get a better look. She was still alert, keeping a general awareness of her surroundings. "They're dead," she remarked. She did not bother to state the obvious; they also _smelled._

"Shot in the back and left to rot," Zaeed confirmed. "Definitely Vido's style."

"Let's keep moving," Shepard said, rising and taking point again. We continued along the path-if it really was a path.

_"Command to Bravo,"_ Vido's voice chimed in over the comms again. _"Take a position. Likely these people are not runaways."_

We proceeded over the next several meters with caution. I knew that the fighting was going to start soon. And I knew that everyone else knew it too-especially Abby, and likely Zaeed.

_"Report to base!"_ a dispatcher suddenly shouted over the radio. _"Armed intruders incoming at the southern checkpoint!"_

And then weapons' fire began to rain in her direction. Abby let out a victorious yell when the woman toppled over the connecting walkway above us, her sniper rifle her up against her face. "I'll stay back here," she told us, kneeling behind cargo crates.

There were at least a dozen men in the area, and all of them had taken cover and were firing. I crouched behind a large rock and readied my assault rifle, then leaned out of cover to take aim and fire. I managed to pull off a perfect headshot.

...Unless maybe that was Abby. I couldn't really tell.

Jacob, Shepard and Zaeed had all gone forward and taken their positions as well, firing their weapons. Zaeed let out an almost animal-roar as he fired shot after shot, and if I didn't know any better I'd say that he managed to aggressively take out at least half of Vido's men all by himself.

Jacob's precise weapon's fire, along with Shepard's skill and biotics-and Abby's sniper shooting-took out the rest. I definitely managed to take out at least a couple with my assault rifle, though.

"Hold fire," Shepard shouted after a moment. When all was silent, she carefully eased her way out of cover and took a careful look around. Once she was satisfied she called out, "The coast is clear. Let's move forward."

That was when the Blue Suns dispatcher shouted over the radio again. _"Blue Suns! Fall back!"_

"Well, we've got them on the run now," Jacob muttered as he brushed some debris off of his pants and reloaded his rifle. "But that also means they know we're here, and there will be reinforcements."

"Nothing we can't handle," Zaeed said confidently. "We've already been through plenty of scrapes before this."

"Don't get cocky," Shepard warned. "HK, you and Abby take the rear. Zaeed, you and I take point."

"Let's get to the damn gatehouse," Zaeed said with a short nod.

We all moved forward and soon approached a small console, where a bridge should have been connecting to the platform we were on. Instead it was retracted. Shepard stepped up to the console and studied it for a moment, then touched the controls with a gloved hand.

The bridge ahead of us began to move, Vido's voice spoke again over the Blue Suns' channel. Zaeed pressed his hand against his earpiece, his face growing even more intense as he listened. _"This is Commander Santiago. If any of you retreat while the intruders are still alive, I'll kill you myself."_

At a gesture from Zaeed, Shepard keyed another command into the console to stop the bridge from extending. Vido's voice continued, _"Now get the hell back out there!"_

"Vido," Zaeed growled. "Sounds like he hasn't changed."

"I get the feeling you have a past with this Vido," Shepard told him, looking straight at him.

"I knew he was a sadistic bastard back when we started the Blue Suns," Zaeed said. And I knew that this was when he would launch into his story, giving the history of himself and his connection to the Blue Suns. "The Suns only got meaner after he staged his little coup twenty years ago. So yeah, we have a past."

Shepard shook her head in disbelief. "Why didn't anyone tell me you founded the Blue Suns?" Her eyes narrowed at Zaeed-then she looked at me, and Abby, with the same scowl on her face.

I heard Abby sigh next to me, and I gave her an empathetic glance. She just rolled her eyes and went to lean against the railing, checking out the waterfall with appreciative eyes.

Zaeed saved either of us from having to say anything though. "Because it's not common knowledge," he answered her. "Vido wiped me out of the records. He ran the books, I led the men. Worked real well for a while. Then Vido decided to start hiring batarians. Cheaper labor, he said. Goddamn terrorists, I said."

Jacob joined Abby in leaning against the railing, looking out at the waterfall. It was hard not to look at it, especially since it gave us something to do while Shepard and Zaeed worked this out. This was more between the two of them anyway, even though the rest of us were listening. I was pretty sure though that Zaeed and the Commander were the only ones not paying attention to the pretty sight around us.

I took a moment to glance over the edge of the railing myself, and my eye caught a sudden flash of movement. I had no idea there were fish down there!

"Want to go fishing later?" Abby whispered quietly so only I would hear. "For Grunt?"

"No," I said.

"Twenty years is a long time to hold a grudge," Shepard countered, folding her arms.

"A grudge!" Zaeed shouted, then took a step toward Shepard. I saw her tense, but she remained completely still. "Vido turned my men against me!" Zaeed snapped, locking his eyes with hers jabbing a finger at the Commander's chest to emphasize his point. Jacob straightened and looked at Zaeed. "He paid six of them to restrain while he put a gun to my head and pulled the trigger! For twenty years I've seen that bastard every time I closed my eyes. Every time I started down on a target." He took a step back now, but wasn't finished talking yet. "Every time I heard a gunshot!"

His eyes tightened. "Don't you call that a goddamn grudge."

Shepard looked skeptical. "You survived a gunshot to the head?" she asked.

"Yeah. And you survived your ship getting disintegrated," Zaeed pointed out. "A stubborn enough person can survive just about anything. Rage is a hell of an anesthetic."

"We'd better get moving," Shepard then said, having heard enough. She turned back to the console and pressed a few buttons to order the bridge to extend the rest of the way.

"Let's do it," I agreed.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I had finished eating my fruit, a fact which I was glad about. I'd forgotten how... sick this movie was. Somehow, watching it by myself hadn't been all that bad, but... it somehow seemed ten times more repulsive now that I was watching it with Garrus.

...Especially since we were up to the part where there was a dancing... _thing. _So to speak.

Garrus's mouth was hanging open, his whiskers limp with shock. "What? Why? Is that...?"

I coughed, then squeezed my eyes shut. I'd rather not see it-at all, ever. "Um... yeah it's what you probably think it is," I answered through clenched teeth.

"I've seen plenty of those at C-Sec," he said disgustedly. "Remind me why I'm watching this again? Please?"

"Because it's my birthday and you said you'd watch a movie with me," I told him. Part of me wanted to ask him to please just stay until the end of it, but at the same time... part of me actually hoped he would demand that we turn it off.

...Especially when the..._ thing _on the screen actually said, "Bruno!"

"Humans are perverted," I heard Garrus mutter.

Well, I couldn't disagree with that. Especially considering some of the things I had written in fan fiction, and some of the conversations me, HK and Abby had had on msn. "I guess," I said simply with a little shrug. "Look, the movie isn't too long... can we watch it until the end, please?" I then gave him my sweetest smile, along with my best "puppy dog" look with my eyes.

"This is disgusting," Garrus said, but he didn't insist that we turn it off, which, I thought, was good... though he'd probably never speak to me again.

I said nothing. I simply grinned at him and then settled back into my chair. The movie continued to play on.

* * *

**(HK)**

"They know we're here," Zaeed announced, although I knew that already. "Bring it on, you son of a bitch!" he then shouted, cocking his rifle.

There was not a minute to spare; we all ran across the bridge as quickly as possible, before darting around the next corner. We heard shouts over the radio about massing at the gate, and I knew what was coming. Zaeed was about to _really_ go insane.

Seconds later, we were marching right up to the gate itself, and Shepard cast all of us a quick glance before opening it. I simply gave her a nod of approval, even though I knew she didn't need it. She opened the door, and we all walked inside.

It didn't take long for any of us to see the man himself perched above us.

"Zaeed Massani. You finally tracked me down," Vido smugly remarked.

"Vido," Zaeed muttered, tightening his grip on his gun.

"Don't be stupid, Zaeed," Vido warned. "I have a whole company of bloodthirsty bastards behind me, ready to kill or be killed on my command."

I could see Zaeed eyeing the pipeline, and I could feel my heart sinking. Yup, Zaeed was probably about to get chewed out by Shepard. If he wasn't, I would be shell-shocked.

"Actually, take your shot. Give my men a reason to put you down like the mad dog you are. _Again_."

That was when Zaeed made his move. He rushed to the left, firing rapidly at Vido and his men. At least, that was what it looked like; instead, the bullets hit the pipe, like always.

"What was that?" Vido sneered. "Gone nearsighted, old friend?"

"Burn, you son of a bitch," Zaeed snapped, firing at the pipe again. That was enough to cause an explosion, and the rest of us darted for cover while Vido went stumbling backwards.

"You just signed your death warrant, Massani!" Vido shouted, clinging to the rails, before managing to pick himself up and retreat.

Vido's cronies that were still alive began to fire at all of us, but the bullets just bounced off the walls. Meanwhile, all of us were watching Zaeed bang his gun against the pipe down here incessantly.

"What the hell are you doing?" Shepard whispered harshly.

Zaeed ignored her, slamming his rifle against the pipe several more times, until it finally busted. An explosion of a much larger radius took place, killing all of the mercs instantly and pretty much burning everything else in front of us.

"Opening the gate," Zaeed replied, turning back to face us.

"We don't sacrifice lives for the sake of the mission," Shepard snapped, charging up to Zaeed and getting right up in his face. "There's always a better way."

"Like what? Wandering around in the jungle for hours, looking for another way in? You want to waste time out here, go ahead, I'm gonna kill Vid-" Zaeed started, but was cut off when Shepard did the Paragon thing to do: Punch the mercenary.

He stumbled backwards, and looked at Shepard with partial shock as he clutched his face. Shepard didn't seem fazed.

"You're endangering lives, and the mission, for your own selfish revenge," Shepard angrily snapped.

"You really wanna do this, Shepard?" Zaeed asked.

"I ought to knock you the hell out, but thanks to you, we have a burning refinery to save," Shepard replied. There was no doubt that the Commander was very flustered by Zaeed's little idea.

"Let these people burn!" Zaeed yelled. "Vido dies, whatever the cost!"

I sighed. We could all see the hardened, determined look on Zaeed's face; when Shepard made the choice that I was sure she would make, he would not be happy. Nonetheless, Shepard's motions for us to move said that this conversation was over.

We darted outside, shooting down a couple of Blue Suns mercs on the way out. Running as fast as possible, I felt the stress building up inside of me. This was way too much chaos for one day.

We got to the next door, but like always, just as we opened it, that refinery worker came rushing out to the catwalk behind us.

"Help! We're trapped!" he screamed to us. "We can't get to the gas valves to shut them off! The whole place is gonna blow!"

"No time," Zaeed stated, dismissing the idea all together. "Vido's probably half-way to the shuttle docks by now."

Shepard was silent for a moment, which I found unusual. It looked like she was thinking, and thinking _hard_. Like an idea or tactical plan was coming to mind. She stared at Zaeed for a moment. "It's obvious you aren't going to let this go, and I gave you my word that he would die," she said.

"That's right, you did. So let's hurry our ass up and get to Vido," Zaeed snapped.

"If we didn't have five people with us, you'd better be damn sure that I would make all of us stop and help these people. I don't operate like that, and I make sure that my crew doesn't," Shepard firmly said. "However, the fact is, we do have five people. We need to split up."

"What?" I choked out. That I did not expect.

"Two teams. One will help Zaeed go after Vido, and the other will go in to save the refinery workers," Shepard said, now looking at all four of us. "You've been on missions long enough to do this."

"Fine, as long as I get to kill Vido," Zaeed said.

"We don't have much time. We need to decide who goes with who now," Shepard told us.

"I'll go save the workers," Jacob volunteered. "You can go with Zaeed."

"There will have to be more people on the team going after Vido than there will the ones saving the workers," Abby chimed in. And she was right. "There's going to be a lot more fighting going after Vido. Killing him is why we're here, so I'll go with Zaeed, too."

"Good, because I wanted to save the workers anyway," I said with a nod. "I'll go with Jacob."

"Then it's settled," Shepard said, turning back to the door that would lead them to Vido. "One final thing: We need to stay in contact at all times. What will be the names of our teams?"

"Uhh..." I replied, trying to think quickly. "Paragon and Renegade. You guys are Renegade, and we're Paragon."

I cast a quick glance to Abby. Only she, or Sarah if she were here, would know what that meant.

Shepard nodded. "Sounds good to me."

With that, the three of them turned and charged through the door, and Jacob and I turned around and looked at the worker above us. We then glanced at each other, and jumped down to the small platform beneath us.

I really hoped we weren't screwing anything up here.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

Now we were up to what was probably one of the most vulgar parts of the movie-then again, that probably depended on your perspective. When you got right down to it, there were a LOT of scenes in this movie that were hard to watch.

I was also pretty sure that Garrus was very grossed out, not to mention weirded out by all of this. But anyway, we were now at one of the final scenes of the movie; the... erm, sex party.

Thankfully though, this was an R-rated movie, not X-rated. So there were black boxes which blocked out the, shall we say, view of actual intercourse.

And right now... we were at the part where one person was lying down on the floor and three women were... well, shall we say, apparently using their tongues to... pleasure him. At least, I THINK that's what they were doing. It was hard to see around the black box.

"Sarah, what kind of sick enjoyment do you get out of this?" Garrus asked, appalled by what was before his very eyes. "I have seen a lot of disgusting things, especially from humans, but nothing like this!"

"Um..." I coughed. "I just wanted to see your reaction, I guess." I chuckled nervously. "Besides... HK and Abby would not watch it with me."

Garrus narrowed his eyes at me. "So you just wanted to see if I was perverted or normal?"

"Uh, no," I stammered, not wanting him to get the wrong idea. "I just mean... well... it's funny to see people's reactions to things, sometimes!" I grinned sheepishly.

"Well, it is nice to know how you get your kicks!" Garrus exclaimed, now glaring at me.

...And now we were up to the scene where the blond woman had led Bruno-rather insistently-into one of the bedrooms. "Wow," Bruno said when he looked at her bare breasts. "You must make a lot of milk!"

Then she began to insist on having sex with him, to which he refused to comply. So she ended up... whipping him, repeatedly, until he fell out the window and began to make a run for it.

"That's just sick!" Garrus snapped.

"There's not much more, trust me," I told him. "Only about... twenty minutes left, tops."

"Twenty minutes?" Garrus echoed. "More like twenty hours the way this damn thing is dragging on..."

"Come on, we've both sat through it this long," I insisted gently. "Please?"

Garrus looked uncomfortable, but he didn't object.

I grinned at him, then settled back into my seat once again.

* * *

**(HK)**

I glanced over my shoulder to see that Abby, Shepard and Zaeed had already gone through the door, headed into the deeper parts of the building in order to confront Vido. And kill him.

"Come on, HK," Jacob called out to me. I turned to see that he'd already jumped over the railing to the section below-exactly where we needed to go.

I followed along, jumping down as well. There was no time to stop and chat now, so we both rushed along, darting down a staircase or two as the refinery around us began to collapse. Some fear was knotting up in my chest; what if we died with this place? There was an actual time limit now.

No, I couldn't think like that. It would only bring me down.

We ran towards a door at the bottom of one huge staircase, nearly getting hit by another explosion as we did so.

"You bypass the security," I said, motioning to the locked door. "I don't think anyone's going to come along, but I'll cover you, just in case."

Jacob nodded. "Right," he murmured simply as he rushed up to the door and began to eye it carefully. After a moment he began to tap a few keys on his omni-tool, bypassing the circuits as quickly as he could. A few moments later, the door sprang open.

As we hurried through the now open door we both saw a set of stairs up ahead. An explosion went off to our right, causing me to jump a little.

"Come on," Jacob urged, already rushing forward. "We need to keep going." He began to jog up the stairs.

I was right behind him, darting up the stairs at rapid speed. I could feel the intense heat in here as more and more flames arose, and I knew that the heat would overpower me if we wasted too much time. I was already starting to sweat a little more.

We ran right towards the next door, but just as we opened it, another explosion erupted, sending us both stumbling backwards.

I coughed slightly, then glanced to my friend and current partner. "Let's go," I said in between coughs.

Jacob took the lead again, waving his hand in front of his face a little we passed through smoke. He coughed a little, blinking his eyes a few times; it made me wonder if anything had gotten in them.

We then neared an area that had another, small flight of stairs-but the way was blocked off by a fire. Jacob quickly looked around, then noticed a console. He quickly used it to shut off whatever was apparently feeding the fire.

We then crossed over into another area, and we both looked around, trying to figure out where to go next. Jacob spotted it first, though; a console that would enable him to redirect the fuel line.

However, once he reached it, he realized that it was surrounded by flames. There was no way that either of us could safely get to it.

"There's got to be a way," Jacob murmured, looking around. "We can't just leave these people to die!"

"Upstairs!" someone shouted from somewhere above. "The extinguisher is upstairs!"

With that we dashed up the stairs. We had to continue along our way for another minute or so, going up stairs and through a couple more doors. "The doors won't open until the fire is out!" a woman shouted.

"Come on, we can still make it," Jacob coughed, keeping a hand over his face. "Damnit, I wish we brought our environmental suits. At least then we'd have some clean air!"

We also had to dodge a few more explosions as we went, though thankfully they were small and minor. We quickly reached a room on the upper level where we could safely reach the fire extinguisher systems. Jacob ran over to it and, panting for breath and coughing, he pressed a few controls.

There was a loud hissing sound as the controls began to kick in.

"We did it," Jacob breathed. "I guess-_cough_-that wasn't so bad. Think I-_cough_-got a lung full of smoke back there, though."

"Yeah, I know," I said in between breaths, myself. That was a short trip, but an exhausting one nonetheless. "Good job, though. You did a lot more than I did. Now, we should go and help the others stop Vido."

* * *

**(Sarah)**

The movie ended with the supposedly "reformed" Bruno standing in a boxing ring, then realizing the fact that he was truly gay and that he needed to be with his male lover. And they started to make out in front of everyone.

Okay, actually the movie ended with a scene AFTER that... where they decided to get married, and Bruno somehow got his kid back. The same kid he took all kinds of weird pictures of... and let get covered with bees.

When the movie finally ended, I shut off the viewer and turned on the lights. "Well, what did you think?" I asked, looking over at Garrus. Part of me wondered if he was tempted to sprint from the room or not.

"Sarah, that was probably the sickest form of entertainment I have ever seen. I have to say, as much as you surprise me, I did not expect you to be into that," Garrus remarked, glaring at me. "But I guess that is just it: I shouldn't be surprised."

"I'm sorry if you didn't have a good time," I told him. "Is there anything you'd like to do now?" I asked hopefully. "Maybe if you still have free time, we could do something else! If you want, that is."

"No," Garrus replied firmly, turning towards the door. "In fact, no offense, Sarah, because I think you are a good person, but...don't invite me to watch a movie or do much of anything with you again. I think tonight was enough."

My face fell a little. "I'm sorry," I said again. "Hey look," I added quickly, before he had moved completely out the door, "maybe if we do anything again, you can pick the movie next time," I offered.

"_Yeah_..." Garrus said slowly with a nod. "Uh, we'll see. Right now, I need to get back to those calibrations."

"Okay," I said with a little nod. "Have fun!" His only response was to shake his head and walk out. The door slid shut behind him, leaving me all alone.

* * *

**(HK)**

We continued on our way, moving along the ramps and pathways in the general direction that would lead us straight to Abby and the others. I wondered if they had gotten to Vido yet or not.

"You sure we're going the right way?" Jacob asked at one point, looking around. Indeed, there seemed to be a lot more twists and turns than I remembered. Then again, the building seemed even larger than I remembered in the game. That might have been because this was real, not just a virtual building anymore.

"Uhh, I don't know," I answered honestly. "My memory about some of this is a little...fuzzy with all that has happened, and this is always a little different in reality than it is in our visions. The place can't be too big, though."

We continue on a little ways until Jacob spotted something on the floor. It looked like a weapon-much like the Firestorm gun that I had seen Shepard pick up in the game.

"This looks interesting," he muttered as he stooped down to get a better look. "Might come in handy, too."

He lowered his guard for a moment while he looked at it-only for a moment, but it was enough. I saw a figure inching around a corner from the shadows, but I didn't even have time to say anything. The armed man opened fired, ripping right through Jacob's fields.

Jacob cried out in pain and fell backward. I saw blood on his chest.

My eyes widened, and I looked to the armed man up ahead. I wasted no time in darting for cover, pulling out my assault rifle again, and firing continuously at him. I could feel my rage boiling; after all of this, the last thing I needed to see was someone that had actually been a friend to me get shot.

It didn't take long for him to go down. After he was dead, I ran right back to Jacob, leaning down beside him.

"Jacob, are you alright?" I yelled.

Jacob's eyes opened and he looked up at me. He tried to speak but only ended up coughing up a little blood.

Then I heard the sound of a gun being cocked behind me. I turned sharply to see one more armed man behind me. Oh, of course he would have backup! I realized I'd just made the same mistake as Jacob-letting down my guard when I shouldn't have.

He fired-but the bullet missed me completely.

And it was only because a petite figure had snuck up behind him and grabbed his arm, causing him to miss his mark. He whirled around, attempting to grab the girl. She yelped as he roughly grabbed her arm, then she reached up with her free hand and somehow managed to yank his helmet off.

And that was when a second figure emerged-and whacked the thug over the head with what looked to be a frying pan.

The thug got a goofy, dazed look on his face-then he collapsed on the floor with a thud.

I looked at the two individuals who'd saved me and Jacob-they were unarmed (except for the frying pan) and were wearing simple clothing; no armor to speak of. And they actually didn't look much older than me. There was one boy and one girl. Were these a couple of the people we'd just saved?

I blinked, not sure what to say or think. "T-thanks," I simply said with a nod, before looking back to Jacob. I wasn't sure how bad this wound was...could he die? Did I have to distract the other three and possibly cause Vido to escape? Where were they, anyway.

"Jacob!" I said. "Can you speak?"

"HK," he rasped. He raised a gloved hand to touch my arm. "Go on. Help the others, get yourself out of here." He coughed again-a horrible, retching sound.

I also heard soft, tentative footsteps behind me-the two teenagers were slowly approaching, peering at us with curiosity and concern.

"Uh, no, sorry. I sure as hell am not leaving you behind," I snapped, before looking to the teens behind me. "You two! Do you have any...uhh, medical supplies?"

"Denera," the boy said to the girl, "go get that kit in the room."

The girl nodded. She cast a quick look at me, then she took off.

The boy then looked back at me. "She'll get it," he said.

I looked back to Jacob. My heart was beating out of my chest, almost to the point where I felt like I was going to go into cardiac arrest. A man on my team, a man that I respected and liked, could die if three clueless teenagers didn't help him fast enough. "Jacob, come on, man, just hold on a little longer," I told him.

I looked back to the boy, and kept an eye out for the girl. "Thanks, again. I just hope we can do this," I muttered.

"I saw you," the boy said, looking at me with widened eyes. "You saved our lives. Everybody's working on getting out of here right now, but me and my sister got separated from the others. They were in a mad rush to get out, you know?"

I nodded. "I understand," I simply said.

A moment later, Denera came running back toward us. She was panting a little as she came to a stop beside her brother.

"Where's the medical kit?" the boy demanded.

"I couldn't get it yet," the girl replied.

"...what do you mean?" I asked, suddenly a lot more anxious than I was a few seconds ago.

"Neyrata has it," the girl replied. "She said she'll bring it right over in a minute."

As if on cue I heard footsteps approaching. Heavy, metallic footsteps, like those of someone wearing armor. I tensed, gripping my assault rifle and wondering if I would need to use it again.

To my surprise, a female turian stepped into view. She was wearing medium armor-except her right leg was exposed. It looked as though it was bandaged up-which might have explained why she was using the medical kit. And speaking of which, she had it in her right hand. Her armor also had the markings of the Blue Suns.

She took one look at Jacob and blinked-then she practically tossed the medical kit to me so fast that I barely caught it as it hit me in the chest. Then she narrowed her eyes at Denera. "You should have told me how serious it was," she said. "I would have given the medical kit to you right then."

The girl hung her head. "Sorry."

I pretty much ignored her, not caring who the heck this turian was or why she was helping us or who the two teenagers were. I got right to work, patching up Jacob's wounds with the typical procedures that we all had been taught by Chakwas or some other medical expert. He wasn't exceedingly bad...a med kit would fix him right up, but he would have probably bled out if we didn't have it.

"There," I finally said, after finishing. "That should do it."

Neyrata nodded a little. "Good," she said. "Now let's get out of here-I'll go with you as far as the outside, then I need to reunite these children with their elders."

"I'm NOT a child!" the boy protested, folding his arms. "I'm sixteen!"

Neyrata ignored him. "You don't appear to be much older," she commented, looking at me.

"I am just sixteen, too," I told her, panting as I finally got a minute to relax. "But you shouldn't go the way that we go. There's going to be non-stop insanity, if there isn't already. No place for unarmed people."

Neyrata's eyes narrowed a little, and she took an assault rifle off of her back. She didn't point it at me, she simply showed off the fact that she had it. "I'm not unarmed. I'm helping the former slaves escape this base; I was trapped with them until you and the other human put the fire out."

"I know you are not unarmed, but they are. If you want to get them out alive, you need to take them someplace else, because the way we are heading out...well, that is just going to be non-stop shooting. Trust me," I insisted, not wanting anymore people to get caught in this.

"You should come with us," Neyrata said. "You seem capable enough, but you seem intent on going into a dangerous zone with an injured man."

"Um, no, sorry. We have a lot to do. We have other crew members here, and not to downplay his wound, but the medical kit should get him fixed pretty fast. We are fine, really," I assured her kindly, but firmly.

Neyrata looked at me for a moment, then said, "There is no way that you can get out of here with an injured person. You'll need to protect yourself and him, and that won't work if you're going to carry him."

I nearly rolled my eyes. This turian seemed like a nice woman, but she wasn't getting what I was saying. "This guy is far more muscular than me; does it really look like I could carry him?" I sarcastically asked. "And I repeat: We have a crew. We can't just desert them, and hopefully this med kit will get Jacob into okay shape, anyway."

"I'd like to help you get out of here," Neyrata told me sincerely. "I'll get these two out of here, then I'll come back to help you find your crew, alright?"

"Okay, in all honesty, why do you want to help? You are in a Blue Suns outfit," I said, raising an eyebrow at her. "Shouldn't you be off getting shot or in a corner crying?"

She snorted. "Knew you'd ask that sooner or later. Look, the only reason I'm here is because my brother joined up. And I needed the credits. Since then, I've realized this just isn't my kind of thing. That and these people are hardly loyal to each other; they abandoned my brother months ago and let him die to save their own skins. And they would have let me die today. I'm helping the former slaves get away, and I'll help you get out as well. But I'm not going to help any of them. This is my chance to get out without any of them trying to stop me or shoot me in the back because of it."

"Well, that is nice. You seem like a nice woman, and if you want to get those two out of here then just go do it. We're wasting time this way," I said with a sigh. "And if I try to help him myself I'll probably make yet another idiotic move, so let's just get to it."

"Wait here," Neyrata said, already beginning to move away. "Perhaps by the time I get these two out of here, your friend will be back on his feet."

I just shook my head, before looking back to Jacob. "Jacob, can you hear me? How are you feeling?" I asked.

"Better," Jacob whispered. His voice sounded less strained now, and he seemed to be breathing more easily. "Keep sharp. Just give me another minute, then I'll see if I can get up."

I let out a breath of relief. "Good, good, okay," I said.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I was bored. And well, I knew that I should consider myself lucky, actually. I was technically on probation and still on restriction; I was lucky just to have today off. The only downside of that, of course, was that I was more or less confined to this room... unless I could convince other people to come see me and do something with me.

I began to ask EDI about other movies that were in the database or that could be bought off of the extranet. One title in particular caught my interest, or my curiosity at least.

But who could I possibly watch it with? Garrus was weirded out enough and he'd made it clear that he did not want to watch another movie with me. But I sort of wondered... who would be ideal to weird out next?

I touched my omni-tool. There was one person I hadn't talked to in a while. "Mordin?" I said aloud, attempting to get in touch with him.

"Ah, Sarah. Been a long time. Need something?" Mordin asked curiously.

"Hi!" I said. "Today is my birthday, and I was wondering if you'd like to watch a movie with me in my room. If you have time, that is."

"Hmm. Could spare time, I suppose. Done with most experiments until suicide mission, unless Shepard requests more," Mordin replied. "Will be right down."

"Great!" I said. "See you in a few!"

I giggled in anticipation. I wondered what Mordin would think of the movie I'd stumbled across-Bruno II, released in 2013.

* * *

**(Abby)**

There was a time when instinct had to prevail over self-doubt and reluctance if you were going to survive, and I genuinely thought that the instinct I was thinking about was buried within every human being. For some it was more visible, rising to the surface like it rose to the top of the brackish waters of Zaeed's mind. For others, like Shepard, they'd learned earlier on how to control the instinct and use it when needed. For somebody like me? It was buried deep, deep, _deep_, and it took a lot of coaxing to get it out from its tiny little rock.

But once it was out, I was going on pure impulse alone. Everything seemed to be moving both fast and slow, my eyes registered every small detail, and, somehow, I managed to find enough space in my mind to complain about how I'd done up my hair earlier.

"Abs, take the rear guard and give us cover," Shepard ordered, moving low across a stack of cargo containers with her head down. I melted back obediently, switching out my assault rifle for the Widow.

There was a man giving us trouble from the entrance to the room we would eventually be heading into. He had kinetic barriers at full power, a flamethrower, and it looked like he was stocked up on plenty of flash bangs. His buddy was around here somewhere, but in the confusion I'd lost him. "Rack 'em up," I said, lining up the sight. "And let's hope his friend doesn't get the hint and radio in that he's got a bead on him, right?"

"They've called for backup," Zaeed informed us.

"How do you – okay, I see it."

"See what?" I asked.

"There's a receiver at the corner of the room that just blinked green – means that a message was patched through," Zaeed said.

"Wonderful," Shepard said dryly.

We were in the room adjacent to the larger one that would hold the final battle, one that I wasn't keen on entering. But I wasn't going to back down because Shepard and Zaeed needed me here. You _never_ abandoned your buddies… even when they're not following common sense and the 'forgive-and-forget' routine.

The nerf herder with the flamethrower poked his head out – a bad mistake. Having already guessed his next move, I was perfectly poised to pull the trigger. He stumbled back and fell like a marionette whose strings were cut, half of his face carved through with a high-velocity round.

"One down," I announced.

By taking out the other guy, Zaeed and Shepard were given more freedom of movement. Shepard threw up a biotic barrier over herself and Zaeed, who strode out right into the open and blasted the guy's buddy away with three quick taps.

Shepard released the barrier and I began the gruesome process of searching through their pockets for extra ammunition. Shepard, Zaeed, and I tossed and traded them to each other like candy bars, just without the appetite or even the humor.

"Next room is large," I told them, restocking myself. "There will be two fuel canisters moving overhead, which is a perfect booby trap for both sides – we just have to use it first. Men will come from the left and right sides of the room and attempt to flank us, and when they're desperate they'll send in a heavy mech."

"We'll deal," Shepard said. She placed her finger to her ear to activate the radio, and I patched myself into the line. "Paragon, give me a sitrep."

It wasn't Jacob who answered, but HK: "We, uh, have some injuries."

_What?_

"Been hit, Shepard," Jacob said. My stomach turned to ice. _Not Jacob. Not Jacob. _"Nothing too bad, he and few of the others here fixed me up a bit, but I'm going to be out of commission for a few hours."

"How bad?" Shepard asked.

"Four shots to the chest; they ripped right through my shields. I think there was a malfunction with whatever Mordin did to upgrade them, I'll need Tali to take a look when we get back on the ship." Jacob's voice was weak and strained, even over the radio. "Look, we'll catch up, alright?"

"No," Shepard said firmly. "Get back to the shuttle. There are still hostiles around, you copy?"

"Understood, Shepard. I'll meet you there… sorry."

"HK – you watch him," Shepard ordered. "Shepard out."

That was bad news, but Jacob seemed to be stable for now… and HK knew how to use the first aid supplies, so there wouldn't be _too_ much of a chance of Jacob bleeding out…

"Crap," I muttered.

"Not to cut the pity party short, but we have to get moving," Zaeed said, moving to the door. "We need a plan of attack, Shepard."

Shepard nodded, seeming to force the Jacob issue out of her mind. "Okay. Same standby."

* * *

**(Sarah)**

Once Mordin came up to my room, I greeted him and then I popped on the movie. I sat down in the same chair as before, and Mordin took the seat that Garrus had vacated a while ago.

This movie was... if anything, even more disturbing and disgusting than the first Bruno had been. Particularly because there were scenes where... well, Bruno tried to teach his "son" what he considered to be "right" or whatever, and that apparently included-well, I just couldn't say it!

That and apparently Bruno had chosen to adopt a daughter as well-a Chinese girl, barely two years old... and apparently he'd traded his high-tech cell phone in order to get her.

Okay, I was really getting weirded out with this movie. I was at least a little prepared with the first Bruno, simply because I'd seen it before and knew what to expect. But this... it was going to give me nightmares! I just knew it.

"Hmmm, movie defies logic," Mordin said, scratching his chin in thought as he watched the movie. "Often, these ideas and beliefs do not come to human's minds, or any organic being's minds. Very strange. An odd choice of movie, as well, but understandable; remind you of how you live your own life, perhaps?"

I stared at him. Hard. "What, exactly, do you mean by that?" I demanded, wondering if I'd just been thoroughly insulted or not. Did he think I was perverted or something?

"Protagonist often acts mentally unstable; you often act mentally unstable. Perhaps movie shows you, through fiction, that you can also live your life in some successful manner while acting like a complete lunatic?" Mordin asked me.

"Uh..." I stammered. Then I jumped up long enough to hit the pause button. "You know, maybe this wasn't such a good idea after all," I said, shaking my head. "And this movie is making me ill anyway."

"Ah, denial. Normal feeling for any being after the truth about themselves is unveiled," Mordin said, patting me on the back lightly as a form of comfort. "I am no psychiatrist, but I know how many species operate, so don't worry. I don't look down on you."

"Um... thank you?" I blinked several times. I honestly wasn't sure if I should feel very offended, or amused, or... what. Seriously... I was just watching Bruno because I wanted to see people's reactions to it, and because I didn't have anything else better to do right now. At least, that seemed like a pretty good reason to me.

"Do not worry; you can make your life just as the insane protagonist in this movie does. Never have any fear, Sarah," Mordin advised. "Now, want to continue?"

I opened my mouth, then closed it. I thought about it for a long moment. Then, before I even realized what I was doing... for some reason I found myself hitting the "resume" button, and then I sank back down into my chair.

"Yeah, sure, why not," I murmured dully.


	41. I can't HEAR you!

**(Abby)**

The next area was exactly how I remembered it, except perhaps our wish to make Mass Effect 2 deeper and more realistic had come through a bit more here than I expected. The room was large, larger than I remembered it being, and just by glancing up I could see not two fuel tanks moving across the line above us, but three. On each side. Zaeed was taking point, and Shepard moved in the middle covering a wide arc with her assault rifle. Since I was a smaller, more valuable target, I was behind with the sniper rifle.

This place screamed 'factory' to me. It had to be some kind of loading room, because it looked as though the fuel tanks could be moved outside via a closed hatch at the top of the wall on the other side of the room. Glancing around quickly, trying to gather my bearings quickly before we were found out, I noticed a sign next to the door that read "Fluid Sedimentation Facility."

I filed that in the back of my mind for later, but the picture seemed to communicate that the fluid or gas inside the tanks was carried in a straight line back and forth across the room to mix up some of the sediment that had dropped to the bottom.

_I learn something new every day._

"I'll bring this place down all around you." We were still hooked into Vido's channel. Even so, his voice surprised me. Shepard, Zaeed, and I continued down a small set of stairs to a lower level.

"Right!" I snapped, sighting a mercenary approaching from behind an array of steel piping. I brought the sniper rifle up to my face so I could sight him up, but Zaeed took care of him with a quick spray of bullets.

"Find cover," Shepard snapped, moving behind a low metal wall. I stayed in the far back, in the middle. I could see Shepard and Zaeed from this angle, and I had a good view on both entryways. I knelt down, my knees aching, and kicked a discarded can of Mountain Dew to the side. I'd find amusement in that later.

"You should have died when I shot you the first time," Vido continued. "I don't care who you've brought with you - I'll kill them all."

"Oh, piss off," I snapped back, well aware that he wouldn't be able to hear me since we'd switched his communications link to receive-only. I spotted a glint of trouble from the left. "Three marks, ten o'clock!"

Shepard took care of them with easy grace, rising for a moment from her crouched position to make a large movement with her arm. I heard something that sounded faintly like a pop of changing pressure, and then the three men I'd marked out flew into the air with a loud yell. Shepard turned her attention back to the men coming from the doorway to the right, but I kept an eye on the others she threw, knowing that there was a chance that she hadn't killed them all.

One of them was moving. It didn't look like he'd be getting up soon, but he still had a gun. I squeezed the trigger.

"They're flanking," Zaeed announced. He never really yelled in combat - he merely turned the volume up. Whenever he noticed something in the heat of battle, he always commented on it like he was discussing the price of dish soap at the local grocery store. He was more calm when he was fighting for his life than when he was interacting with living beings.

"You think I won't roast my own men to kill you?" Vido yelled. "Say your goddamn prayers, Massani!"

Zaeed ducked back down to reload, leaving the right side vulnerable for one moment. Without thinking I adjusted my position to keep the defense steady, but I needn't have worried; Zaeed was such an experienced soldier that reloading only took a couple of seconds.

We were most vulnerable when the fuel lines were positioned right above us, and Shepard seemed to see that. "Keep moving, don't get close to the flammables," she snapped, following her own advice and retreating behind a separate low wall.

"Shit." Zaeed got up and moved towards the right, opposite of Shepard, but that was going to leave him open to the men trying to flank us and he knew it. I took my chances and collapsed the sniper rifle, switching to the M-15 we'd acquired during a previous mission. I jumped over the low wall I'd been using as cover and slid smoothly next to Zaeed. "Hold this."

And he thrust his assault rifle into my hands. I stumbled underneath the sudden weight and struggled to put the safety catch back into play on my own so I didn't accidentally shoot myself where it counted. "Are you crazy, Massani?" Shepard snapped. "What the hell are you doing?"

Zaeed was rummaging through his belt and pulled out a long, cylindrical-shaped item out of his belt. He flipped a switch and pulled the top off of it.

He threw it away from us... and it landed right at the feet of three men turning the corner. They trained their weapons on us, and for a brief moment I thought that I would die there, holding two assault rifles cradled to my chest like an idiot...

And then the grenade exploded, engulfing the three of them in bright, bright red flames that were tinged with blue and yellow. Zaeed's rough, armored hand grabbed my chin and pulled my face so that my head was buried in his shoulder. My shields shuddered as it repelled high-velocity rounds, and it felt as though the back of my neck was burning. He began to tap on my hair roughly, and I realized that my ponytail had caught on fire.

Inferno Grenade. How could I forget?

I coughed, the smoke burning my throat, and pulled away from him. I glanced back towards the dead men, whose corpses were burning even as I looked, and felt my stomach flutter with relief.

"Are you okay?" Shepard snapped, concern written all over her voice.

I nodded, too shell-shocked to speak, and Zaeed took his assault rifle from me. "I have more where that came from," he said. He glanced up. "Come on, back to our positions, the gas tanks are moving away."

He took my arm and forcibly pushed me towards the hunk of cover he'd been using previously. Shepard began to move back as well, but not before squeezing off a couple of rounds at the gas tanks. The rounds penetrated the steel siding, ignited the chemicals, and the next thing I knew Zaeed was pressing me down until I was almost biting the floor with my molars.

The explosion was... wow-worthy.

I was finally beginning to find my voice again. Zaeed's hand was pressing hard into the back of my head, and I had a feeling that I was going to have a grate-shaped burn on one side of my face by the time he finally let go. The metal was _hot_, hotter than I'd been expecting, and it was hurting. "Get off, I'm fine, get off!" I snapped, struggling out of his strong grip.

He'd fallen down right beside me, covering his head with his free hand. There were small pieces of shrapnel embedded within his armor. He let go quickly, and I sat up, breathing hard and grimacing as I rubbed at my face with one hand that was also covered in burns.

I couldn't stew in my own pain forever, though. There were still gunshots, and I still had work to do. I glanced around and began to fire at the men who were desperately running for cover from the firestorm we'd unleashed their way.

Shepard, meanwhile, had fluttered over to the far left, probably under some absurd expectation that they were running out of men. I couldn't see her any more, which scared me. Just as the thought crossed my mind, she gasped over the radio. "Lost my shields!"

I took off, leaving Zaeed there to cover the right and middle. Shepard was pushed back to the corner, tapping on her omni-tool as quick as her fingers would allow her. I recognized the algorithm; Tali had helped develop, somehow, a type of shield overlay that sometimes managed to place the shields back on full power in one direct burst of energy.

I double-tapped each of the two mercenaries advancing on her position, but their shields took most of it. I slid into cover as my own shields began to deplete. "Die!" Vido snarled.

There was the loudest noise from above, and I glanced up automatically, as did the men attacking us. The gas pylons - ALL of them - exploded in one large fireball that shook the entire building. Blinded by the flash, I found myself sinking to the ground as a high-pitched whine in my head threatened to take over. Fiery debris rained down on all of us, friend and foe alike, and the next thing I knew Shepard was dragging me bodily up a landing and towards the door we'd come in from. I stumbled after her, somehow finding my footing among the rumblings and explosions, and realized with grim satisfaction that I was still holding my weapons.

Zaeed came in after us, still firing rounds off at our enemies. The door closed, and we were, for a moment, safe. Zaeed locked the door.

I sunk to the ground, my eyes streaming with tears, and held my head in my hands. I could feel a hand on my shoulder, but I couldn't hear anything except that incessant ringing. It stemmed from everywhere and anywhere, and my head, already hurting due to the noise on the battlefield, felt like it was about to split open.

Somebody's hand forced my head up and made me look at them. I met Shepard's eyes with a dazed, lethargic expression. Her lips were moving, mouthing words I didn't understand.

"I can't hear you," I think I said.

Shepard began to pull out the first aid kit. And then, suddenly, I remembered what we were doing.

"No! You have to go get Vido! There's still one heavy mech out there and you have to get it - you have to go kill it, and then you can kill Vido. Can you hear me? I can't hear me!" I could feel the vibrations my voice was making as I spoke, but, for once... I couldn't even hear myself talk. "Mother-urgh!" I wondered if I was shouting. My mouth began to move of its own accord, and I wondered what, exactly, I was saying. Shepard was giving me an odd look.

Zaeed turned to Shepard and I watched his lips move. Shepard's own moved in response. I began to get annoyed.

"Will you stop muttering crap and get out there?" I burst out. "I'm coming, I'm good! Let me out there! One more heavy mech!"

Shepard's hands moved across my mouth and restricted me from speaking. Even in my dazed state, I realized that maybe I should shut up.

Shepard rummaged around in the first aid box and pulled out a needle. I glared at her, wondering why the hell she was even bothering to wait just so I could hear, and she pressed it into the side of my neck. I gasped as she released it, but it didn't make the pain go away.

It only amplified it.

Shepard and Zaeed had a quick conference, and then Shepard began to type quickly on her omni-tool. She showed the message to me:

_going to take out heavy mech. where do we find Vido?_

"Vido is outside, through the door on the other side of the room. Zaeed can kick his ass without our help." I looked at Zaeed. "Get a punch in for me."

Shepard nodded and extended a hand to help me up. It was extremely odd to be around her without actually listening to her... I must have burst my eardrums or something when those pylons exploded.

We headed out, me with my sniper rifle, Zaeed with my M-15 (I don't know what happened to his other one), and Shepard with, of all things, a very large and powerful-looking grenade launcher. I tried to remember if she had that previously, but in truth I couldn't even remember if it was HK or Jacob injured with how loopy I was right now.

The heavy mech was on fire, but still functioning. I took cover quickly, well-aware that I was probably out of the fight by now, and Shepard and Zaeed continued on. I kept an eye on them when I could, though, and kept gauging where the mech was and where the guns were aimed since I couldn't hear if it was aiming for me or not.

The entire room was engulfed in flames, but somebody, probably HK and Jacob, had gotten the water back up and I was becoming soaked underneath the stream. I activated my omni-tool and waved it towards the mech when Shepard diverted its attention, Overloading it's shields in one easy hand motion.

And then my omni-tool crashed.

I don't know WHAT I was saying, but it was enough for Shepard and Zaeed to both turn around and glance at me. I was staring at my omni-tool in shock, flicking it with my fingers and just generally having a spazz attack.

Dumb, stupid piece of high-tech equipment. It NEVER did what I'd like it to do, and Mordin, Joker, and Tali were ALWAYS fiddling with it and screwing it up and the only thing it could do was Google and Overload shields. Other than that, it was always being infected by online viruses or the games crashed or the pictures Ken kept sending me were getting truncated -

During my freak-out, apparently Shepard and Zaeed had killed the mech. I wouldn't have noticed.

Shepard helped me up and just gave me a questioning look. I explained that my omni-tool had crashed (I might've used a few unnecessary words...) and the stupid thing was just insane and it was dumb and I missed the Blackberries.

Shepard typed a message on her omni-tool for me:

_VIDO_

I groaned and pointed towards the back door. Zaeed took off, and Shepard's hand closed around my own. I stumbled a bit, feeling immensely dizzy, but I managed it all right. Zaeed collapsed his assault rifle and pulled out his pistil as he neared the door, and we all passed through it and out into the open, clean, fresh air.

Vido was clutching his stomach, limping away as fast as he could under the circumstances. He looked about just as bad as I felt.

Zaeed pulled the trigger, and Vido turned, pain written all over his face. Zaeed hadn't even hit him yet. Vido began to talk, obviously begging for his life, and Zaeed crossed in front of me, obviously replying with a negative. He jumped off of the small platform and landed heavily.

Vido turned around and began to limp away, but that wasn't to be. Zaeed raised his gun and pulled the trigger, catching Vido right in the leg. He twisted in the air from the momentum of the bullet and fell to the ground.

Zaeed stood right in front of the man and, with his back to me, it just looked as though he was staring at him. Vido was laying in a pool of gas that seemed to stem from a leaky valve underneath the platform. And then, just like in the game, Zaeed ejected his heatsink and turned away.

Vido looked up brokenheartedly as the thermal clip sailed through the air. Right before it landed, he looked at me.

Vido's body was momentarily silhouetted in the bright fire, his spine arching backwards as the fire licked at his skin. I turned around, shutting my eyes and glad, for once, that I couldn't hear his screams. I crossed my arms tightly across my chest and waited with a frown.

Shepard placed her hand on my shoulder about a minute later, and I knew it was probably over by then. Making sure not to look at the area where Vido had met his death, I just kept my eyes on Shepard's chest plate and asked, "Where are we going now?"

I still couldn't hear myself talk, but I think I got it alright.

_Shuttle is coming. You ok?_

I nodded.

The shuttle arrived soon after, landing at a small designated area a few meters away. I climbed in first, followed by Shepard and Zaeed. Jacob was laying on the ground in a small, collapsible gurney you would normally see in the mobile first aid kits. HK was strapped into the seat right above him.

And on the other side...

A turian. A female turian and two kids about my age. I blinked in surprise, freezing where I stood. I just looked at them, eyes wide, and glanced towards HK. Shepard nudged me to move along, and I did, taking a seat right next to HK. I just hoped that he wouldn't attempt to talk to me, because there was no way I'd be able to know what he was saying.

* * *

**(HK)**

It had been an insane mission; it had yet to par up with the insanity of nearly being raped by a sex-crazed asari, but a crazy mission. Jacob got hurt, a bit, but was alright thanks to someone who I didn't even know existed, yet seemed strangely familiar. However, Vido was dead, the workers were saved, and this mission was coming to a close.

Thank goodness for that.

Abby took a seat next to me, looking worn, beaten, and tired. Everyone pretty much did. Abby looked like she'd taken a couple of good hits, though. Her hair was burned, dried blood was caked around the ear that I could see, and there was an odd, grate-shaped burn on left cheek.

"How are you feeling?" I asked her.

No response.

"Ummmm...hello?" I said, scratching my head. She was turned away from me, just looking straight ahead, oblivious to the rest of the world. Some people had a tendency to go off into dazes like that, but it was rare for Abby. Very rare. However, a mission like this was rare, as well. It must have been all out insanity trying to get to Vido.

Shepard, meanwhile, had started a conversation with Neyrata as she examined Jacob's injuries. "You do good first aid for a turian," she said, examining Jacob's wounds with a clinical eye.

"They're solid people," Jacob said.

"I know you're probably wondering what motivated me to do this," Neyrata said. "I was stuck with the others, trying to keep some kind of order." She extended her hand to Shepard in a purely human gesture. "I'm Neyrata."

"Commander Shepard," she replied, gripping it.

Neyrata's face seemed to twitch in recognition, and then her eyes softened. "I guess Massani knows how to pick his allies. It's too bad that the rest of the galaxy thinks you're dead."

"I don't care if they know I'm alive or not, but being dead seems to suit me at the moment," Shepard replied dryly.

"She's right," Jacob said which a pained chuckle. "We've been getting a lot of weird looks lately."

"I'm glad that the tales of your morality weren't over exaggerated," Neyrata said with a light laugh. "Those men down there deserved to burn for what they'd tied themselves to. I nearly deserved it, but I've been trying to cut ties with the group since they left my brother to die. There are better ways of earning credits out there in the galaxy."

"Sounds like you've come back to the good side, then," Shepard said with a nod. "A job of killing other people should only be taken up by the protectors. That's how I see it."

"And I agree, actually," Neyrata said. "There's no chance of me getting into a career of law enforcement with my record, but I don't care yet. I need to take care of these two." She jerked her head towards the children. "Logan and Denera. Their parents were the first hit by the explosions, not that they'd seen them much anyway. I need to get them somewhere safe. I'm assuming you're going to get the rest of the slaves off of Zorya."

Shepard nodded. "guess it's time for you to meet the rest of the team," she said. "That's Zaeed, that's Abby."

"Abby?" I said, blinking. I was starting to get really concerned now... was she going into shock?

Still nothing. She looked at me once, though, her eyes still out of it, and she smiled a little bit before continuing to look straight ahead.

I glanced at Jacob and Neyrata, but of course neither one of them would know what was happening. I looked back at Abby, baffled by this utterly strange silence. She was speaking to no one and doing absolutely nothing.

Neyrata seemed to notice what was happening. Perhaps she was more alert and observant-or maybe it was just that turians had better hearing than humans. Whatever the case was, she stepped forward and looked curiously at Abby for a moment. Abby, alerted by the sudden movement, looked suspiciously at the turian as she approached.

Then she raised her hand and, holding it up just a few inches from Abby's ear, she snapped one of her fingers and her thumb together. I'd never heard of a turian snapping their fingers before; maybe it was a habit she'd learned from humans.

"I think she's deaf," Neyrata told me simply, and straightened.

I continued to stare at Abby in a confused manner. "Not that I'm crossing it out or anything, but she could hear perfectly up until now," I pointed out.

Neyrata looked at me for a moment. Then she quietly leaned in behind Abby's chair, positioning her mouth right behind Abby's left ear. The turian then took a deep breath, then bellowed "CAN YOU HEAR ME?" so loudly that I jumped a little, and Zaeed and Shepard looked sharply in our direction.

The girl who'd accompanied us looked shocked at first, then she giggled. A look from Neyrata silenced her.

"That bloody wasn't necessary," Zaeed grumped, grimacing and holding a hand near his ear.

"Abby lost her hearing back there during an explosion," Shepard supplied.

"She WHAT?" I yelled, momentarily forgetting that my own ears were ringing. "What? How? Is it permanent?"

Shepard almost sighed. "We'll let Dr. Chakwas take a look at her once we get back," the Commander said. "Until then, let's leave her be."

I nodded at her, knowing that it was the right decision. However, it was still stunning. Extremely stunning. "Wow, just wow," I muttered.

"We'll be back there soon," Shepard said.

Zaeed appeared to be a bit concerned for Abby, but mostly he just looked... smug. And he looked like a heavy weight had been lifted from his shoulders.

He seemed quite satisfied.

And I knew that this was the end of the loyalty missions. At least until Legion, this was the end; it was a huge relief. Not only did it mean that we were that much closer to the end, which was more scary than anything, but life on the ship could return to some form of normalness. Everyone's tensions could be down now, at least when it came to their personal lives; their seemed to be a distinct line between being stressed out about the suicide mission, and being stressed out about personal matters. I was just thankful that the latter feeling was gone.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I was right in the middle of cleaning the stove and the heaters in the kitchen, even though Rupert had given me the day off for my birthday. Why? Because frankly, watching Bruno 2 with Mordin had been one of the worst experiences in my life.

And I thought that being confined to this deck, or being wounded in the battlefield, or running the risk of being turned into Reaper goo was bad...

_I'd rather let the Collectors capture me, pluck all my hair out with tweezers and pull all of my nails out with rusty pliers and then turn me inside out than do THAT again!_ I thought. I could still feel my eyes wider than normal on my face; maybe I'd been more traumatized than I thought.

As if just WATCHING that movie wasn't bad enough, (and it was ten times worst than the_ first_ Bruno movie) I had to endure Mordin's constant commentary about the human anatomy, how some elements of the film could compare to the way different species reproduced, and how some of the general insanity of the film could possibly relate to my own "questionable mentality".

"I'm gonna stay away from that damn salarian for the rest of this trip," I growled under my breath. I wasn't ever going to be able to look at my own species-possibly not even my own fingers!-ever again, thanks to him!

"Is something wrong? You seem tense."

I swear I nearly jumped ten feet into the air when someone right behind me spoke. I yelped and I somehow managed to hit my head on the edge of the stove. I rubbed the sore spot warily as I turned to see who was there.

"Ouch," Kasumi said as I looked at her. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, fine," I muttered, then I turned away and continued what I was doing.

"What is wrong?" she asked. "You look like something frightened you."

I shuddered. "Ugh, you DON'T want to know." I grimaced, my shoulders trembling a little as I fought very hard to suppress certain..._ images_ from my brain.

Kasumi raised one eyebrow, her arms crossed. "Okay, what happened?" she asked, a smile twitching at the corner of her full lips.

I opened my mouth, then closed it. I repeated this a couple more times, trying to get my voice to work. "Mordin," I managed, then I ended up stammering incoherently. I coughed.

"Mordin?"

"Watched Bruno 2 with me," I managed to finish. My faced twisted again as I tried to suppress more memories-not of the movie, but this time of some of the things Mordin had said. I didn't exactly need him to compare some of Bruno's... behavior to a krogan-well, never mind.

"Huh... I can't exactly say I empathize," Kasumi said. "I stayed away from Bruno 2 after the first one. Was it really that horrible?"

I have her a long, hard stare. I couldn't speak. But I was sure my face said it all.

Kasumi laughed appreciatively. "Well, we know what your limit is, then!" she joked. She clapped her hand on my shoulder and took the rag from my hand, setting it in the sink away from me. "Now it's time for a break. Shepard's on her way in, and she's got guests."

I simply made another noise under my breath. "I'll do anything," I muttered. "Anything at all. I'll fight Collectors with my bare fists, I'll even polish Shepard's boots with nothing but my own hair and spit-I just don't want to see Mordin or that movie ever again!"

Okay... did I really just say that?

Kasumi chuckled. "Good," she said. "I'm sure Shepard would think of something..." But there was a slight edge of tension to her voice I hadn't noticed until now, and I realized that she needed me to take my head out of the clouds and focus on the here and now. It was a subtle thing with Kasumi, something that she normally wouldn't stress as much as, say, Shepard or something, but when that tone entered her voice I knew I had to pay attention. "Tell me about the people she's picking up on Zorya," Kasumi said.

"Whoa," I said, finally snapping back to the present with a firm shake of my head. "Hey wait a minute, you said they're coming back? Are they all okay? What's going on?"

"You don't know, either?" Kasumi asked, her voice dropping down a step. "Oh, great. Neither do the other two. Shepard's picked up a turian and two human kids from the surface."

"Uh, what?" I said, still feeling a bit dazed. "Are Abby and HK alright? Did they kill Vido?"

"Yeah, Vido's dead and Zaeed's been pacified," Kasumi said carefully. "Jacob took a hit, though. Some of the people down there tended to him and Shepard wanted to bring them back here for some reason. I don't know more than that."

"Wait a minute," I said, shaking my head. "Does this mean that Shepard let the slaves die?" I couldn't believe that. Our sweet, paragon Shepard was tough of course, but she would NOT do that.

"All I know is that Vido is dead," Kasumi said. "It was nothing more than a quick sitrep to Joker - I just happened to be hanging out with him at the time. I'm sure we'll get the full story when they land. What could've happened?" she asked curiously

I felt my heart sink. She really let the slaves die? What happened down there? Did Zaeed somehow coerce her, or did he make her see things his way? If so... was it possible for Shepard to fall to the dark side? (Okay, so this wasn't Star Wars, and there was no dark-side here, but... "falling renegade" just sounded awkward.)

I was pretty sure disappointment was written all over my face as I spoke. "Two possible outcomes, from what I know," I murmured. "There's only time to do one meaningful thing or the other down there-save some slaves from the burning refinery, or kill Vido. If Shepard and Zaeed killed Vido, then..." I trailed off, frowning.

Kasumi frowned. "I don't like where this is heading," she muttered. I could tell she was deep in thought, but she probably wasn't going to tell me any of it until she'd come up with an answer herself. "Well... I guess there's only one thing to do."

"What's that?" I asked warily.

"Wait," she said, sitting on the counter and looking towards the elevator. "I don't know... I don't like going against what you guys saw."

"In this case, I don't like it either," I muttered. Then a sudden thought came to me. "Hey, wait a minute... did you say something about a turian coming with them? And someone else?" I asked.

"All I know is that there's a turian and two humans," Kasumi said. "Other than that, you know as much as I do... which is apparently nothing at this point. It's actually surprisingly frustrating."

"I don't think there're any turians down there... unless they're Vido's thugs," I mused out loud. This wasn't making any sense.

"Shepard didn't say any of the distress words," Kasumi said. The distress words were something that myself, HK, and Abby had learned day one of our basic training. They were simple words you'd use in every day conversation when, put together in the right context, would signal the other party listening about the situation aboard. If Shepard hadn't used any of the distress words, then obviously she wasn't being held hostage or anything.

It sorta reminded me a little of "terminal" and "eternity" actually, even though we didn't use those words, of course.

"Okay," I said, still confused. "Maybe they're captives," I shrugged. "Though I don't see why Shepard would bring thugs onboard. She never has before." I snorted. "Unless you want to count Zaeed or Jack." I looked at Kasumi, then I sighed. "Okay, I know that's not nice," I said quickly.

"He's a civilized thug," Kasumi pointed out. She didn't seem keen on making any more conversation, though. That was a clue for me that she was worried.

"Hey do you think maybe... we could go to the area where the shuttle docks?" I asked hopefully. I really wanted a chance to get off this deck... even just for a few minutes, if I could.

"No," Kasumi said. "We'll only get in their way. We have to keep the elevator clear so they can all come up. Jacob's hurt, remember?"

I swallowed. "Oh dear," I murmured. Then in an even quieter tone I whispered, "hope he's okay..." Then after a moment of thought I said, with more confidence, "He's okay, I know he is. Nobody dies until-" I stopped myself. "Nothing," I said, shaking my head quickly. Thankfully I'd managed to stop myself before making another blunder.

Or not. Kasumi merely nodded shortly. "I'm not expecting to make it out alive," she said conversationally. "I hope I will, but I don't expect to. None of us do, not even Garrus - and _he's_ the optimist."

Suddenly I thought of that dream again. The same dream that me, HK and Abby seemed to have-of course, we each seemed to have different versions of it. But what about the dream I'd had, specifically? Where it felt like nobody else had to die if maybe HK and Abby died during the suicide mission?

Then there were the strange dreams I had sometimes, where I got chased by Collectors and they caught me... yet somehow they didn't seem to bother me anymore. I'd more or less dismissed them for the most part.

"You're not gonna die," I whispered before I stopped myself.

"Thanks," Kasumi said cheerfully. "That brightens my outlook on the end mission considerably."

I almost said nothing. But not talking about my feelings was the true cause of what got me into trouble all those times before.

"For once... I do want to talk about something from my visions," I whispered. "But you have to promise to keep it between us."

"If it's extremely important, I might have to tell Shepard," she warned me. "Think about what you're doing before you tell me."

I shook my head. "I think I'll talk about it with HK and Abby," I finally said.

Kasumi nodded. "It's your choice," she said. "But I'd be careful of all of the eyes and ears on this ship. I'm not the only one who knows everything here."

Before I could say anything, the elevator door opened. I immediately looked toward it to see the small entourage as they began to come out. I took a couple of steps forward, then stopped. I felt eager to see what was going on, how many of them were hurt, and who was there. But I knew I shouldn't get in the way.

What I saw actually astonished me. Jacob was carefully behind escorted out of the lift by Shepard in some sort of gurney and... and...

Was that a female turian? My eyes went absolutely wide. I had never seen a female turian before!

And she looked... well, like a turian, only female.

HK and Abby came out behind them, along with another boy and girl who looked to be around their age.

I waited in place until Shepard and the female turian passed with the wounded Jacob, then I rushed toward HK and Abby. "Oh gosh, what happened?" I exclaimed, looking at them both with widened eyes. "You both okay? And what the heck happened out there?"

"It is a long story, to be honest. Everyone's fine, even Jacob, nothing life-shattering happened, but it got a bit chaotic," HK explained, glancing at Abby nervously. She seemed to be looking at us, but there was also this look on her face like she didn't know what was going on around her. I looked back at HK; it seemed like this mission had definitely worn him out, even more so than previous ones. "Jacob got hit, basically, and I nearly did, too, but this turian and her two companions saved us and helped me patch him up. Abby, Shepard, and Zaeed were off killing Vido while this was going on. Oh," he added, glancing at Abby, "and err... Abby lost her hearing."

I stared at Abby. "Hey, you okay?" I asked with concern, touching her arm gently.

I don't think that she knew exactly what I was saying, but she got the gist. She shrugged and tapped an ear crusted over with blood. I noticed that she had a strange, grate-shaped burn on her cheek... and her hair was burned... and her hands had burns... What the hell had gone on down there?

"I can't hear you," she said in a quiet, quiet voice. She was stringing her words together oddly, like she was testing out a new language before speaking. "Big explosion downstairs. So I'm not ignoring you, I just can't participate in conversation. My head hurts."

I looked at her for a long moment. Then I did something I knew would be a universal sign of sympathy, and that would show I cared; I pulled her into a tight embrace. I opened my mouth, then closed it. I simply knew that it would be useless to say anything since she couldn't hear me.

She pat me on the back awkwardly and hugged back. "You'll probably wanna take a shower later, I'm kinda dirty," she apologized.

I quickly pulled back and realized... yes, there was now stuff all over my clothes. Dirt, ashes... you name it. Even some stuff I didn't quite recognize.

Yet somehow... I didn't care all that much. Clothes were replaceable and, like she just said, I could always shower later. I simply nodded at her.

Right at that moment, Chakwas appeared at the door. "Get him in here, right now," she said firmly, indicating Jacob. Shepard, the turian, and the humans appeared to have stopped there.

I put an arm around Abby's shoulders and just walked with her as all of us moved into the medical bay. Obviously Jacob was the one who needed the most help, though I also knew that Abby would need her ears looked at, too.

"You okay?" I asked, glancing over my shoulder toward HK as we entered the medical bay.

"I will be, but this has been way too insane," HK remarked with a very solemn shaking of his head.

Jacob was quickly moved onto one of the medical beds with the assistance of Chakwas, Shepard, even Zaeed. The doctor obviously wanted to be extra careful with him, due to the extent of his injuries.

I still wasn't entirely sure what the heck happened down there, but his chest wound really did look bad. Abby sat down on the edge of one of the beds; she seemed to be watching what was going on around her, but only in the way that someone who couldn't hear could.

I then moved to the far corner, wanting to stay out of the way. "Looks like you goes went through hell down there," I remarked to no one in particular.

"It was worth it," Jacob said with a small grunt as Chakwas began to cut off his shirt. "Got a lot of people saved down there."

"Oh, you poor thing," Kasumi said, concern written all over her voice. "Ouch. They really got you by surprise, didn't they?"

"A bit," Jacob conceded. "If it wasn't for HK and his new friends... I probably wouldn't be talking now, right?"

"Yes, that's true enough," Shepard admitted. "This is Neyrata." She gestured to the turian, who nodded in greetings. "Denera, and her brother Logan." Denera and Logan just kind of waved a little shyly, but they both looked conspicuously out of place... and I noticed that Logan seemed to be giving Abby some strange sideways looks.

I smiled and nodded toward the two teenagers, then I found myself staring up at Neyrata, the female turian. Just... wow. She was the first female turian I'd seen... ever. She was almost as tall as Garrus-definitely a full head taller than me-though definitely a lot slimmer and slender. I could totally imagine her having a lot more "flexibility" than Garrus, though her limbs were a bit shorter.

"Hi," I said, extending my hand toward the turian. She glanced down at my hand for a moment, then accepted my hand and shook it instantly, almost out of reflex. Apparently she was very familiar with human conduct.

"That's Sarah," Commander Shepard said, her voice carefully neutral. "A very valuable part of our crew."

I found myself staring at Shepard, almost with disbelief. I found myself shooting the Commander a look that could quite possibly be translated as,_ Really? You mean that?_

"Nice to meet you, Sarah." Neyrata gave my hand one final, firm shake, then released it.

I noticed some movement out of the corner of my eye and found that Garrus was standing outside of the medical bay, staring into the window with his arms crossed. He and Shepard seemed to be communicating by silent looks. As I watched, Shepard nodded and Garrus seemed to take that to heart. He relaxed a little bit and walked out of my line of sight. He entered the Medical Bay, nodded a hello to the new arrivals, and crossed towards Jacob's bed. "Anybody ever tell you to duck?" he asked casually.

"Very funny, Vakarian," Jacob muttered. "Ha ha. Gut busting. Really."

"So is anybody going to tell me the full story, or do I have to wait?" he asked, turning to Shepard.

"I'll let you know the specifics later, Garrus," Shepard said.

"Yes, Commander... mind if I hang out here for a while? Calibrating gets kind of dull after a while."

Shepard shot Chakwas a questioning look. The doctor sighed. "If you're not injured, go sit on the far side, I need room."

Garrus, Kasumi, Neyrata, and I moved to the far side of the room where the door to the A.I. Core was hidden, still locked up tight. Logan and Denera took a seat away from everybody else. Shepard sat on the bed next to Jacob's, watching him. Her face looked almost... frozen. I'd never seen the Commander nervous before, and it kind of surprised me.

Before I could speculate on the matter too much, though, Neyrata spoke softly, distracting my line of thought. "So," she said, "you're serving on a Cerberus ship?" She was obviously talking to Garrus, even if she wasn't quite looking at him. She seemed to be taking in her surroundings a little more.

"Despite what the organization it self's done, I trust Shepard with my life," Garrus said. His voice was a slight bit stiffer than what I was used to, and I realized that he was on the defensive but trying not to show it. It was only because I'd known him for so long that I picked up on it. "And what we're up against is bigger than human interests."

Neyrata was looking at him fully now, raising an eye-ridge just a little at his tone. "So it would seem," she commented. "Whatever the case may be, I am definitely grateful to Shepard for getting me and the children out of there." She leaned back a bit in her seat, relaxing just a little. "I've had more than my fair share of being a mercenary thug for that gang." Part of me wondered if that was just a passing comment, or if she was trying to open up some sort of discussion. Or maybe it was just her way of saying, _Hey, I'm not gonna judge you considering my own past._

"Glad to hear it," Garrus said. "Sounds like an interesting story."

"Maybe I'll tell you about it sometime," Neyrata murmured quietly. She straightened just a little in her seat, resting her hands in her lap and tipping her head just a bit. It looked almost casual, but there was something about the way she angled her head-specifically, her fringe-that almost made me wonder if she was making a slight, flirtatious move.

Or maybe I was just reading way too much into it. That was possible too.

Okay, so I still liked Garrus a lot. What girl wouldn't? Not to mention that she was a female turian... and I was not.

"Thanks, Doc," Jacob muttered. I glanced back at him and realized that Chakwas had pressed a needle into his neck. His eyes closed, and Jacob descended into a deep, deep sleep.

Chakwas wheeled over a small table of metal instruments, but hesitated before picking them up. "I'm going to have to remove the bullets manually before they do any more harm. If you're squeamish, you should probably leave."

"Hey, is she gonna cut into Jacob?" Abby asked, blinking stupidly. She was staring at the metal instruments.

I caught her eye, then I nodded in response to her question.

Abby frowned. "Well, that sucks," she whispered, but I don't think that she meant for us to hear that. It was beginning to look like she was starting to voice her inward thoughts out loud, unable to tell if she was actually talking or not... this was going to be interesting.

"Uh... Doctor?" Denera asked shyly. "Can Logan and I hang in the cafeteria 'till you're done?"

"I don't see why not," Chakwas said, looking at Kasumi meaningfully.

"Come on, I'll get you some food," Kasumi said brightly. "Anyone else want to join us?"

"I'll hang out with Neyrata and Garrus," I told her. Then I glanced at them, wondering if they were going to or stay here.

"Actually, it would probably be best if you three went out with the others anyway," said Chakwas, pulling on a pair of disposable gloves. "Abby should stay here. Shepard, what first aid did you perform on her?"

"I gave her a stim for the shock," Shepard said. "Looked like she was about to slip into it. Other than that, there's nothing I can do on the field for a pair of burst eardrums. I figured I should leave that to you."

"And how did this happen?" Chakwas asked, picking up a small scalpel.

"She'd come over to assist when my shields dropped," Shepard explained. "There were these large canisters overhead filled with something highly combustible. Santiago detonated all of them just a few meters away and above her position. Zaeed and I were pretty much under cover, but she was surrounded by small metal vents. I think the pressure bounced off of them and amplified in her space."

"She was lucky," Zaeed said. "The rest of the thugs in there burned to death."

"Okay... Shepard, obviously Abby needs immediate treatment as well, so I'd like you to take care of her best you can while I operate on Mr. Taylor."

"Come on, kids," Kasumi said, gesturing for Denera and Logan to leave. "Let's get out of the doc's way."

"I suppose I could use something to eat," Neyrata said and rose, not really looking at anyone else now. The kids were already out the door, closely followed by Kasumi. Neyrata cast a curious glance at me, then at Garrus, then looked over at Chakwas and Jacob. Then she moved toward the door herself.

"So she can't hear anything?" Garrus asked, looking at Abby.

"Not a bloody thing." Zaeed chuckled.

"That sucks," Garrus said. As he passed he pat Abby on the shoulder, and she grinned brightly up at him. "Yowch. Somebody get medi-gel on her face before she looks like me, okay?"

Shepard was already crossing over to the dispenser. "Good call."

"Come on, Sarah," Garrus said, leading me out.

"Coming," I said, and I was sorta aware that I was following him out like a puppy dog.

The first thing I noticed was that Kasumi and the two kids were already seated at one of the tables. Neyrata seemed to be hovering near the table but she hadn't sat down yet. Kasumi was serving the kids, and it seemed she was making certain they had enough to eat. It looked like HK had chosen to sit down with them as well.

It was kind of interesting at how I looked at them. Frankly, when I looked at HK and Abby, I saw them as adults. Perhaps it was because they had been through so much, and heck, at times they acted a whole lot mature than I did. Not to mention the fact that they could actually fight. Yet when I looked at those two teenagers, seated at that table... somehow they seemed so much younger by comparison. Even with HK seated right next to them... something about his eyes, and the way he sat... I could almost swear he looked like a man in his thirties compared to them.

I saw Garrus glance in their direction, then headed for the fridge. He was no doubt intent on getting a snack out of there. I followed him and then stood a short distance away from him, waiting patiently. Actually I wasn't really hungry, I simply wanted a chance to hang out with him, and maybe the female turian as well.

Speaking of which, Neyrata peered in our direction. Then she made sort of a casual beeline toward is. Garrus didn't seem to notice; he was currently bending down a little to get a better look in the fridge. Neyrata looked at me with a small frown, then looked at Garrus. Did she want me to go away? Or was she trying to decide if she wanted to say something to me, or in front of me?

Finally she looked at Garrus and cleared her throat softly. "Vakarian," she said. "I thought I recognized you back there. We met on Omega... remember?"

Garrus straightened and looked at the female turian. "Ah," he said quietly, "yes... I thought you looked familiar."

She nodded a little. "Yeah, I was on Omega with a few other gangsters. I remember you stopped us." From the way she looked, I couldn't tell if she approved or if she was holding a grudge.

"You met on Omega?" I asked in spite of myself.

"Uh, yeah, we did," Garrus murmured.

Neyrata looked at me with annoyance. "I would like to speak with your friend in private," she said.

"Oh," I said, feeling a little disappointed. Whatever this was, it was going to be juicy, I thought. At least it could be.

"Please excuse us," Garrus said to me, speaking a bit more softly than Neyrata had.

"Sure," I said. For some reason-maybe because I'd known Garrus a lot longer-I felt more inclined to go away because he requested it than because the female turian told me to scram.

"Mind if I join you?" I asked casually as I walked up to the table where Kasumi, HK and the kids were seated.

"Not at all," Kasumi said.

"Fine by me," HK said.

Denera was looking at me curiously. "What do you do here, lady?" she asked me.

"I'm the janitor," I said with a small smile.

"You don't look much like a janitor," Logan said with a small smirk.

I gazed at him. "What do you mean?" I asked in a patient tone.

"You're not old and creepy," Denera said.

"Uh... thanks," I said with a little shrug. I'd never seen any janitors who fit the description "old and creepy", but then again I didn't get out much either. Especially these days.

I glanced toward the turians out of curiosity, and they seemed to be having a nice quiet and calm discussion about... well, whatever they were talking about. Maybe I could ask Garrus about it later, if I had the time.

Yeah, I could admit it... at least to myself. I was very nosey when it came to turians... especially my favorite one.

"So... how's your food?" I asked out loud, glancing at HK and at Kasumi, and then at the kids. Then I waited for one of them to answer; I was just trying to make casual conversation.

Logan and Denera couldn't answer because they'd taken advantage of the pause in conversation to stuff their faces. Kasumi was chuckling. "Wow, I don't even think they taste it."

Denera took a giant swallow that reminded me of Abby's wonderful eating habits. "We didn't get a lot of food," she said.

"Sure seems that way," I murmured. I looked at HK. "How's your..." I stared at his plate for a moment. "What is that?" I asked, wrinkling my nose a little.

HK seemed to be in a slight daze, but my question snapped him out of it. He had seemed strangely solemn and quiet since they returned. "Oh, something new Rupert was trying with the food. There was actually something like it back in Oklahoma; a baked potato mixed with...Mexican food, I think?"

"Ah, I see," I commented. "Well, whatever floats your boat." I shrugged. I just figured I wouldn't be touching anything like it anytime soon.

"I've probably already said this to you two," HK said, looking to Denera and Logan. "But thanks, again. If it weren't for you and Neyrata, both Jacob and I would probably be dead. I am really grateful."

Denera's mouth was too full for her to say anything. She just sorta mumbled something around her food, then stuffed even more into her mouth. She was really starting to look like a chipmunk. Logan simply said, "Yeah, no problem."

Speaking of Neyrata, it looked like she and Garrus were wrapping up their conversation... whatever they were talking about. Neyrata smiled a little, and I noticed both of them moving in the general direction of our table.

"Hi again," I said out loud to the turians once they were within hearing range.

Garrus nodded and took his seat, pulling his plate of food closer to him. "So," he said, looking towards HK. "Care to give us the rundown?"

HK slowly nodded, though the thought seemed to make him uneasy. "Well, it was close to how we saw it in our visions. Break into the compound, kill some mercs, the typical stuff. However, we didn't exactly foresee Shepard splitting us up; basically, thanks to Zaeed and Vido, the refinery down there was set on fire. There were enslaved workers trapped inside, and in our vision, Shepard only had two people with her and had to make a choice: Vido or the workers. However, because she had five people, she chose both. Jacob and I went off to save the workers, and the other three went to kill Vido. Both objectives were insane, but Jacob and I actually managed to save the workers and stop the fire without any problems. Jacob got injured afterwards, when he let his guard down and a remaining merc snuck up on him. My stupid moment was when I let my guard down to help him, and nearly got myself shot; that was when Neyrata stepped in and saved us. Meanwhile, Vido got killed, but Abby lost her hearing in some explosion. Still not too sure of the details on that one."

"Wow," I said, shaking my head a little. I glanced in the direction of the medical bay. I couldn't see much from here, though. "I hope Abby will be okay," I murmured. "Jacob, too," I added after a moment.

"Jacob looks like he's in good hands," Garrus said carefully, "but I've seen men survive penetrating brain injury when they shouldn't, and others taken down with a scratch, so... I'll be happier when they're both out of there."

Neyrata was hovering near the table, apparently not wanting to sit down. "From what I could tell they're both tough," she said in an encouraging tone. "They'll pull through."

Before anyone could reply, Shepard appeared. She rounded the corner and looked in our direction. She moved toward her table, and I sat up just a bit straighter. It was sort of my "at attention" stance... even if I was sitting down.

Shepard looked tired, but she didn't look like she was getting ready to lay down any time soon. "Zaeed's watching over the both of them," she said. "So far, it looks like their luck's holding. Next order of business is you, it seems." She nodded at Neyrata.

Neyrata inclined her head. "I take it you wish to speak with me?" she asked.

Shepard nodded. "Take your food, let's head upstairs to my office. Kasumi, can you watch these two for a while? Set them up in the empty crew quarters."

"Theirs?" she said, pointing at me and HK.

Shepard nodded.

"Whoa," I said, blinking a little. "You mean they're gonna stay with us?" It wasn't that I minded all that much. I was just thinking about how crowded it might be in there.

Shepard nodded again. "Come on," she said, gesturing to Neyrata. "We'll go over a few details."

Neyrata nodded and, carrying her food with her, the two of them disappeared around the corner. I heard the elevator open and close, and then Kasumi said cheerfully, "Looks like you guys will be with us for a while."

I simply smiled, trying not to say anything. I knew it wouldn't be very nice to say what I was thinking, especially since it was more important to be considerate of others. But what I was thinking to myself was,_ I really hope that they don't get too loud... or snore too much._

After all... to me, that room was sort of like a cell. Technically I wasn't allowed out of it much unless I was working. I was sorta surprised that Shepard didn't say anything about it right now... then again, her mind was probably on other things at the moment.

Kasumi immediately dove into a topic of conversation with the two of them, coaxing them out of their shells a little bit. She didn't ask too many details about the refinery or about their relatives, but she kept it light by asking them about their favorite sports and what they liked to do. Denera was a girly-girl, as Abby'd call it, and Logan was just another guy interested in guns, ships, and krogan sports.

It was obvious that Shepard had chosen the right person to make the both of them feel at home, because even I could see them both starting to relax. Garrus even jumped in on the conversation at points, going over the finer details of weaponry with Logan while Kasumi and Denera talked in circles about their favorite movie stars. HK and I attempted to keep up, but it looked like Garrus and Kasumi had it covered. I had a feeling Shepard wouldn't like it if I left, though, considering they were, well, guests, and I had to be a good hostess.

Maybe about twenty minutes later the door to the Medical Bay opened and Abby walked out. She waved to us with a grin and came over; a soft yellowish paste had been spread across the cheek with the burn, completely obscuring it. It looked gross, but it smelled nice when it wasn't covered by the scent of burnt hair and gasoline.

"Can you hear?" Kasumi asked.

Apparently not yet. Abby's eyes shot to the movement of Kasumi's lips, and it was clear that she was taking a wild guess at what she'd said. "Jacob's okay," she said clearly. "The doctor wanted Zaeed and me to leave so we didn't set off the chemical sensors and stuff while she dug in there. Apparently we stink."

Zaeed slipped out of the room as she said that and crossed behind her to the elevator, unseen and unheard of by her. It was kind of... funny. Though I'd never say it to her face.

"Sar, can I get some food?" she asked politely, indicating the kitchen. "Er... just nod or shake your head."

I bobbed my head twice in a nod, and gave her a thumbs' up gesture. I wasn't sure what inspired me to do that, maybe I just wanted to try and telling her that everything was okay right here.

She gave me a thumbs-up, nodded, and crossed over to the fridge to help herself. We all watched her open the door, survey the contents, and curse. She closed it and went to the sink to wash her blackened, dirty hands, and then took a small wipe to the fridge where she'd left large black fingerprints.

She seemed to sense us all watching her and straightened up, looking at us with suspicious eyes. We all looked at her, and she looked right back at us. "What?" she asked curiously.

"Oh, we could have fun with this," Kasumi said mischievously.

"Be nice," Garrus said, though there wasn't any conviction in it. "They had a rough time down there... though I do admit this is probably something that won't happen again."

We all continued to stare at her. It seemed to be making her uncomfortable. "What?" she asked again.

"I wonder how long we can keep this going," she said, not taking her eyes off of Abby.

"Oh, probably for as long as her attention span holds," Garrus said conversationally.

Abby raised one eyebrow and turned away to gather up a mixture of food. "I share a ship with loons," she sang.

"She has no right to talk on that point," Garrus said.

"Even if it's true," Kasumi added.

"She and these two are loonier than the rest of us put together."

Abby gave us the occasional glance as she prepared her meal, obviously a bit disturbed. I wondered what she was thinking right now. Then she took her plate of food and walked away, shaking her head. I wondered where the heck she was going, but then I heard the door down the hall ping open and realized that she must have retreated to somebody else's room... either Kasumi's or Thane's, considering the direction it came from.

"Well that was entertaining," Kasumi said dryly.

Right at that moment, Neyrata appeared around the corner, closely followed by Shepard. Presumably they had finished talking about, well, whatever they were talking about. I saw Neyrata walk over to the kitchen to put her tray away, then she passed by our table. "I'm going to, ah, our quarters, to get some rest," she said. "The Commander showed me where it is."

I found my eyes following the female turian as she walked away. "Don't touch my CD player!" I blurted before I could stop myself. Neyrata arched an eye ridge in my direction, but said nothing; she kept walking.

Then I glanced at Shepard. "Hi Commander," I said with a little wave.

Shepard's face seemed to set into a mask of stern authority. "That was inappropriate," she reprimanded. "You're going to apologize to Neyrata when you see her."

I swallowed, hard. "Yes, Commander," I said with an obedient nod. I certainly wasn't going to disagree with her or argue; not after everything else I'd done.

Shepard nodded, and when I glanced over at the two children out of the corner of my eye I noticed that they were staring at the Commander with a mixture of fear and respect. As she turned to regard them, Shepard's face melted into a smile. "Don't worry, we have a room for you. Neyrata and I've been talking, and it turns out that you have a guardian of some sort on the Citadel?"

They nodded in assent.

"We'll make a stop there and get some last-minute supplies," Shepard continued. "I'll escort you to your guardian with Neyrata. She's gone to write a message to him right now, so everything should be set. And if something comes up, then we'll just find another way. I have friends on the Citadel that can help you out, so you don't have to worry about it. It'll take a couple of days to get there, so you should get yourselves acquainted with the crew. Sarah, HK, and Abby can show you around and give you a tour."

"Okay," Logan said with a nod. "What happened to the other guys? Still on Zorya?"

"I pinged Admiral Hackett and told him the situation," Shepard said. "He's dispatched lifeboats and medical teams to get them out. They should be in-system within half an hour. Thankfully, we'll be long gone by then."

"But you're Commander Shepard," Denera said disbelievingly. "Didn't you die? How are you still here, helping us?"

"Got lucky," she said with a chuckle. "I'm back now, but people can't know that yet. So that stays a secret between the three of us."

"Are you on the run?" Logan asked curiously.

"Just staying low," Shepard said, amused. "I've given up being on the run a long time ago - now I'm taking the fight to the people who chased me. Hopefully we'll do a lot of good before I officially die again." Shepard cleared her throat. "Okay, the two of you probably want to take a shower. There are some bathrooms right behind me in this hallway. Sarah and HK will get you set up with some fresh clothes and soap. We'll wash your dirty ones and have them back to you in the morning. Sound alright?"

"Yes, ma'am," Denera said quietly.

"Sarah, come here." Shepard twitched her finger in my direction and gestured over to the kitchen.

I blinked several times. _Uh oh_, I thought. What was she going to talk to me about? Was there something I'd done? Or was she going to give me a firm talk, to make sure I was good to our guests?

I slowly got up and followed her over to the kitchen. Then I stood there with my hands folded behind my back and I forced myself to meet her eyes. "Yes, Commander?" I said in a respectful tone.

"We'll be at the Citadel for a while," Shepard said. "I'm giving the crew a day and a night of shore leave before we head out. Since it's been a while since you've left the ship, I'm going to let you take a break and head out with Miranda. Do you agree with this plan?"

I blinked several times. Okay, that had definitely not been what I was expecting. She was really going to give me another chance? And an opportunity to get off the ship? Really? I knew I was grinning like an idiot now but I couldn't stop myself.

I did, however, stop myself from hugging her... or something. "Yes," I said earnestly with an eager nod. "Thank you, Commander! Thank you very much! I promise I'll be good and I won't leave Miranda for a second." I'd gladly put up with that b-that person, for an entire day, if it meant getting off the ship. I'd even be extra nice to her. "Thank you!" I said again.

Shepard didn't even acknowledge the thank-you. "I want you to take into very careful consideration about the consequences if you leave Miranda," she said seriously. "Don't make this another Tuchanka or even another Illium. You can go do whatever you want, but _stay in the district_. Go hang out with the rest of the crew, you can hang out with Abby and HK - but no wandering off by yourself. Use your common sense. You're smart."

"Don't worry, Commander," I assured her. "I promise I won't let you down and I'll stay with Miranda at all times. Just... thank you!" I grabbed her hand and gave it a firm, delighted shake. Then I released it, hoping she wouldn't mind what I just did.

Shepard nodded, her face softening a little. "All right," she said. "Go enjoy yourself... I don't know about you, but I need a hot shower."

I was still grinning at her. "Enjoy your shower," I said sincerely. I watched her as she walked away, moving toward one of the bathrooms. Then I let out a little squeal and I found myself doing something that I never thought I'd do in a million years; I was headed straight for Miranda's office.

I could practically feel HK's eyes following me as I walked away, and I knew he was wondering what happened and what was going on. I decided I would fill him in later.

I walked up to Miranda's office door and knocked on it sharply. "Miranda?" I called out. "Can I come in?"

The door hissed open, revealing Miranda still seated at her desk like always. "I bet I can guess," she said wryly.

I smiled at her. "I just wanted to say thank you," I told her earnestly. "I really appreciate it and I promise I'll be good. I won't give you any trouble at all."

Miranda nodded, a bit of a smile on her face. "I hope not," she said. "Just be ready; we'll be there in a couple of days. Figure out what you want to do before we hit groundside."

Well that would definitely require some thought. I titled my head to one side and decided I would be considerate, especially since she was going to spend some of her time there as well. "Is there anything you want to do or look at while we're there?" I asked.

"I have my errands," she said matter-of-factly. "But Jacob's being considerate enough to do them for me... we'll just see if he can walk or not by that time." She looked concerned, but she obviously didn't want to show it to me. I edged a bit closer to her and saw her click out of what looked like a feed of surveillance video... was it possible that she was monitoring Doctor Chakwas's work? "Right now I'm sending a mission report to the Illusive Man about Zorya. It seems like the last bit of business we had to take care of. Now all we need to do is make contact with Doctor Chandana's team and retrieve the IFF. It feels like things are finally coming together."

I nodded a little. "Yeah, it'll all be over soon," I acknowledged. I was not going to slip up and blurt out any information I didn't need to. Not this time. "Hey um... can I ask a question, off the record?"

"It's never off the record," she said, a touch of humor in her voice. She folded her arms and rested her chin in her hands. "But you're welcome to ask."

I hesitated for a second, wondering if I should ask or not. Then I figured there was no harm in it, so long as I did it nicely. "Just curious," I began in a sweet tone, "do you think Shepard might let me leave Deck 3 anytime soon?" Hey, I could definitely hope. Especially since the Commander was being nice enough to let me go to the Citadel soon.

"Probably not," Miranda said with an inclination of her head. "You're actually getting a better deal here than you would have anywhere else. The Commander is being very lenient."

"Yeah, she is," I said with an eager nod. "Hey... can I ask you one more question?" I added, still looking at her curiously.

"Certainly."

"Once all of this is over-once we deal with the Collectors and everything... do you think Shepard will let me off the ship?" Hey, I had no idea what was going to happen once this was all over. But I had to think positive and think ahead. Especially since I'd made my bed and now I had to sleep in it, so to speak.

"That's her choice," Miranda said. "Probably based off of how well you do on the Citadel. I don't need to remind you that you're going in civilian clothes and no weapons. You bought items to wear the last time you were on the Citadel, correct?"

"Yep," I nodded. "Heck, I even bought a pretty dress down there. Maybe this'll be a good chance to try it out."

Miranda nodded. "Sounds good, then. I'll be wearing something different, as well." She gestured to her outfit with a tilt of her head. "I don't want to draw too much attention down there, either. I'll bring a sidearm or two for protection, and my biotics should cover the rest. However, I'm not looking for any confrontations down there. If it comes anything close to that, we're retreating."

She brought up a small file on her computer and enlarged it with a wave of her hand so I could see. It seemed to be a manifest of everyone on the Normandy, except that they were arranged in groups of four and upwards. "We're not taking chances. EDI compiled this list for me, and I'm going to have everybody log in what they're doing and where they're going as a precaution. Shepard's made a lot of enemies in Citadel Space, and we can't afford to take risks at this stage of the mission. Everybody goes in the group, like it or not."

"In that case, shouldn't at least one other person come with us?" I asked. She made it sound like we were risking our lives just by leaving the ship. And I didn't want to be kidnapped, and I didn't want to see HK and Abby get kidnapped again, either.

I briefly considered the idea of suggesting that maybe HK and Abby could hang out with us, along with maybe one other person. But I didn't want to get in the way if they had their own plans... or if Abby needed more R&R aboard the ship. I wanted her to get whatever rest she needed if her hearing was going to return anytime soon.

"I don't believe so," she said. Then, as if reading my mind, she said, "Abby and HK are both going with an escort as well, so you don't have to feel snubbed in any way. I'm still trying to work out who they can go with... obviously, there are some people I won't trust with them, like Jack or Grunt, though the krogan was extremely well-behaved last time considering how unstable he was. I don't know, but I'll figure something out. This is our last chance to have some real shore leave before we hit the wire."

I nodded. "Don't worry, I didn't feel snubbed or anything," I said. "Actually, considering that HK and Abby got kidnapped once, I'd be shocked if Shepard let anyone go anywhere without help. Even somebody like Thane, who definitely knows how to look after himself."

"No kidding," Miranda muttered, shaking her head. She exited out of the list and minimized the screen back to its usual state. "Okay, then, I'll talk to you later. I have a lot of work to do. I think Shepard needs you to show the children to your room... consider it another chance to redeem yourself."

"Eh sure," I nodded. "I'll do it right away." Anything to get back in the Commander's good favor... and Miranda's.

I exited her office and walked toward the table. Garrus was no longer sitting there; knowing him he'd probably gone back to his calibrations or something. Kasumi was still talking to the kids; HK looked like he was tolerantly listening to the conversation.

I walked up behind them and cleared my throat softly. "May I show you to our room?" I asked the kids nicely.

"Uh, sure," Logan said, pushing his food away. Denera began to gather the trays and stack them on each other for easy transport and placed them in the dishwasher. "Who else is sharin' the room with us?"

"Neyrata, Abby, HK, and myself," I answered readily. Hey, maybe being Miss Tour Guide wouldn't be so bad.

"Can I take a shower first?" Denera asked shyly.

"Sure," I said with a small shrug. "I can show you where one of the restrooms are."

"Me, too," Logan said. "I haven't taken a shower for two weeks, and I think something weird is growing in my armpits."

"Ew!" Denera cried. "Logan!"

Logan glanced sideways at my horrified look and laughed, looking embarrassed. "Uh, I was joking, you know?" he asked, looking a little worried despite the smile. "It's something we do to pass the time, right?"

In spite of myself, I cracked up. It took me nearly a full minute to regain my composure. "Okay I'll show you both where you can take showers," I said, gesturing in the direction of the bathrooms. Heck, I certainly knew every nook and cranny of this deck, especially since I wasn't allowed to leave.

I set them up with towels and began scouring the ship for extra clothes. I ended up taking some of HK's with his permission, and Abby's without. Hey, I figured she wouldn't care anyway, and there was no way Denera would be able to fit into my stuff. I gave them the clothes and chatted with Kasumi a bit before she decided to head back to the MedBay to check on Jacob with Miranda and Garrus.

They spent about ten minutes each taking a shower, so I didn't have to wait too long. Logan came out first, dripping wet and looking pretty good in his borrowed clothes... when Denera came out, she looked like a wet dog in clothes too big for her, but they still looked loads better than what she'd been wearing. I gathered up their dirty clothes and put them in the wash, and then showed them our room.

Abby and Neyrata were sitting at the table across from each other, playing checkers. "Hey, Rat's winning!" Denera crowed, coming to sit down on Neyrata's side.

Abby frowned at Denera's outfit, and then shrugged. She didn't look too concerned about it. "I'm making a comeback, here..." she muttered, staring at the board. I didn't even know where she found the checker set.

I looked at them for a moment, then I remembered what Shepard had said to me, right before she told me that I could go to the Citadel. I cleared my throat softly, trying to catch the turian's eye. I was still trying to be good, after all.

"Hey, Neyrata," I said. "Sorry for being rude back there." There, I said it.

She glanced at me for a moment, then shrugged. "It's your room," she said simply. "I doubt I would want anyone touching my things either." She snorted. "If I had anything worth touching or taking." She turned her full attention back to the game.

Abby jumped two of her pieces and took the chips for herself as Logan sat down next to her. He wrinkled his nose. "Sheesh, she smells like Vido's special gas."

"I wonder if things are growing in _her_ armpits..." Denera said mischievously.

Abby continued to play. "I have the feeling that some type of joke is being made at my expense," she said off-handedly.

I couldn't help it; I laughed. Neyrata shot Denera a mild look, but I could see the amusement on her face.

Somehow it seemed like the turian had developed sort of... protective, almost aunt-like, relationship with the two kids. I wondered what happened down on that planet that caused such a thing to develop. I'd never heard of a turian looking after two younger humans before, although I figured anything was possible.

They seemed pretty near the end of their game anyway. Neyrata won, but barely, and Abby just laughed. "Thanks for the game," she said, clapping the turian on the shoulder.

"Me versus Neyrata next!" Denera said, sliding into Abby's vacated seat.

"You want to play?" Abby asked her. When Denera nodded, Abby just nodded and shot a fake salute to me as she crossed to her bed to grab a few clothes in the footlocker at the end. "Shower-time! Adios... man, I love not being able to hear myself talk.."

She left.

I quickly decided that this wasn't going to be so bad after all. I simply crossed over to my bed and plunked myself down, content with watching the game.

Neyrata smiled a little after Denera made a couple of moves. The female turian moved one of her pieces several times, capturing four of her opponent's pieces. Obviously the girl wasn't off to a very good start.

Denera obviously hadn't played much before, either, and Logan was probably making it worse by whispering advice to her when it was her turn. In the end, Neyrata won again.

I applauded vocally for the turian. Then both of them looked at me. I stopped abruptly, especially when I saw the look on the girl's face. She flinched, fear on her face, eying my hands with a hard glare on her face. She was obviously scared, or I had scared her, and that threw her off. "Hey, it's fine," Logan said, rubbing his shoulder. "She don't know better."

Denera nodded shakily and avoided my gaze.

"Me versus Denera!" Logan said. "Move it, Rat, you've got two turns already."

I folded my hands and kept them in plain view on my lap, completely still, Neyrata stood off to one side, looking mildly amused as the two kids proceeded to play.

"How did they start calling you rat?" I asked Neyrata quietly, curious. It certainly sounded more like an insult to my ears than anything, but maybe it could be a considered a cute and acceptable nickname.

The turian shrugged. "Actually it goes back to a raid I helped out with on Omega," she said. "I fought dirty, and the others in my group began to call me that. It wasn't long before the kids overheard it and started calling me that, too." Then she smiled. "Actually Garrus was the first person who called me that, I think," she added. "I was the only one who'd ever managed to slip away from him. And mind you, I was only armed with a small dagger at that point."

I looked at her in amazement.

"I just call her that 'cos it's a shorter version of her name," Logan said. "Denera's Den most times to me, too. We couldn't call Neyrata Rat much on Zorya, though, but she's been nice to us. She'd give us food when our parents were on the other side of the place. We were the only kids."

"I did what I could," Neyrata acknowledged humbly with a nod.

"So what do you think of Garrus?" I found myself asking her curiously.

"Seems like a good, respectable fellow," Neyrata answered casually. "I thought so on Omega when I first saw him, too. He was always trying to do good, and still is. Unfortunately I couldn't do much back then, because I didn't want my superiors to get pissed off me." A thoughtful expression crossed her features. "He is... someone I wouldn't mind getting to know better, I suppose."

Logan blanched. "Gross."

Neyrata blinked, then barked a laugh. "Someday," she said knowingly, "you'll be a lot more interested in girls. Trust me." She rolled her eyes, then she looked at me and spoke in a softer tone so that the kids couldn't hear. "A human male hit on me once. I didn't reciprocate, but... I've seen how they can be."

"Some of them can be, I guess," I said with a shrug. "Not all, though." I briefly thought about HK's, well, _episodes_ with Jack. Then again, the less I thought about that, the better.

"If it's okay, I'm just gonna go to bed," I said.

Neyrata nodded a little. "Sweet dreams," she said simply, turning her full attention back to Denera and Logan.

"I'm sixteen," Logan mumbled. "I know plenty about girls. I'll show you."

Denera giggled a little bit... this was sure to be an interesting journey.


	42. We don't know everything again

**(Sarah)**

Over the past two days, well... at least I could say that I'd been less bored than usual, mostly because I didn't have too much time to myself. When I wasn't cleaning or cooking, I'd been spending quite a bit of time keeping Logan and Denera entertained or showing them various things. They were quite inquisitive, having a lot of questions about the way things were and what did what aboard the ship.

The best thing that had happened was that Abby's hearing returned to normal thanks to Chakwas. It only took about a day of intensive treatment, but she could hear just as well as she could since before the mission, which meant that everybody's teasing had to stop. And right now, the kids were with her, off doing something or other. I don't know, maybe they were bugging Joker again. I smiled at the thought; I really wished I could see that.

Right now I had the unpleasant task of giving the oven in the kitchen a very thorough cleaning. Why? Because I'd left something in there overnight and apparently it exploded or something, and left quite the mess on the inside, and then it burned and dried on; so now I was stuck with the lovely job of washing and scraping it all off.

Rupert had said that he wanted it to be spotless, so obviously I was going to be here for a while. I sighed at the thought, and then I leaned into the oven to begin scrubbing a bit better.

I soon heard footsteps approaching, but I ignored them. I doubted that anyone could see me where I was, especially since most of my upper body was currently in the oven as I attempted to scrub it clean. Also, the oven was positioned so that you couldn't really see me unless you came all the way into the kitchen.

Whoever was out there paused near the edge of the mess hall and near the front counter. I couldn't see them, but I could hear them. It sounded like Garrus and Neyrata having some sort of chat. They had been spending some of their free time together lately.

"I don't think I've mentioned this before," Neyrata was saying, "but I'm glad you managed to take out Garm on Omega. I never liked him very much, and the galaxy is better off without him."

"He was one tough bastard," Garrus agreed. "Without Shepard, I doubt I'd have made it out alive. I'm surprised everybody thinks I'm dead, actually... It's nice and all, not being hunted, but I didn't even leave a body for them. I guess it's another one of those big dog things, trying to tell the others who the tough guy is now. I wonder who's claiming responsibility for it. You hear anything?"

"Not really," Neyrata murmured. "Well, I heard some news. But there are times when I don't trust what I hear until it's actually been proven. At times the news media can be nothing more than gossip." She chuckled a little. "For whatever it's worth though... I'm glad you're alive."

There was something about the way she said that that I didn't really like. Then again... I still liked Garrus a lot. Hey, I couldn't help it. Garrus was awesome... and he was my friend, at least.

"Hey, me, too," he agreed, coughing a little. "Actually, I'm pretty glad you're alive, too... Didn't expect to see you the other day. And I guess we've been avoiding each other since..."

"Since that day, nearly a year ago, when we nearly killed each other," Neyrata replied. I heard a slight shuffling of feet; I wondered if one of them was fidgeting or if Neyrata had stepped closer to Garrus or something. "Then again, technically I was a bad girl back then." Ugh, there was that flirty tone again. "What do you think of bad girls, Vakarian?"

"The product of an unhappy childhood," he said awkwardly. "You've always had a good heart, though. I'm not too worried about you shooting Shepard in the back, or me. You helped those kids. You probably would've helped them way back when, too."

"And you've always wanted to see justice carried out, no matter how hard it was," Neyrata said softly. "I really respect that in a person. You've always been willing to do the tough jobs."

"Thanks," he said. I could almost hear the awkwardness in his voice. "Look, uh... you going to be okay when we hit the Citadel? I know the kids have a place to go, but do you?"

"I'm always fine, and I always get by," she said. By her tone I could imagine her shrugging. "My brother is gone-he's the only reason I was with the Blue Suns in the first place. Now... I guess I'll just see what kind of work I can get on the Citadel."

"I know some people," he said. "Obviously you can't go into the law enforcement side of things, but... you could continue your education. Go get a normal job."

"I guess I'll just see what happens," Neyrata replied. "You know," she went on, "it's still going to be a few hours before we reach the Citadel. I was wondering..." She hesitated for a moment, as though trying to choose her words carefully. "If you'd like to spend some time with me," she finally said. "Alone."

"That's... something I don't hear every day," Garrus said. Silence, and then: "You're talking about what I think you're talking about, aren't you?"

"What if I am?" Her tone sounded... coy.

"Then, uh... I'd be very flattered that you'd think of me in, uh... that way." Garrus cleared his throat. "The idea... is tempting. Blowing off steam and all. But I think Shepard wouldn't like it."

Silence.

Then, "What does your Commander have to do with anything?" Now her tone was just a tad stiffer.

"She's kind of the boss here," Garrus said. "And there's always the chance that the pilot might take it as an opportunity to expand his knowledge of... stuff."

"No one would ever have to know," Neyrata persisted in a low tone. "And I know how to rig my omni-tool to interfere with any spy devices."

"Cerberus technology is cutting-edge..."

"When it comes to technology, I know what I'm doing," Netraya insisted. "I didn't survive with the Blue Suns for all this time without learning a thing or two."

Well, I figured it was possible to get rid of the bugs or block them out... I knew Mordin did it, and Morinth certainly did it in the game if she came aboard.

But part of me didn't like this... Neyrata seemed nice enough, but it was obvious she wanted a fling. Besides, if I couldn't have Garrus... well, part of me wanted Tali to have him.

Garrus's composure didn't sound like it was going to hold for much longer, and Neyrata seemed to know it. "Neyrata..."

More foot-shuffling. Maybe Neyrata had moved closer. Maybe she was even touching him now. I couldn't tell for sure. "Say you want this," Neyrata murmured softly, "as much as I do. It would be the only chance we'd have to do it."

Garrus and Neyrata were very quiet, and I could hear my own rapid breathing. I was completely still, every nerve alert, wondering... and then...

"You really are something," Garrus said softly, almost too low to hear. "You really are..."

That sounded like yes to me.

"Lead on." I had no idea that a turian's voice could sound so... husky and alluring. I couldn't stop myself from grimacing.

I heard footsteps lead away from me... and towards the gunnery station. The door opened and closed, sealing the two turians away from the world.

"Oh. My. _Gosh._" I allowed myself to smack my forehead against the greasy interior of the oven, which turned out to be a mistake. Now I was going to have to wash my hair _and_ my face later.

"Sarah, are you okay down there?"

I had to back out of the oven to see who was there, and I suddenly felt very sheepish.

Abby had one eyebrow raised, a small disposable cup in her hand. Her face had begun to heal over the past couple of days, and now you could just barely notice the facial scarring from the hot grate. Kelly had even cut the burned ends of her hair off for her, so now it hung just past her chin. I still had to get used to the new look.

"Um, hi," I said, trying to shake off how I felt after... well, what I'd just overheard. "Um, how are Logan and Denera?" I asked conversationally.

Abby grinned a little. "Great! Logan and I were just downstairs hanging out with Jacob and Zaeed." She sat on the counter, swinging her legs. "Y'know, I have a theory. I think that the loyalty missions don't only make the team loyal to Shep. I think that they form deeper friendships with the people that went out and helped them with it, too. Zaeed and Jacob are closer now than before, you know? And Jack and Thane were actually having a pretty civilized conversation down in her little den according to Joker."

"Jack and Thane? Wow," I enthused. "Hard to imagine that." Still anything was possible, especially considering everything that had happened so far on this long journey.

Abby looked like she was about to say something, but a sudden gruff voice distracted both of us and caught our attention.

"Have nothing to say to you," Mordin's voice sounded angry. The salarian doctor rounded the corner as he came into the mess hall area. "I have given you a fair warning; do not come into my lab again. You've done enough damage already."

Grunt was just a few feet behind him. His massive bulk towered over the shorter, slender form of Mordin. "I know you helped engineer the genophage, salarian," the krogan stated gruffly. "It's been all over the ship for months now. At first I didn't care because I had no clan, and I only fought because Shepard proved herself to be a worthy battlemaster, but being part of clan Urdnot makes me see what you've done."

He was advancing on Mordin now, looking as though he wanted to grab those... whatever they were on top of Mordin's head and rip his head open. Mordin tensed.

"Stay back, krogan," Mordin warned, whipping a concealed pistol from his clothing and aiming it at Grunt. "Will use this if necessary." His voice was firm, showing only conviction.

"I'd like to see you try it." Grunt took another step forward.

"What is going on here?" Both of their heads turned to see none other than Commander Shepard standing right behind them. She had her hands on her hips and a stern look on her face. "Stand down, both of you," she snapped.

"This is between me and the salarian," Grunt countered.

"Grunt being extremely disrespectful. Ransacked my lab when I refused to give him intel on genophage data," Mordin said, his voice dropping lower with the seriousness of the situation. "Set back my work on seeker swarm prevention recipe considerably with his antics. Rein him in or I _will _take action, Shepard."

"He's the one responsible for infecting my people with the genophage." The volume of Grunt's deep voice was going up; it almost sounded like a low roar now. "He should have let his student continue what he started!"

Shepard folded her arms. "You know as well as I do that clan Weyrloc would have dominated all the others if we let that happen," she pointed out firmly.

"So that makes everything he did alright?" Grunt retorted.

"Did what I had to do, both then and now," Mordin spoke up defensively. His arm had relaxed slightly, but he was still holding his weapon in an iron grip. "When I helped develop genophage, I prevented krogan from overrunning the galaxy. Maelon would have undermined our work."

Grunt took another threatening step toward Mordin; the salarian tightened his grip on his weapon, holding his arms erect. He was skilled with a weapon; he was no doubt aiming at a very specific spot on Grunt's head-a weak, vulnerable spot.

"Grunt," Shepard warned; her tone was like a sword's edge now.

"Final warning," Mordin snapped. "Get back or I will fire."

"Not until you agree to rid my people of the disease you set upon us," Grunt persisted.

Now Shepard stepped in between both of them. "Grunt, stand down," she told the krogan firmly. She turned her attention to Mordin. "Mordin, I need you to put the weapon away."

"Impossible," Mordin said, his large and bulbous frog eyes locked quite determinedly on Grunt's narrowed slits. "The krogan presents a threat. I will shoot."

"I'd like to see you take me out with that shitty thing you call a weapon," Grunt growled, his voice dropping into dangerously low octaves. "You destroyed my people and turned us into beggars and killers for hire. Babies die every day and, because of you, we can't repopulate and grow strong. You're not giving us a fighting chance!"

"Did not kill off the entire population," Mordin countermanded. "Adjusted birth rate to predetermined factors that would allow krogan stabilization. It was the best situation for both sides."

"You killed off my people with this!" Grunt roared. "Why the hell did your student know that it was wrong and you still _don't_?" I could see the pupils of his eyes begin to contract, and, for the first time ever, I realized that I was about to see Grunt go into a Blood Rage.

"Enough!" Mordin snapped. "Move and I fire. No exceptions."

"Hey!" Shepard jumped between them, her hands spread out to ward them apart. "This is getting out of hand," she said sharply.

"Not enough," Grunt muttered and, like a lumbering shark, he charged forward. Mordin fired.

A blast of energy radiated outwards from Shepard's body, throwing the krogan back and into the wall, out of harm's way. Mordin moved slightly to the side to get a better shot, but Shepard made another movement with her hand and sent the salarian's pistol right out of his grasp and clattering to the ground. It slid further than it should have, landing right at my feet.

I stared down at it for a moment. At first I was too stunned to move, and then I found myself snatching the weapon up off the ground. I knew I wouldn't be allowed to keep it for very long, but hey, maybe I could do some good by holding onto it in this case… for a moment at least.

Grunt made a choking noise in his throat - it sounded like Shepard was cutting off supply to his windpipe. "You will stand down!" she yelled. "The both of you!"

Grunt growled, his fists balled at his side. There was a pop of changing pressure, and suddenly Grunt was released. He fell to the ground on all fours, but he quickly pushed himself up again, breathing heavily. He moved his head from side to side, cracking the bones underneath. "Missed," he said, glaring at the stoic salarian.

"Stand DOWN!" Shepard yelled. I'd never heard her raise her voice before, and this actually scared me a little bit more than Grunt in a Blood Rage. The air around her seemed to be moving like it was being affected by a heat wave, and I could tell she was charging up another biotic attack. "I am your battlemaster, and I am telling you that this is not your fight."

"This fight is every krogan's," Grunt said dangerously. "Don't you dare say it's not. You don't know anything about us. This is my entire people we're talking about."

"Mordin can't help you the way you want him to," Shepard said. "Threatening to kill him won't help that."

"I'll rip off his horns," Grunt snarled. "I'll make him bleed like we made the turians bleed."

"It is pointless arguing with a krogan, Commander, that's why we went to war in the first place," Mordin snapped.

"Violence isn't the answer, Mordin," Shepard said, obviously trying to inject some sense of calm into the situation. "We're all friends here."

Mordin looked genuinely appalled by the idea. "Don't bother trying to foster some idea of kinship with the krogan to me, human," he spat.

Shepard looked as though a vein were about to burst. She turned slightly to me and extended her hand. "Give that to me," she said roughly.

I felt myself blanch. I certainly didn't want her mad at me next. I handed the pistol over to her so fast that I nearly dropped it.

Shepard took it, made sure that the safety was off, and gripped it tightly in her hand. "I'm not going to shoot either of you," she said, "so don't get too jumpy."

And she lifted the weapon to her own head.

The silence was deafening.

"I'm giving you both a choice," Shepard said menacingly. "I'm the captain of this ship. I control who does what on here. If I die, the Reapers are going to have a hell of a lot easier time getting by us and destroying the galaxy. After that, there_ will _be no salarians or krogans to fight each other. If either of you make a move towards the other, I will pull the trigger. Then you can fight and feud however long you want until Harbinger comes with an army. If you don't want that to happen, put it aside and work together. Save it for another day."

My eyes were so wide I thought they were going to pop out of my head. I looked at Abby, who was watching all of this just as quietly as I was.

One thing was for certain. This was definitely NOT in the game.

"Two years ago, Urdnot Wrex told me the difference between a real leader and those he leads," Shepard said, looking directly at Grunt. "When you're young, you go out expecting to find all the good fights and take whatever bloodlust you can get. But when you grow up, you start to realize that the best fights come to you."

Grunt glanced back at Mordin, his mouth hardening into an even more thin line, and I wondered what exactly was about to happen.

Then, as if it was the greatest effort of his life, Grunt turned down a fight. "I'll work with him... for now," he said menacingly. "Doesn't mean I've changed my mind."

"Glad that you've seen sense," Mordin said darkly. "The Commander can stop threatening her own life now."

Commander Shepard lowered the weapon and placed it in her pocket after turning on the safety. Grunt lumbered past her, his shoulders tensed and his fists gripped tightly together, and passed within mere inches of Mordin... he didn't do anything to him, and just walked away towards the elevator. I heard the door open and close.

"Grunt has retreated back to Engineering," EDI said softly.

"Safe for me to return to work, then," Mordin said quietly. "Excellent. Must repair what the krogan broke; try to get things operational again." He left.

Shepard sagged against the wall, releasing her biotic power in a huff. It must have been strenuous, keeping it bottled up that long without another violent output. "A little warning might've been nice," she said, glancing at us.

"I had no idea that was supposed to happen," Abby said fervently, her eyes wide. And then, surprising me, she ran to Shepard and threw her arms around her in a hug. "Never do that again!"

I simply stayed right where I was. I felt like I couldn't move. Man, for a moment there, I really thought that Grunt was going to turn Mordin into salarian hamburger.

I stared at Shepard. She seemed to accept Abby's embrace; she looked down at the shorter individual for a moment, then she actually returned the hug. I saw the tension easing from her features; perhaps she was using this as a way to calm her nerves even more.

Finally the Commander took a step back and looked Abby directly in the eyes. I saw her casting a glance toward me, and I fought the urge to duck down behind the counter or something. There was something about the look in her eye I didn't like.

"I'm starting to wonder just how reliable your visions are sometimes," Shepard said in a serious tone. "You couldn't foresee yourselves getting captured on Illium, and you didn't know a single thing about what just happened here?" Her eyes darkened. "You've helped us out a great deal... for the most part," she shot me a look, and the memories of my antics on Tuchanka ran through my brain. This time I did duck down behind the counter, out of line of sight. "But what if something happens during the suicide mission that none of you foresaw? I need everyone at their best, and that includes... all three of you." I detected some wariness in her voice as she spoke those last four words. Again... perhaps an acknowledgement of me and my past antics?

"We've never made it a secret that we can't see everything," Abby said, her voice husky for some odd reason. "There are holes we just can't see. But this... I never even expected this."

"Really?" Shepard asked with a derisive snort.

"We're doing the best that we can," Abby whispered. It sounded like she was close to tears. "We are, we really are. Do you think that we _want_ people to die?"

Shepard sighed. "No... I don't think that. But the fact remains that we can't trust you to be correct all of the time anymore."

"We've been correct all of the time," Abby interjected, hurt. "Really, we have! It's the stuff between the dreams that we're not getting, that's all. We never expected you to split us up on Zorya - that's how_ they _got here. And on Illium we went exploring in places we'd never seen before. We - we're just... Please trust us, Commander."

"I do," Shepard said quietly. "But all three of you need to do whatever you can to keep us razor-tight for the trip through the Omega 4 Relay. Maybe going on the Citadel wouldn't be the best idea for you."

"I expected this," a voice chimed in out of nowhere, and we all looked to see HK approaching. No doubt that he had heard all the commotion; it would be hard not to. "Honestly, I was surprised that there wasn't a Grunt versus Mordin confrontation in our visions. It was bound to happen. Now, of course, I didn't expect the incident in Illium or the plan on Zorya, but it is...different. Well, it's the same, but different, because it is reality now and everything is a lot more open in what could happen."

I slowly moved out from behind the counter. I was beginning to think that my job at cleaning the oven could possibly wait a while... if Rupert had a problem with it, tough. "May I be excused?" I asked very quietly. I just wanted to slip off to the room I shared with the others.

Abby closed her eyes like she was disappointed. Shepard pursed her lips. "Fine, go," she snapped, waving her hand away from my general direction. "Run away."

Shepard stalked off, shaking her head in an angry, sad kind of way, and I heard the elevator door open again.

"You know," Joker said over the intercom to the deathly silence, "you being a coward isn't helping you out much, Sarah. Just sayin'."

"Joker," I snapped, and I surprised even myself when I said, "just shut the fuck up for once."

"Oh, she's got teeth," Joker said. "Whatever."

HK gave me a blank look, like it surprised him that I was that blunt… though I'd probably be shocked if he wasn't surprised. "This may be hard on Shepard. I doubt it's all you," he said to me encouragingly. "Actually, this is hard on Shepard, no question about it. The crew is still having these disagreements and it's up to her to break it up every time."

I sighed. "Yeah, she probably just needs some time to cool off," I finally said. "And," I said, speaking up so that Joker could hear clearly, "to prove I'm not a coward, I'm going back to my cleaning. Grunt can come back in here and have temper tantrum with Jack for all I care." I then deliberately went back over to the stove and grabbed the cleaning rag again.

Joker actually laughed at that. "I'm sure you'll fight the dirt and grime with absolute vigor and stuff," he said.

"I'm going to see if I can go find her," Abby muttered. "She looks like she needs somebody to vent to... wish me luck."

"Make sure she's not armed." Okay, I wasn't sure where that came from. I probably shouldn't have said that.

"If she is, she'll still have two psychics left," Abby said, shaking her head. She left, trotting quickly down the hallway. For a third time, I heard the elevator open and close.

"Everyone is very on edge right now. It's all bearing down at us because we are so close and... we just need to relax. Or maybe put any baggage behind us; that's why we have spent eons on personal missions. And Shepard has helped with each and every one, on and off the ship..." HK remarked to me, sounding thoughtful. "But I won't burden her with mine. I'll fix that myself; all of this has made me realize I need to go do something. I'll see you later."

With that, he, too, was gone.

I stared after him in the direction he had gone. Yeah, okay, maybe I was being a little too prissy. I probably wasn't helping matters. But hey, at least I hadn't tried to take on a krogan base by myself again or anything.

Suddenly I heard footsteps approaching. I growled under my breath and proceeded to stay out of sight, focusing my attention on the oven again. I really didn't want to talk to anyone right now.

The footsteps paused just a few feet away, and I heard Neyrata's voice saying, "That was wonderful." Then they moved off, completely oblivious to what had just happened mere moments ago.

I resisted the urge to smack my forehead again. Instead I simply moved away from the oven and walked out of the kitchen, shaking my head. Maybe I would take a five-minute breather and then get back to work.

The door to the Medical Bay opened, and Doctor Chakwas peered out, looking directly at me. "Is everything _okay_?" she asked from across the way.

"No," I said, shaking my head. "But," I added, forcing a grin, "everything should be okay. I guess." I was trying to take HK's advice, to just... not make any more issues.

"What was that between Grunt and Mordin?" Chakwas asked, leaving the Medical Bay to come over. She looked seriously concerned. "And when Shepard put the gun to her head! I've never seen her lose her temper like that before."

"I know! It was horrible!" I sighed and threw down the cleaning rag. Okay, so I was still unnerved and upset. I wasn't going to be able to forget about all this at the snap of a finger. "And now Shepard is starting to question _us_, because we didn't foresee this."

"Strange," Chakwas mused. "Perhaps I should go and talk to her..."

"Abby's already gone to talk with her," I said with a shrug. "I don't know. I'm tired of all this drama. Even though," I added with a sigh, "I know I'm the cause of quite a bit stuff that happened."

"You've had your troubles," Chakwas said bracingly. It sounded a lot like, _Hell yes. _"Poor Shepard. She's trying so hard. I wonder what happened to ignite the fight between the two."

"Apparently Grunt blames Mordin for the genophage affecting his people," I told her. I figured the least I could do would be to fill in some of the gaps for her.

"I already guessed that," the doctor admitted. "But what caused it to erupt, do you know? The only thing I recall is seeing Shepard use her biotics to shove Grunt out of Mordin's line of fire."

"Let's just say it turned really ugly," I said. "Apparently Grunt ransacked Mordin's lab or something, and then they just started arguing in here. If Shepard hadn't been here I'm pretty sure one of them would be dead right now."

"I wonder who would have won," Chakwas said fervently. "This was something I would have expected earlier, but not now, so close to the end."

"No kidding," I agreed with feeling.

* * *

**(HK)**

The atmosphere on the ship was tense, as we all knew. Actually, perhaps not all tense, but tense in some areas. And one of those areas was me; I had been really on edge ever since the argument with Jack, but even more so, the mission on Zorya. I felt bad and stupid for letting Jacob get shot like that, and then exposing myself to fire. I felt like it proved how stupid I was.

Though, I couldn't change what had happened. I knew that, and I knew I just had to improve for the future, and be thankful that we all made it out as stable as we did. Abby could hear, Jacob was fine, Vido was dead, and the slaves were free, as well as Neyrata. An interesting turian, that one; I'd be forever grateful for what she did for me, and I just hoped that she never had to put herself in a situation like the one on Zorya again.

However, while I could get over what happened down there, the Jack issue was weighing on my mind. It was confusing me, and as much as I tried to shove it to the back, I just couldn't. So I had to resolve it on my own, without making Shepard step in again, so that both Jack and I could go into the final mission with no problems.

And that was why I found myself walking down into her little hole...for the millionth time.

She was sitting on her bed, like always, in that very same position.

"Uh, hi, Jack," I said nervously.

She looked at me. "What do you want?" I saw her eyes tighten a little.

"I know you probably don't want to see me. In fact, Shepard didn't want me down here, but I have to fix this. We can't proceed any further in our duties if we just don't talk about this. It won't work like that," I told her, cutting right down to the chase. I highly doubted that she wanted me to dance around the subject.

"So now you come crawling down here like a little lost varren, wanting to talk." Jack snorted and stood so abruptly it made me flinch, but she didn't even look at me; she simply walked over to the stairs and sat down on the lowest step. "You seem to be full of talk. Got anything else to say?" she sounded annoyed.

"I want to apologize. I shouldn't have gone off on you like that; it's just...we're all on edge, everything is really coming down to the wire, and what happened when we tried to sleep together really got to me. One minute, Abby's spying on us, and the next you are kissing on me when we promised not to do that. I just got worked up, and I'm sorry. I really am, and I want to put this behind us, if you're willing."

She was silent for a moment. She gave me a look and I felt her eyes piercing through me, as if she was considering my words and picking them apart in her head to decide if I meant them or not.

Finally she dropped her gaze and shifted her position a bit, but she didn't get up. "Whatever," she finally said. She closed her mouth and scowled, and for a moment I thought she was going to tell me to leave, or at least stop talking altogether. But then a strange expression crossed her face, and what she said next surprised me a little.

"I've never met anyone like you," she began slowly. Her voice sounded a little odd; she still sounded like the same, tough-as-nails Jack. Only now she sounded a little... vulnerable somehow. "Well, I kind of did once. But it was a long time ago. He was willing to wait until marriage or whatever before he would have sex, and he had a set of morals he always lived by. For a while, he seemed like one of the nicest people I'd ever met."

She shook her head slightly, then continued. "I thought the fucker was going to propose to me. But then I realized something. He was so goddamn high and mighty, and he thought he was better than anyone else just because he followed a list of rules or whatever to the letter. He was very religious and very self-righteous, fuck him." Her expression twisted into one of disgust and anger. "I realized the only reason the asshole hung around with me at all was because he thought he could fix me, and change me to follow his ideals on how I should live my life, and the way I should be. And only then would he accept me."

Now she looked at me again. She still looked angry-though Jack _always_ looked like that anyway-but there was also a sad look in her eyes. "Everyone's let me down at one time or another," she went on. "Or they accepted me on the condition that they thought they could change me. I really expected you to want nothing more than sex, and when you didn't... I thought you were being one of those holier-than-thou-I'm-fucking-better-than-you types. And," a mischievous look crossed her features, "I tend to turn up the heat when I'm talking about sex with those types, just to make them squirm, because most of them are hypocrites anyway."

_Dang, I never knew any of that._

I sighed. "Okay, I understand. I may seem self-righteous, but I'm not; I've run into those types too and I don't really care for most of them. I don't want to change you, Jack. I don't get some things about you, but I don't aim to change you; and I am religious, but I don't judge or act crazy. The reason I don't want to have sex with you is just because my values differ from yours. I am sixteen years old; I don't think I am quite ready to lose my virginity yet. Maybe it'll be after I'm married, maybe it'll be before, I don't know. Just not right now."

She was silent for a long moment. Finally she gave a small, barely noticeable, nod. "I'm really starting to think you mean that." She spoke so quietly I almost couldn't hear her. "I don't believe it yet," she admitted, "but maybe someday I'll be able to. Hopefully it's not just bullshit."

"Maybe. I'm not sure if it even matters. Nonetheless, as beautiful as you may be, I don't want to have sex with you, and that is why your advances irritated me so much. Still, though, I apologize about ranting like that. Is it safe to say we can put it in the past?" I asked, almost cringing as I wondered what the answer would be.

She shrugged. "Sure. I'll let it slide." With that she got up off the step and walked back over to her bed. "Hey," she said suddenly, looking at me with a quizzical expression, "what the fuck happened upstairs, anyway? I saw Grunt storming back to his room like something really pissed him off."

"Grunt and Mordin got into a major fight; sort of like how you and Miranda did. They were fighting over the ethics of the genophage, and both were ready to kill one another. It was up to Shepard, like always, to stop it, and she did," I explained. "That woman really has some skills."

"Yeah, she does." Jack looked thoughtful. "Who knows, maybe we'll make it through this mission alive." She sounded a tad hopeful.

I smiled lightly. "Maybe so. We've got a good team. If nothing else, it looks encouraging," I commented.

"Maybe." Jack stood once again and moved toward the stairs. "I'm going to get something to eat," she muttered. "Tag along if you want." Then she continued walking. That was probably the Jack equivalent of asking, _Wanna join me for lunch?_

"Sure," I replied with a shrug, starting to follow her up the stairs. "We probably should eat something before we get to the Citadel, anyway."

"Yep," was all she said as we proceeded to climb the stairs.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

Thankfully things had settled down by the time we finally reached the Citadel. Although thanks to the drama episode between Grunt and Mordin, along with all the cleaning I had to do, two hours seemed to take three times as long as they normally would have to pass.

I was just really glad when I heard EDI announce we were finally docking. She told me that Miranda wanted me to meet her at the elevator, and so I did. The two of us proceeded to the shuttle bay to get onboard with everyone else who was going to the Citadel. I felt ecstatic; this was the first time I'd been able to leave the ship, or even get off of deck three, in months!

Shepard was already on the shuttle, along with several others. I saw Neyrata, Logan and Denera seated, and HK, Abby and Tali were seated across from them. Shepard glanced at Miranda and I as we stepped aboard the shuttle; she gave us a little nod.

I was relieved to see that she seemed to be in a much better mood now.

Thane and Samara were the only other persons who came aboard the shuttle. I also knew that this was only the first shuttle that was going to the Citadel, so I knew that a few others would be heading out later. Apparently, in spite of what happened in the mess hall, shore leave was still on.

Nearly everybody made excited small talk about being able to get out, have some fun, and do some shopping before the final mission. Thane was a little quieter than everyone else, but I supposed I couldn't blame him. After all, the last time he'd been on the Citadel, he had to deal with his son. I wondered if he was planning to visit him at all.

Finally the shuttle docked, and everyone proceeded to head out. It seemed that everyone had a different destination in mind. Shepard cleared her throat and spoke up before everyone could disperse; "Remember, everybody keep an eye on your traveling partner and keep in touch. Enjoy yourselves, but don't let down your guard." She then gave a little nod, indicating she was finished.

"Shall we go?" I overheard Samara saying to Thane.

The drell nodded. "I have been preparing a letter for Kolyat," he murmured. "Perhaps I will simply deliver it in person, and speak with him."

I looked at them as they walked away. Shepard exchanged a few words with Abby, Logan, Denera and Neyrata, then that small entourage began to walk away. Abby gave me a thumbs up as she passed and Shepard shot me a look that I could only translate as, _Behave yourself and don't make me regret letting you off the ship._

Soon they were out of sight, and then HK and Tali wandered off to... well, wherever they were going.

"So," Miranda said, getting my attention, "where do you want to go?" Her tone was civil, though I got the impression she was humoring me mostly. Still, it was very nice of her to do this.

"Is it okay if we just wander around a little?" I asked with a small shrug. "I'd like to see what's around first."

She frowned slightly, and then gave a little shrug. "I suppose, if that's what you want." With that we set off.

For a little while we simply walked around in silence. We passed by several stores as I did some occasional window shopping; I even ducked into a couple of the stores, with Miranda at my side at all times. I didn't really see much of interest, though.

Eventually we wandered into an area of the shopping district that was so crowded it was difficult to move. I found myself being swept along with the flow of beings that it was impossible to walk in a straight line, and sometimes I moved when I didn't want to. Apparently there was some kind of big sale going on around here or something.

I almost lost sight of Miranda once or twice, so I ended up doing the only thing I could think to do in order to keep with her and obey Shepard; I grabbed her hand and clung to it tightly. A look of annoyance crossed her face as I did this, but she didn't say anything. I guess she decided it was the best way to stay together in this case, too.

Finally we made it out of that area, leaving the sea of people. I kept my fingers encircled around Miranda's hand as we cleared the crowd, trying to stick close with her until I was sure we were in a less crowded area.

A couple of minutes later a passing man who reeked of alcohol glanced in our direction. He laughed and raised a shaky finger, then he slurred, "Oh, look, lesbians!"

Miranda gave him a look of deep irritation and disgust; it almost seemed like she wanted to throw me off of her, but she probably knew that if she did, it wouldn't turn out well for either one of us. "Wrong," she simply told the man, before starting to walk past him.

I let go of her. We were no longer in the sea of people, and I didn't want people to get any other stupid ideas. I just stuffed my hands into my pockets and kept walking beside her.

Yeah, I was wearing a regular ol' pair of pants and a shirt instead of that dress I said I might wear. Miranda was wearing a casual outfit like nothing I'd seen her wear before; a black tank top shirt and form-fitting slacks. I guess she really did want to look casual, and she definitely didn't mind showing off her attributes.

Then again, I always figured that being genetically "perfect" really could give a person an ego.

Eventually we passed by what appeared to be an interspecies arcade. I could hear the loud chatter inside, along with the whoops and hollers of people playing games. The arcade machines themselves were making a lot of noise.

I almost kept walking, because it sounded like you might go deaf if you walked in there. But... well, I'd never seen an arcade on the Citadel before. I wondered what it might be like to play a turian game...

"Mind if we go in there?" I asked Miranda, jabbing a finger at the entrance.

Miranda shrugged. "Sure."

The noisy atmosphere hit us like a wave as we stepped inside. I raised my hands instinctively, but I fought the impulse to put them over my ears. If I was going to hang out in here or do anything, I would simply have to put up with it.

The area was very large, and it seemed that there was pretty much anything for anyone to do. I saw a hanar balancing itself on three legs-or tentacles, or whatever-while it used the rest of its limbs to control a very complex console. I quickly realized, after watching it for a couple of minutes, it would be impossible for a human to play that game-unless you happened to have at least three friends with you, lending their hands.

Then I saw a game where any species could sit down and choose a character from an entire list, and you could combat with the computer system or with a friend. For example, you could choose to play as a krogan, or a human, or whatever, and the computer could make a random choice to play against you with if you chose to play against it. Or, if you had a buddy, your friend could choose a character to play from the list.

"Hey," I said to Miranda-I practically had to yell to be heard over the noise. "Wanna play this with me?" I pointed at the game.

"Not much of a gamer. No time for it in Cerberus," Miranda began as she stared at it. "But sure, why not?"

I grinned at her. Maybe we would be able to have some fun after all. I slid into a chair in front of a single screen and I grabbed one set of controls. Miranda sank down into the seat beside me in front of the machine and picked up the other joystick-with-buttons-thingy.

"My treat," I said, and I put a couple of credit chips into the slot. The machine responded with a loud beeping noise, and then a menu popped up onto the screen. "Player 1," the computerized voice spoke, "choose your character."

"I'll be player 1," I told Miranda. I scanned over the list quickly and chose a turian.

No surprise, Miranda chose a human. It would probably be considered a betrayal by the Illusive Man for her not to. "I'm ready," she informed me.

"Me, too!" I said. "My character is going to whop yours!" Then I initiated the start button.

The screen changed, and the two characters appeared. I had control of the turian on the left, Miranda had control of the human on the right. The screen showed everything from a side angle, as if we were both watching everything from the stands of a real fight or something.

I had my turian character move forward, and then take a shot at the human character with its weapon. Miranda had the human character quickly move to the side, barely missing the shot. Then, before the turian could do much more, the human sent a wave of biotics at the turian.

"No fair!" I exclaimed. Maybe I should have been an asari! It took my character a moment to recover, and then I had the turian throw a grenade at Miranda's character. It sent the human flying.

It seemed both of us had lost some health, now. "Obviously, the designer of this game was an amateur. Neither of these people are even properly armored," Miranda remarked, as the human came back and began firing rapidly at the turian.

"It's just a game," I replied as I had my turian duck for cover. "Who says it needs to be totally accurate?" When the human character paused for a moment, I had the turian rush out of cover; I intended to have him tackle Miranda's character in a melee attack.

As the turian rushed towards the human, the human suddenly extended his fist and gave the turian a good whack in the face, before kneeing him in the stomach. "It is a disadvantage to both players if it isn't," Miranda replied stiffly.

My turian now had almost no health left. I knew I needed to be careful. "Yeah I see what you mean," I commented. I had my turian throw another grenade. It knocked Miranda's health down to a critical level.

Now it seemed that whoever got the first lucky shot or punch would win. I had my turian dive into cover for the moment. Miranda directed her human into cover as well; it seemed neither of us wanted to take too big of a risk at the moment.

Several seconds passed. I waited to see if Miranda would do anything at all. She didn't. Finally I had my turian lean out of cover and throw a grenade.

The human leaped out of cover and sent another biotic wave my way; a grenade was coming her way, and biotics were coming my way. We both waited to see what would happen, who would die, who would win...

The attacks hit at the exact same time, killing both of us at the very same second.

The screen went completely blank for a moment, almost as though the computer system itself was surprised. Then it simply announced in its mechanical voice, "Game over; this round is tied. If you wish to play again, insert two more credit chips."

I glanced at Miranda, and then I set down the controls. "I think one round of that was enough for me," I murmured. I just didn't want to spend all day doing one thing; I wanted to do as much as I could while I was off the ship.

"Agreed," she said, standing up. "Let's go."

She was already starting to move toward the door. Yeah, I couldn't blame her; I was getting tired of the noise in here, too.

It felt like a breath of fresh air as we left the arcade and all of its noise and mini-chaos behind us. We simply roamed freely in a random direction for a few moments, and then Miranda finally glanced at me, as if wanting to know where I wanted to go next.

I shrugged a little. "Let's just keep walking," I said. I was enjoying myself just seeing different scenery.

We continued walking for several minutes, and then I suddenly got an idea. "Hey," I said to Miranda, "do you think maybe we could go up to the tower? You know, where the council meets?"

Miranda seemed taken off-guard by that request, and then shook her head. "No. Someone like Shepard may be allowed up there, but I don't think it would be a good idea for any of us to go up there. Not right now," she answered.

I felt a little disappointed, but I wasn't going to press the issue. I was doing my best to be a good girl, after all. "Okay," I said. "Well... can we get something to eat?"

Miranda nodded. "Alright."

It wasn't long before we found a small restaurant that wasn't very crowded. We walked up to the front counter and I glanced at Miranda. "Wanna order anything?" I asked. "My treat."

She just shook her head. "That's kind of you, but no, thank you. I am fine," she said.

"Okay," I said, and turned my head to look at the server. "I'll have some ramen and some water, please," I said.

The server nodded, and then said, "It'll be ready in a moment."

I leaned against the counter, resting on my elbows. "Nice place," I murmured out loud, more to myself than anyone else.

A few moments later I was served my bowl of ramen noodles and my drink in a dark-colored cup. I didn't really even look at it as I took it and walked toward one of the nearby tables.

I sat down, and Miranda sat in the seat across from me. She seemed to be keeping her eyes peeled, maintaining a general awareness of our surroundings.

I stuffed my mouth full of noodles,and then as I swallowed I reached for my drink. I took one large swallow from it.

Then I almost immediately erupted into a coughing fit.

That was when the server suddenly appeared right next to me. "Oh my God, I'm so sorry!" he exclaimed. "I gave you a turian beverage by mistake!"

"What kind of service is this?" Miranda exclaimed in irritation, giving the man a hard glare. "As a waiter, you should be well trained in what drinks are what and you can clearly see that we are humans. You could kill someone with your organization."

"I-I-I'm new!" the server squeaked defensively. He then looked sharply at me. "I'm so sorry! I just served the drinks wrong, I got the food right-are you okay, lady?"

I finally managed to stop coughing. I shoved the drink away. "I feel a little queasy, but I think I'm okay," I said.

"Good," Miranda said, scowling at the man. "Now go away before you cause us any more trouble."

"Here, I'll give you a refund," the waiter said, handing me my money back. He scurried away.

I looked at Miranda. "You don't think this is going to make me sick or anything, do you?" I asked warily. "Should we tell Shepard?" I was just covering my bases.

"I think you should be alright, and you can tell her if you wish, but I do not see a definite need," she replied with a sigh, shaking her head.

"I just don't want her to think I drank a turian drink on purpose," I explained. "Especially the way my track record is right now."

"I would tell her otherwise," Miranda assured me.

I considered that for a moment. I was pretty sure that Miranda was going to give Shepard a "report" of everything that happened while she was out with me, once this field day was over. But... I supposed I could trust Miranda to make it clear that this wasn't my fault.

"I think I want to get out of here," I said, already rising. Miranda looked like she was all for the idea, especially after what just happened.

That was when our commlinks chimed. Apparently it was time to check in. _"Sarah, Miranda?"_ Shepard's voice said into our ear pieces. _"Everything alright?"_

"Yes, Shepard, everything is fine. We have only had one minor incident, which I can explain later. Overall, everything is going fine," Miranda told the Commander.

"I'm fine," I said simply into the earpiece. "I've been having fun."

There was a slight hesitation on the other end. Maybe there was something about my tone after the drink incident, or maybe Shepard was a little concerned, considering how many "minor incidents" I had caused already.

And apparently the Commander decided that with me, it was safer to ask. _"What kind of minor incident?"_

"We went out to eat, and the server accidentally gave Sarah a turian drink. She briefly choked on it, but everything is alright," Miranda explained in a calm tone.

Did I detect a sigh of relief on the other end? And not just because I was okay. _"Okay, good," _Shepard said simply. _"Over and out."_

"She didn't have to sound so suspicious," I muttered indignantly. "I have been doing my best to stay out of trouble lately."

"Sarah, that is because you have been confined to a room and a deck for ages now. Not many can cause trouble in that small environment, even though you have found a way on rare occasions. The last time you were out of the Normandy you held a fellow crew member at gunpoint; I cannot blame her for being suspicious," Miranda told me.

Okay, I couldn't. She had me there. I smiled at her, trying to inject some humor into the situation, "Well I would never hold you at gunpoint, because you'd throw me across the room," I said lightly. "I don't want to end up in the medical bay for the rest of the trip." I laughed.

"You wouldn't end up in the medical bay," Miranda said solemnly. "You would end up stranded here, or worse."

"Yeah, like... dead."

Miranda shrugged. "However, I highly doubt that will happen," she commented.

"Well," I said, changing the subject, "um... wanna go see a movie or something?"

"I suppose," Miranda answered with a nod. "Though you should have brought Mordin if you wanted to see any more movies about how it is okay to live an insane life."

I grimaced. Damn it, I had actually managed to suppress those memories, especially ever since the fight between Mordin and Grunt. Now they were being dredged back up again! "Forget the movie," I said. "I've changed my mind. Let's go shopping instead."

Miranda actually chuckled. "Fine by me."

* * *

**(HK)**

So Tali and I had gone off from the others, wandering around until Mordin joined us. The three of us headed off to get some food supplies, as well as some new weapons and ammo, and whatever other gadgets Tali and Mordin wanted for their respective places on the ship. Now we were at a nice emporium, getting what we needed. We all stayed rather close as we looked around, but I was barely looking around at all; I was mainly looking for food or weapons. Tali and Mordin were the ones who were really interested.

"So, uh, Tali," I began, scratching the back of my neck. "May I ask you a...kind of personal question?"

Tali looked in my direction for a moment. She glanced around; there was no one paying us much attention. Mordin looked like he was in hearing range, but he also seemed intent on whatever he was looking at. He soon began to haggle with the clerk over the price. "Sure," Tali finally said to me.

I hoped she wouldn't get mad at what I was about to ask, but with what happened on the Normandy earlier today, I was curious. "What's going on between you and Garrus?"

I couldn't exactly tell because of the faceplate in the way, but her tone suggested she was taken aback. "Excuse me?"

"It's your business, I don't mean to butt in to it, but I am curious, because...well...there have been those rumors about something more between the two of you," I told her.

"Rumors," Tali said, shaking her head slightly. "Typical on a human ship. HK, Garrus and I are just friends."

I sighed. "I see," I said, almost disappointed. "I just...well, it's hard to explain, but I just need advice from someone who would understand. And your situation almost sounded slightly similar to mine, but there are others I can ask, too."

Now she seemed more curious and less annoyed. "Is this about you and Jack?"

Ah, no one was in the dark about that, either. "Yes, yes it is," I answered honestly.

She folded her arms. "What would you like to ask?" At least I had her full attention now.

"I...don't know. It's complicated; I don't want to get into some big dramatic soap opera, but I am just confused. One minute I heavily dislike the woman, the next we're friends, then it feels like something more is blooming, but I don't want anything big and serious. Not at a time like this and I have no clue what she feels or wants, but it has kind of been on my mind. I...I just don't know," I explained to Tali. Even after apologizing to Jack, she had still crossed my mind a number of times, and I wanted to somehow resolve all of this.

Tali seemed to consider what I'd said for a moment. "Well," she finally said, "how do you feel toward her, exactly?"

"I can't tell. It's hard; I don't think I'm in love with her or anything, but maybe some kind of crush? I don't know, it's really difficult. But I feel something for her, definitely," I acknowledged.

"I don't know much about human relationships," Tali said thoughtfully. "But I do know that feelings can get very... complex. My people form very close friendships with each other, because everyone relies on each other to survive. And sometimes, when you work very closely with someone, feelings can develop that you can't control." She trailed off, and she seemed to be thinking of something specific, but she didn't elaborate.

This was when Mordin wandered over, having finished his haggling with the clerk, and apparently he'd overheard at least part of our conversation because he said, "Regardless of your intentions, HK, suggest caution; emotionally unstable biotics dangerous during intimacy."

Tali almost looked like she would have smacked herself in the forehead if she didn't have a helmet and faceplate in the way.

"For the last time, she and I are not getting intimate!" I exclaimed softly to both of them. "Nothing like that. At all! I've made that clear to everyone."

"Apologies," Mordin replied. "Didn't mean to imply anything. Simply stating it in case you do indeed decide to become intimate with her."

"Uh, well, thank you?" I said, blinking. I didn't want the Jack sex talk from Mordin; not now, not ever. I looked back to Tali. "And I understand. I still don't know what is going on or what to do, I just want to figure it out before we go through the Omega 4 relay."

"Perhaps this is something you should discuss with Jack," Tali shrugged.

"Maybe," I said with a nod, unsure of that idea. But it wasn't a bad one.

"If we're done here, should move on," Mordin said, already moving toward the door. "Still have more supplies to buy."

"Yeah, you're right," I agreed, moving towards the door as well.

With that the three of us headed out and moved to the next store. Apparently Mordin and Tali had put together a list of stores that carried the items that were needed for the final mission, and they were set on visiting only those stores for the most part.

"What is left on your list?" Tali asked Mordin conversationally.

Mordin glanced briefly at his omni-tool. "Still have five or six items I need to purchase; Grunt made short work of my most sensitive lab equipment. Good thing Cerberus pays well."

"At least these stores have a good selection," Tali commented.

"Indeed," Mordin agreed.

* * *

**(Abby)**

This was thoroughly odd, going out with Shepard without two others from our ground crew like Miranda or even Thane. No, it was just Shepard, me, Neyrata, Logan, and Denera on the way to the meet point, and I was a little nervous... or perhaps more _aware_ than I normally would be. After Illium I was pretty much against doing something that hadn't been a calculated variable in the game. I didn't want to meet the Collectors again, thank you very much. I'd had my fill of painful torture for the year.

It was another reason I'd decided to pair with Shepard. Badass or not, I didn't like the idea of her taking three unknown variables alone without some sort of backup. While I didn't exactly think that Logan or his sister would betray and kill us, I wanted to be careful either way.

Better safe than sorry, right?

Neyrata had called ahead a few days back and gotten in touch with their guardian, who happened to be their uncle. His name was Greg, and apparently he'd been looking for them for a mighty long time. He was currently married to some asari I didn't remember the name of, and he hadn't stopped combing the Wards and local C-Sec stations for news... which led to my next question: how long, exactly, had these people been out of touch with the world?

The answer was kind of scary: two years. I didn't know if I should be sad or happy that the uncle had kept looking that long.

"Greg's a good guy," Logan had said to Shepard as he packed up his things. "He'll take good care of us."

"I'm gonna miss Neyrata," Denera had muttered sadly.

I knew Neyrata would miss them, too. Right now the turian was walking between the two children, and Denera was holding her hand as Logan carried both of their bags in his other one. They didn't have much, but, feeling bad, HK and I had each donated a few outfits of our own. Mine probably wouldn't fit Denera for a while, but it was the least I could do. I made sure that the shield overlays were taken off of them, though - no need for the security guards to get suspicious.

We were currently walking through the ends of the Zakera Ward, on to another adjacent Ward that I'd never even heard of before. It was called Honshu Ward, and it seemed to focus more on apartments and residential sections than most of the stores and clubs back in Zakera.

"I wonder what Uncle Greg looks like now," Denera muttered as we stepped off of an elevator.

"Older, probably," Logan said distractedly. "Man, I haven't been on the Citadel in ages..."

"Things look different than you remember?" I asked wryly.

He nodded. "Dude, last time I was here, it was right before Sovereign blew a hole through most of the vacuum-sealed windows and stuff. Some of the stores are gone or replaced."

"This one wasn't even the one that was hit the worst," Shepard said. "Tayteri got it bad. According to Captain Bailey, they're still trying to repair it."

"After so long?" Denera asked, stunned.

"It took a bad hit, I'm guessing," Shepard said. "It probably wasn't through lack of trying."

"Hey, where are we meeting Uncle Greg again?" Denera asked, leaning backwards to look behind Neyrata's body so that she could see her brother.

"The food court," Logan said. "Okay?"

"Okay," she said.

"We're nearly there," Shepard said.

"Why didn't we take the shuttle we came down in?" Denera asked politely.

"Because if somebody's tailing us, I'd have a better chance of finding out who it is on the ground than in the air. I'm a horrible driver."

I had to laugh at that one. "I thought you did pretty well with the Mako, all things considered!"

"I knocked out somebody's front tooth once when I took it out for my first test run back at Ameratsu," Shepard said sentimentally.

"Well... it needed some work," I said with a laugh.

We arrived at the food court a few minutes later, and the atmosphere in the group abruptly thickened. I could almost feel Logan's nervousness. "Where is he?" he asked fretfully, glancing around the crowd of people.

"He said that he would wait in front of the fountain for us," Neyrata informed us.

I glanced around for the fountain and found it, but there were a lot of people sitting around it. I just hoped that one of them was their uncle and his wife, because I sincerely didn't want the two of them sent to an orphanage or the like.

"There he is!" Denera squealed. She waved hurriedly to a balding man who looked to be in his fifties. The man looked up, surprised, and waved halfheartedly back. He was sitting at a small table with a beautiful asari dressed in a flowing pink dress. He got up and seemed to hesitate for the longest time... and then he ran to the children and embraced them, tears of happiness rolling out of his eyes.

"Thank goodness you're okay," he said, gripping them tightly. "Thank goodness. _Are _you okay? What did they do to you?"

Logan buried his head in Greg's shoulder, hugging him tightly. "Mom and Dad are dead," I just barely heard him whisper. "Didn't make it."

"I know," Greg said quietly, hugging them even tighter. "I'm so sorry."

The asari slid gracefully from her seat and draped one perfect hand on her husband's shoulder as she looked calmly at Neyrata. "Thank you for calling us," she said fervently. "Thank you for everything."

The female turian smiled, her whiskers twitching a little. "My pleasure," she said simply, and then she extended her hand to shake each of the childrens' gently. Then she looked at Greg and his wife. "Take good care of them," she murmured softly. There was a warmth in her eyes I hadn't seen too often in turians.

"We will," said the asari, smiling happily down at the children. "We - we will."

Denera abruptly detached herself from Greg, wrestling out of his vice-tight hold to hug Neyrata around the hips. "No. You're _not_ going, you're staying with us, right?"

Neyrata seemed a little taken aback. Then she put one of her hands on the girl's shoulder. "I'm staying on the Citadel," she said softly. "I'm planning to get an apartment here. I'll still see you once in a while, I promise."

"You need a place to stay?" the asari asked concernedly. "Stay with us! We have enough room. Look, until you get set back on your feet," she added when Neyrata looked like she was going to disagree. "You love the children, too. Stay with us. I insist."

Neyrata hesitated. She seemed to mull it over a little in her mind. Finally she gave a slight nod. "If you insist," she said.

"Looks like you have it all settled here," Shepard said, patting her shoulder with a smile on her face. "I'm glad we could help."

Neyrata gave a slight nod. "Looks like everything worked out just fine for everyone, thanks to you and your crew," she said. She smirked, casting Shepard sort of a sideways glance. "I will say that part of me is going to miss Garrus. He has... quite the reach."

Shepard's face froze in that smile, and even I felt my heart skip a beat. Was she saying what I thought she was saying...?

Shepard laughed, and all of the tension seemed to drain out of her. "I'm glad he found something he likes enough to demonstrate for," she said with another chuckle. "He likes you a lot."

Neyrata smiled. "Perhaps I'll see him again, once your mission is done," she said.

"I'll give you a buzz, let you know what the results were," Shepard agreed. She clapped Neyrata on the shoulder, and then moved to the kids. "You two be good, okay? I won't see you for a while."

"We know," Logan said, embarrassed. "Hey, thanks. Thanks for rescuing us and... killing Vido. That does a huge favor to everybody, not just us."

"I'd do it again," Shepard vowed. "He deserved to die."

Denera hugged me tightly, and then Logan, who looked a little bit stressed about it, came forward and hugged me tightly, too. "Glad you got your hearing back," he muttered, letting me go quickly.

Getting hugged by a boy a year my senior was kind of... nice. I liked it. "Thanks," I said wryly. "I'm never losing my hearing for you two again, though. It was a one-time deal."

"You won't have to," Logan said with a chuckle. And then, surprising all of us, he bent down a bit and gave me a swift peck on the cheek. My face burned. "So... I'll see you around. I got your email address. I'll make a new one soon... so just look out for one, okay?"

"Okay," I said with a heavy nod, my lips twitching in a smile. "Go have fun with your uncle. I'll talk to you both soon."

"Let's let 'em go," Shepard said, guiding me away. She waved to the others. "Goodbye, stay out of trouble. If you need me, Neyrata can get ahold of me."

"Thank you," Greg said. "Goodbye. Thank you."

The asari raised her hand in farewell, Neyrata nodded her goodbyes, and we both turned and began to walk away. I found myself wiping tears out of my eyes. "It's always good to see something that great happen in your lifetime," I said. "You've probably helped out loads of people like that, but the effect's still the same. It's a wonderful thing."

"It was necessary," Shepard said. "I like helping people. Knowing that you do something worthwhile and life changing in somebody's life is really special."

"It is," I agreed. "A lot. They'll never forget this."

Shepard chuckled.

_I'll never forget this,_ I amended silently.


	43. Legion

**(Abby)**

Shepard and I joined up with Jacob and Zaeed after a while. Jacob, who was doing much better now under the constant administrations of Doctor Chakwas, had been allowed to leave the ship on the condition that he return in one solid piece, and he was loving it. He was still pale and his left arm was in a temporary sling while the muscles and tendons repaired themselves, but he was doing so much better. Though Shepard, I noticed, tightened up a bit whenever she saw his injuries for herself.

There was so a thing going on between them, I just knew it.

The four of us were dressed in casual clothing, which meant that, for the first time, I saw Shepard in a soft white cotton tank top and a pair of cargo pants that had never been in her inventory when I'd played the game. It was a nice change from the armor, though, I had to say. Zaeed, whom I'd never tried to imagine without his protective gear, was dressed in a simple shirt and pants that somehow managed to accentuate his large, muscular frame.

Jacob was just Jacob. He could pull anything off and still look good doing it.

And me? Well, I was wearing a pair of artistically faded jeans and a white sweatshirt, trying my best not to look as though Shepard, Zaeed, and Jacob were kidnapping me. Even dressed in civvies they still looked like the ultimate badasses, and I was beginning to wonder what the foresight was in putting the three most threatening looking people together to shop for clothes. We'd probably tripped C-Sec's security sensors a while back once we entered the gunshop repair store. Jacob stocked up on a few odds and ends he said he'd need, but I wasn't even allowed in the store so I didn't get to see what he got. It sucked being underage sometimes.

After a while I drifted away from the two of them and joined Ken and Gabby at the pet store. Like the other three, they both had a concealed weapon so I wasn't too concerned with being attacked. Actually, I had a better time with those two than I had with Shepard and the others. I knew there was a reason I liked hanging out with them.

Eventually, though, we had to go back to the Normandy. Or at least I did - Shepard didn't want us staying out later than we should, so I was escorted back, met up with Sarah and HK, and the two of us hung out, alone, on the Normandy until the rest of them slowly began to trickle in.

I had managed to buy something there while I was groundside, though... it wasn't as epic as an elcor jockstrap, but it had similar comedic value. It went straight to my little footlocker to watch later on.

An old elcor version of the first Twilight movie.

Sue me.

The ship lifted off the next day, and right on time I heard the intercom kick on. "Commander Shepard and Miranda Lawson would like to see Abby in the captain's quarters," EDI informed us.

I blinked, unsurprised, and placed the side-project I'd been working on aside. I was currently in the medical bay, just hanging out with Jacob while he was getting looked over by the Doc. He and I exchanged a look. "Better get going," he said. "Sounds like we're rolling out."

"Oh dear," I said with a grimace. "This is totally not my favorite part of the dreams - just letting you know. Later."

"Good luck."

I ducked out and met HK on the elevator. "You heading up, too?" I asked him, pressing the button to bring us up to the topmost level.

He nodded. "They probably want to know about the next mission. The big one," he said with a sigh. "You know, the battle on the Reaper is going to be insane. I've always found that a little more nerve-wracking than the strike on the Collector base."

"I don't like this one," I stated matter-of-factly. "Biotics are good for this one, though. I'm thinking Jack or Samara for this one. Maybe Tali, too... but she's not much of an assault lady, is she? We need somebody who won't run into them like Grunt, either, a long-range fighter. Thane. Thane and Jack, how does that sound for recommendations?"

"I actually think that pairing was in one of my visions, and they got through fine; Jack had some trouble, but she held her own, and I think it'd be different here. It sounds good to me," HK said with a nod. "This won't be like the normal missions. It will mainly consist of husks and those awful Scions."

"I'm just glad there are no Praetorians," I said fervently. "Two is enough, thank you very much."

"Yes, thankfully those are long gone," HK said. Then he gulped. "Well, for us, anyway."

"Yeah," I muttered with a frown.

The elevator arrived at Shepard's quarters, and we entered. Instead of sitting in her normal chair, Shepard had actually retreated to the lounge and was relaxing as she read a datapad of some sort. Miranda sat across from her. She waved as we came in.

"Take a seat, you know the drill," Shepard said unconcernedly, taking her feet off of the table and putting them on the ground. She'd changed back into her fatigues, and for good reason - the ship was much colder than the Citadel, which had to maintain a humid temperature to accommodate the krogan and hanar who lived there.

HK and I sat down, and I immediately jumped into the mission overview. "The Reaper is going to be dangerous, but I suppose you already know that," I said. "The doctor, Chandanda, was indoctrinated faster than the rest of his team. They were all turned into husks, I think, and Scions. The most you'll see is blood stains."

"Wait, that Reaper is still active?" Miranda asked sharply.

HK and I exchanged a look. "Not... exactly," I said, wondering how the heck I could explain this phenomenon. "It's... kind of dead. But whatever is in the Reaper to make it a Reaper is still present. I think it still retains some form of consciousness. But we don't even need to worry about that, because we're going to destroy it."

"Indeed," HK agreed. "Take note of anything we learn on there; it may come in handy in the future, there actually is some useful knowledge on board, but don't worry too much. That isn't our main threat, as much as husks and Scions are. We'll be fighting them all the way through. And, uh...there is also something else."

He glanced at me.

I knew exactly what he was talking about. "I'd recommend not shooting any geth you find there, Commander," I said, a grin on my face.

"Geth?" she echoed.

"Just one... and he talks."

"This geth talks?" Shepard asked sharply.

"He's a good guy," I stated. "He - "

"Commander Shepard," EDI interrupted right at that moment, her blue bulbous "head" popping up on the console near the door.

Shepard, who still had her inquisitive eyes on me, said, "Yes?"

"I apologize for interrupting," EDI said. "But Sarah has asked me to relay a request."

I felt my insides freeze. If she was going to ask to be on the mission...

"She wishes to know if she may spend some time with Garrus," EDI continued. "She has finished her chores and requests to spend some time with either him or Kasumi instead of remaining within the confines of her quarters. She has also promised to be 'as good as she was on the Citadel', as she put it."

Miranda sighed, and she and Shepard exchanged a bit of a frustrated look. "Tell her it's okay," Shepard said, shaking her head. "As long as she doesn't leave the Deck," she amended.

"I will pass the message along," EDI said. Her blue holographic form winked out of sight for several seconds, then popped back up again. "Sarah asked me to send her thanks," she stated.

"What were you saying about the geth?" Miranda asked.

I cleared my throat awkwardly. "Okay. Well! The geth is good. There are two factions of the geth right now - the heretics, and the good guys. The heretics are the ones who follow the Reapers, and they're really the only ones who you've met so far... but you'll learn about that later. No point in me telling you everything he'll tell you later." I chuckled.

Shepard's face looked frozen. "The geth is coming aboard the Normandy?"

"Pretty much!" I agreed cheerfully. "EDI's even going to name him for you."

Miranda was more than skeptical. "Shepard, if there is a geth on the derelict Reaper, we shouldn't bring it onboard. It would pose a security risk to the ship and to the crew. And," she added after a moment of thought, "even if we did manage to safely capture one, we should hand it over to Cerberus. The Illusive Man himself would pay you a lot of credits to get an intact geth."

"Trust me, you'll want to keep this geth. It isn't so black and white," HK pointed out. "The geth will actually teach us all a lot more about geth culture, if you let it; the quarians have many misperceptions."

"The geth have a culture?" Miranda raised an eyebrow, and it looked almost like the infamous Shepard Eyebrow.

"You're going to learn a lot about the geth you wouldn't have believed before," I said. "So keep an open mind. Now, before we even see this guy we're going to go through a couple of harsh fights. The terrain is going to be pretty suitable for a biotic, though."

"How so?" Shepard asked.

"A good shove will send the husks and the Scions over the edge," I told her. "I suggest either Samara or Jack for this mission... but I'm leaning towards Jack. She hasn't been out much, and I'm sure she's dying to kill something. I'd also recommend a long distance fighter like Thane. With the husks and Scions, you can't really get too close unless you're prepared to die. Keeping them at a distance will do us good."

"If we need a long-distance fighter, why don't we just take Garrus instead of Thane?" Miranda asked, turning to Shepard.

"Thane is a biotic," Shepard said, answering for me. "We might need the extra push."

"I wouldn't expand the team bigger than you normally have it, though, Commander," I told her. "You'll want to keep it small. Me, HK, Jack, Thane, and you are enough to get it done. Actually, you could probably get it done without us, however you know how much we like to be on the scene."

"You have an unhealthy obsession with that," Shepard said wryly. "Okay. That sounds reasonable."

"Take a nice, damage-dealing heavy weapon, too," I suggested. "Something like the grenade launcher."

HK nodded. "This is a unique mission; not our standard blazing guns one. So we have to be delicate in who we take and what we take, but these ideas sound good to me. The husks are going to come in large clusters, like usual, followed by a few Scions per area. There are actually four near the end; and we'll have to fight a huge load of husks right at the end of the mission. To destroy the Reaper, you will have to destroy its own mass effect core; I'd advise taking a heavy weapon for that part, too. The four of us will be able to cover you while you throw everything you have at that."

"There's a catch," I said before Miranda or Shepard could open their mouths. "The mass effect chamber closes and opens sporadically. I don't know why, maybe Ken or Gabby could explain more, but the thing that closes it is near impregnable, so it's all about timing. Six or eight grenades down its throat should do it good. I'd save them up throughout the mission."

"Agreed. We'll also have the knocked out geth beside us to take, and once that core is destroyed, we just grab it and run like everything. Joker will be right outside waiting," HK finished.

I made a strangled type of noise in my throat as I was rocked by a sudden realization. "I forgot that we'll be in a no-gravity environment! Or something. I don't know if it's insanely cold or not, because Jack made it without a coat, but... wow. Do you think it's cold out there?" I asked HK.

"I wouldn't be surprised. We are on an old ship in the middle of space, after all. I doubt Cerberus took the time to install a bunch of heaters," HK replied.

"If they followed protocol, they would have installed small mass effect generators on the platforms," Miranda said. "They also produce some amount of heat. You don't need to worry about that too much, but I do agree that you'll need face masks. HK will be okay since he mainly wears that old armor Jacob found him, but you'll freeze and die of asphyxiation."

So would she, but I wasn't about to point that out. "How can we fix it?" I asked.

"Can't, except for a mask," she said. "You can borrow mine again. I'll stay here and monitor things with Joker and EDI if I'm not going."

"Sounds good," Shepard said.

The prospect of freezing to death on a Reaper wasn't exactly... appealing to me. "I think I'll wear long sleeves this time 'round," I said brightly to HK.

"Uh, well, are we expecting Jack to walk around in her normal non-clothing with just a mask?" HK asked, blinking.

"Oh this will be interesting," I said with an evil laugh.

"Definitely," HK said, shaking his head slightly.

"I'm sure she won't have much to worry about if those protective measures are still in place," Miranda said.

"Sovereign was basically a giant ship, too," Shepard said. "Some of the Reaper has to be livable."

"Just try not to get indoctrinated," I joked.

"Can we?" She was dead serious.

"Let's not find out," I said.

"I think if we hurry and keep it out of our minds, we'll be okay. Not to brag, but we are more prepared for this than the Cerberus team; all they knew was that they were going in on some old, massive killer ship. They don't know as much as we do about it, and their minds probably focused on it so much that it helped the indoctrination right along. Also, they had to live there for a while; we won't," HK said to Shepard, trying to encourage her.

"Remember that man who forgot he had a wife?" I asked HK, disgust on my face. "That was horrible, watching the process take effect..."

HK shuddered, and looked again to Shepard and Miranda. "This is a prime example of what it does to you; two men thought they had the same wife. They remembered the exact, same details of their wedding day and literally believed it was true until they found out their stories matched so well. The Reapers play with your minds like that; we all know what they did to Saren."

"Except these guys took it to a new level. Saren was the avatar of Sovereign at the end, true, but these guys went nuts," I said fervently. "They started to believe that the Reaper was a dead god. They kept saying that a dead god can dream. They knew something was up, but they were powerless to stop it."

"It was an unfortunate and terrifying situation. It shows, even more so, why they need to be stopped," HK remarked.

"The Reaper probably didn't even know what it was doing," I said, grasped by a sudden insight. "It just did what it was made for and took control of those people, turning them into husks... that tells me that it wasn't really alive. If it were really alive they would have used the humans like Grayson and somehow tried to contact the outside world. The Reaper probably isn't even conscious."

"Grayson?" Miranda blinked a little. "He left Cerberus some time ago. What does he have to do with any of this?"

"And now it's time for me to shut the heck up and zip it," I said brightly, crossing my legs underneath me for some added emphasis.

Miranda's eyes narrowed as she gave me a look. I could tell that she didn't like it too well when we clammed up, but she probably disliked this in particular. It had to do with Cerberus, after all.

"Abby's point remains: the Reaper won't talk to us like Sovereign or Harbinger have; the Reaper is almost dead, some of its last functions just need to be wiped out," HK chimed in.

_Like a zombie-Reaper_, I thought privately. I wouldn't dare say that in front of Shepard or Miranda, though. "We won't have prolonged exposure, anyway," I assured them. "It'll be a quickie."

"I've trusted you both so far," Shepard said. "I suppose I'll have to take what you're saying at face value. You haven't been wrong yet."

I supposed that this was her way of apologizing to us for her previous behavior. After having that talk with her, well... I was just glad that she aired those feelings to me in private than in front of the other two. We seemed to have an understanding with each other that hadn't been present before - we both knew where the other's tipping point was, and we both now knew that we could rely on the other for help.

I wasn't going to think about the talk we had too much, but I was still humbled by the fact that Shepard had treated me like an adult, a valuable part of the team, and let me know just how she was feeling.

"It won't be like the Weyrloc Base," I promised with a wry grin. That had been a _nightmare_.

"Of course it won't," Miranda said, folding her arms. "Because _Sarah_ won't be there to interfere with matters."

"Yes, yes," HK said with a light, fake smile. "No trouble being caused by Sarah, and no krogan acting insane with their vorcha and varren. This will just be husks and Scions, like I said. The husks just travel in very, very large numbers."

"Then we will need to be careful," Miranda said. "Otherwise we will run the risk of being overrun. Long-range weapons are useless in situations where a swarm of melee combatants surround and attempt to overwhelm. I strongly suggest we take along some swords or daggers, in case we need them."

Shepard gave a little nod. "I'll see what we have in the armory before we leave," she said. Then she looked directly at me. "Is there anything else either of you can tell us?" Her eyes darted between me and HK, then settled on me again.

I blinked in shock. "We have _swords_?" _Please say yes, please say you weren't joking..._

"Thane and Samara bought a few on the Citadel before they returned to the ship," Miranda affirmed.

"And apparently Kasumi... acquired a few herself," Shepard added hesitantly. She seemed reluctant to say just where the ninja woman had found them or how she'd gotten them.

"That might be a bad idea," I said with a frown. As much as the initial giddiness had taken over, my mind had recently flashed back to an episode of 1000 Ways to Die and stole the sunlight and daises from the moment. "Metal is a super-conductor and the husks have electrical-based attacks. I agree that we may need knives at some point in our limited life spans, but here it almost seems suicide."

"That is true," Miranda murmured thoughtfully.

Shepard sighed. "Then I guess we will need to rely on our fists if it comes to that," she amended.

"It was a fun idea, though," I said. I felt a grin creep across my face. "Hey... do you think maybe I could have a new knife? I kind of lost the one Zaeed loaned me when Taul ambushed us on Illium."

"Sure," Shepard replied. I saw a ghost of a smile forming on her lips momentarily. "Well." She straightened and then stood. Miranda glanced at the Commander, then followed suit. "I have some things I need to go over with the Illusive Man before we depart for the derelict Reaper." She nodded toward HK and I. "Thank you for the intel." This was when I knew we'd been more or less dismissed.

"Sure, no prob!" I said brightly, throwing out a crisp salute. "Thanks for having us. When are we arriving?"

"ETA is two more standard days," Miranda said. "I'd suggest that the both of you prepare yourselves and make whatever preparations you need before then."

"Can do."

We both left and entered the elevator. As soon as the doors closed, I let out a sigh of relief. "She took us seriously. That's good."

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I couldn't find Kasumi anywhere and EDI wouldn't really say where she was, so I chose to hang out with Garrus. Then again for all I knew, Kasumi could be following me around with her cloak on, or maybe spying on Jacob in the shower or something. Either way, I felt glad to have a chance to go hang out with my favorite turian in the gunnery; it had been quite some time since I'd been in there since I was confined to my room and to chores.

"Hey, Garrus!" I greeted with a chipper tone as I entered the gunnery... without knocking.

Garrus turned around sharply and seemed to relax when he noticed that it was me. He turned back around to the console and continued to type. "Hey. Long time no see," he said. "What's on your mind?"

I sat down on the edge of the nearby crate casually. This was something that I'd already done many times in here, even if it had been a while. So I knew he didn't mind. "Having fun?" I asked casually.

"I've probably done more exciting things than this," he admitted. "Shepard picked up some extra materials on the Citadel I needed, so I'm trying to realign the balance here."

I nodded a little. "I bet you had some fun before we got to the Citadel, though," I blurted in spite of myself.

"Huh?" he asked. He chuckled. "What do you mean by that?"

I rolled my eyes a little. "Neyrata." I figured that single word would explain it all.

Garrus's mandibles twitched in sudden agitation. He glared at me, his work forgotten. "You better have a good reason for making that conclusion," he said suspiciously.

I felt a little sheepish, but a little defensive at the same time. "If you're gonna have a private conversation with someone," I said a bit stiffly, "you shouldn't do it in the mess hall or kitchen. Or you should make sure the coast is clear at least." If he wanted to get mad at me, then he needed to acknowledge it was partially his fault, too.

His mandibles seemed to slack completely with shock. "Oh, hell," he said, blinking stupidly. "Damn it. I could've sworn we were alone. I didn't even know about the incident with Grunt and Mordin until an hour later."

"Yeah, I'm sure your mind was on other things," I muttered. "So while you were in here having fun, Grunt and Mordin nearly killed each other and Shepard threatened to shoot herself."

I shook my head when I finished my rant. Why was I giving him such a hard time about this? Maybe it was because I wanted someone to growl at over the incident.

Then again... I couldn't help but be a bit jealous of what happened between him and Neyrata, too. I hadn't really given it too much thought, but it was the way I felt. I had known him longer, I even helped him with Sidonis as much as I could, and he decided to pal around with that female turian he'd only known for two days.

Garrus made an irritated noise in the back of his throat. "Yeah, I know. I know, okay? Obviously we had a... timing issue. But I saw the security vids of what happened, and there was no way I was going to be able to help Shepard there. It was a three-person showdown."

I sighed. "Yeah... you're right," I muttered. "Sorry. It's just... that really scared the hell out of me. I don't think it could compare too much to when I almost died on Haestrom or when I almost lost HK and Abby, but... yeah. I never expected anything like THAT to break out on the ship."

"Which worries me even more," Garrus said dryly. "Not seeing something in your guys' visions is big. I know Shepard's rattled, and she doesn't scare easily. I think it came as a shock to her that we've been relying on you all so much... and you know we have been. We need to break the habit."

"Yeah," I acknowledged. It was kind of funny in a way. In the game they never relied on us at all. They did everything on their own. "Well, I hope we haven't become a crutch or anything."

"You have," Garrus said. "Thing is, I'm not so sure that we'd have gotten as far as we have without you. It's kind of scary. Nobody on this ship is used to relying on something or someone so heavily, and you three just popped right in and made yourselves at home... I'm still surprised that the Illusive Man hasn't ordered Miranda to examine your heads yet for useful data considering what we saw on Pragia."

"Heh," I grunted. "Yeah well, I guess we've all just been pretty lucky." I scratched the back of my neck awkwardly, my fingers brushing through my hair a little. It was really starting to grow back a bit now. It was just barely shoulder length again. "You know, um... this is kind of awkward. But I was wondering if I could talk to you about something."

"If it's about sex, ask Jack," he said. "Otherwise, shoot."

I blushed slightly and coughed a little. But I forced myself to keep talking. "Well, if there's one thing I've learned, it's that I don't function very well if I don't talk about my feelings," I said stiffly. "It's the main reason why I did so many stupid things. But anyway... I'm jealous, okay? I don't know what to do about it, and this is really awkward, but... I'm... well... I'm jealous about what happened between you and Neyrata. Even though I know that's your business, not mine." There, I said it.

"You're... jealous..." Garrus echoed, dragging the words out a bit as if testing them on the tip of his tongue. "That's... huh. Why, err, do you think you'd be jealous?"

I rose abruptly, clenching my hands at my sides. "I just... ugh." I turned away from him, glaring out at the Normandy weapons' barrel. I felt like I couldn't say this. But I knew I needed to, just to get it out in the open. "I really like you," I began. "A lot. Heck, I think I love you in a way. And it's just... I've known you longer now, and I've respected the fact that you weren't interested in me. And yet..." I slowly turned to look at him again, fixing him with a glare, "you chose to play around with that female turian when you've only known her for two days. Is that the kind of person you are? You just like to have... flings?" I felt my heart sinking into the pit of my stomach as this realization hit home.

Garrus's back stiffened. "You're right," he said. "It's not your business. Neyrata and I have known each other for two years, and for a brief time we were actually 'together' as you humans put it." I could tell that I'd really hit him at a low, low spot, even for me. I'd never heard him call somebody 'human' before. "Look, I... I don't want to get in an argument with you. The last thing we need is for something like this disrupting the ship. But you have to realize that I don't feel that way about you. I'd rather stay friends than mess something good up. And if that's not enough for you, then I'm sorry."

I blinked a little as I mulled over the fact that Neyrata and Garrus had apparently been "together" once. Honestly, I didn't know what the heck was going on with them, considering I thought I'd heard that they had tried to kill each other at one point, and now... I find out they were an item once? I knew better than to press for details, though. Garrus had made it clear it was none of my business. I had to respect that.

I took a couple of deep breaths, releasing them slowly, and then I turned to look at him again. "It's just a problem with being a 'psychic' I guess," I told him. "I know a lot of things about you and everybody else, so... maybe it sometimes feels like a lot of things are my business when they're not. So... I'm sorry."

Garrus's face looked tight. I guess the human equivalent would be clenching your jaw. I was almost afraid that he wouldn't accept my apology, but instead he just nodded. "I'm a pretty easygoing guy," he said, "but psychic or not, you need to respect other people's space. Sometimes they don't want to talk about every facet of their life."

I nodded stiffly. "Yeah, I understand." Then I gave him a slightly humorous glance. "Too bad you don't know as much about me," I muttered lightly. "Then again, I'm kinda glad you don't."

"Knowing everything about someone before you meet them takes away the fun of discovery," Garrus said. "Can you imagine how the rest of the team feels about you guys? You just pop on and know everything about everyone. We really didn't have a choice whether to trust you or not."

"I'm glad Shepard let us stay," I acknowledged. "And well... I'm just sorry I caused so much trouble. I guess I just got too caught up in my fears. Heh, sometimes I almost wonder if I should go around and give everybody on the dang ship a personal, face-to-face apology, if Shepard would let me."

"If you do the best you can and stop being so scared of everything, I think that would probably speak volumes," Garrus said. I could tell he was still a little angry with me, or ticked. "Look, not to cut the meeting short, but I need to get these forward batteries realigned and I can't multitask right now. We'll have to catch up later."

"Yeah, talk to you later." I kept my shoulders straight and my head held high as I turned on my heel and walked out. Okay, I knew I was being a little huffy, but I didn't care.

I walked down the hallway back toward the kitchen. Perhaps I would use my temporary freedom from the confinements of my quarters to cook a snack or something.

As I neared the stove, I noticed something. It seemed like Abby was... cooking. She was standing over the stove, and she had some strange ingredients. It looked like she had eggs, cheese, whipped cream, vanilla extract and honey. HK stood just a few feet away from her, watching her. It looked as though he wondered what in the world she was doing.

For that matter, I wondered what in the world she was doing. "Abby, what is that?" I asked, raising my eyebrows.

"An experiment!" she hissed, her eyes lit up with discovery. A chuckle I automatically distrusted came out of the back of her throat as she took the omelet she had cooked - it looked like she'd put the cheese in there already - and placed it on a plate. Rubbing her hands together maliciously, she unscrewed the top of the honey jar... and then she put some on to her eggs.

HK just shook his head. "It sounds good, I admit," he remarked.

"Whatever, I refuse to try any," I stated, feeling my lip curve with disgust.

"Hey, I don't even know how this is gonna turn out," she told me. "But I feel like experimenting before we hit the IFF, thankyouverymuch!"

She put the honey aside and reached for the vanilla extract. She sniffed the bottle and an air of bliss came over her features. She placed a few drops on the egg and put that aside as well, doing her little Abby Dance as she reached for the last item on the list: the whipped cream. She began to shake it before placing an extraordinary amount on top of the eggs.

"Voila!" she declared. "It's done. Now to see if it tastes as amazing as it smells."

She reached for a fork and brought a bite of it towards her mouth. I watched her anxiously, wondering if she was going to be, you know,_ sick _or anything. Any sane person would be! She started laughing and shoved another bite into her mouth. "Oh, this is amazing!"

I stared at her. Hard. Then I slowly looked at HK, shaking my head. "Ew, do you think you could possibly eat something like that?" I blinked.

"Honestly, I probably could," HK replied. This really didn't seem to affect him much at all; he seemed to rather like Abby's new meal.

"You're both weird!" I said, shaking my head and throwing up my hands just a little.

"The pot is calling the kettle black," Abby sang. "C'mon, try some. For me?" She smiled brightly... and I noticed that she had whipped cream on her chin.

"Uh... I already ate."

She turned away, shaking her head. "More for me, then. HK, you want some?"

He shrugged. "Sure!"

I turned away and shook my head again as Abby offered HK a spoonful. "If this becomes a hit on the ship, I'm gonna kill you, Abby," I muttered under my breath.

"Now that's just mean," she said. She and HK quickly finished the abomination of an egg, and without even breaking rhythm she retrieved two water bottles from the refrigerator and tossed one to HK. "As good as that is, I'm not sure I could eat another one today," she said, downing the water in just a few large gulps.

"Well if we're done doing silly things with food," I said somewhat dryly, "I was wondering if we could talk about something. You guys are heading out to get the friend or foe thing or whatever in a couple of days, right?"

"Two," Abby said with a nod.

I nodded in return. "It's coming soon," I murmured thoughtfully, hearing a slight tremor in my voice. I knew that she and HK would know what I was referring to. "And I'm still very nervous about it. But... I will trust you guys to make sure everything works out okay in the end, you know? I won't do anything to mess things up."

"Ahh," HK said, nodding in a manner that implied sadness. "Don't worry; we will try our best, no matter what. Believe me, if Shepard wants to go anywhere else after this aside from Legion's mission, we'll stop her. We will get there in time, I'm sure."

"I won't let either of you down," Abby said with the utmost seriousness. "We'll get you out, Sarah. We will."

I nodded a little. "Yeah well... just make sure nobody else dies either," I murmured. "That includes you both." I met her eyes, then HK's.

"I will try," HK said, though it seemed that there was a bit more uncertainty in that statement, than the one about making sure that nothing happened to me. "I think we should be set, though."

"What about those weird dreams we've had sometimes?" I asked. I figured that we needed to bring it up sooner or later. "Do you think they have anything to do with what will happen?"

"I don't know," Abby sighed. "I still don't know what to make of it."

I looked at them each for a moment. Then I hugged them each. "Let's just not die," I whispered. "Don't let anybody die."

HK nodded. "We have all of the loyalty and dedication we need; I'm sure everything will go well with Legion, and Shepard will probably handle the last fight as well as she's handled the other two. I _think_ everything's upgraded?" he said, a statement that sounded more like a question.

"Far as I know, everything is," I commented. Though I wasn't entirely sure myself.

"It is," Abby affirmed. "Joker told me yesterday, and Ken and Gabby were complaining about the adjustments they'd have to make while we were hanging on the Citadel."

"Well, good. Then they'll have plenty of time to make any last adjustments that are needed, and we should be set," HK said. However, he was looking thoughtful. "It's just so weird. We knew, or hoped, this would come but the end is really in sight now. This trip locks us in."

"And we still haven't gotten Overlord or even Liara's data," Abby said worriedly.

"Umm, true," HK said, like he had forgot about that. "Well, the Liara stuff can be handled after the suicide mission. Overlord...I don't know when Shepard will decide to take care of that. I can only hope that David will wait until after the mission."

"I'm sure it'll all work out somehow," I murmured thoughtfully. "I mean... it always did in the game." Man, I was so glad we were alone and talking right now. Well, except for EDI, I guess. She was always watching.

"This is real, though," HK murmured. "However, you are right. If everyone does their part, like I'm sure they will, then it will be okay. It really will."

"Well," I said slowly, "since we still have some time before the mission..." I looked at Abby, then took a deep breath. "If you show me how to make that... weird egg thing you made before... maybe I'll try some." I couldn't believe I was doing this.

Abby made a face. "I'm not sure I could eat another one of those for a week, but I'll show you how. I just made a cheese omelet and put that crap on top, but you should probably be careful with the vanilla extract. That stuff tastes nasty if you use too much."

I nodded. "Yeah, I've used vanilla extract before, at home," I said. "I used to bake cookies." I smiled a little. "When I get home... if we get home... I ought to do that again, just for old times' sake."

"Tell you what," Abby said. "We all survive this mission, and I'll strong-arm Grunt into helping you bake some later."

I laughed. "Let's totally do it," I grinned.

"Agreed," HK said with a chuckle.

* * *

**(HK)**

The two days had been quiet; almost too quiet. Very relaxed, which was unusual on the Normandy. The mood had just been somber, as no one was moping, but no one was bursting with happiness, either. The truth was setting in: the end was near.

We weren't on the final mission yet, of course, but the psychics didn't even have to say that the IFF locked us in for the suicide mission. It was pretty much an unspoken truth: aside from one or two small trips to finish last minute business, we were ready to attack the Collectors, and even if the crew didn't get captured, Shepard knew there was no time to waste.

Part of me had enjoyed the past few days, because it was just nice and peaceful. No more drama since the Grunt and Mordin incident. All the crew members and party members had everything they needed, from personal issues being tied up to alcoholic beverages. So absolutely nothing had happened, yet I could feel a nervous feeling underneath all the peace and relaxation.

We were going to lose Sarah soon. Bar a miracle, she was going to be gone; taken, off with the other friends and acquaintances we had made during our many months here on the Normandy. I was really sad, and worried, to see all of them go.

I vowed to Sarah that we would not let her die; a vow I planned to uphold. After she was taken, we could flat out tell Shepard that if the Normandy even took the time to land on another planet, crew members would die. That wasn't nearly as big of a bomb as the capturing itself was.

Yet it was all still so terrifying. Sarah was a close friend, part of the trio of psychics, a trio of best friends. The only person that, aside from Abby, I knew from my 'old life'. The only person Abby knew from her own, aside from me. So obviously, she would know us much better than anyone on the Normandy did. I'd known her for four years, and to have her life in peril...it wouldn't be a pleasant thought.

Her life would mostly be in Shepard's hands, which was more re-assuring than anything else; however, a small part of it would be in our hands, and that was what was scary. But Abby and I were responsible people, and we would get the job done properly.

It wasn't only Sarah that weighed on my mind; it was the possibility of any of us dying. This was not a game anymore, as the three of us had stated so many times; every single time we went out on the battle field, our lives were at risk. We could easily take a bullet in the chaos of that last minute.

_We can't think like that, now can we?_

I had to keep my mind focused and clean. Worries and anxiety would only bog me down and interfere my abilities on this mission, which was most important at the moment. It was time to get the IFF and blow up one Reaper. We could at least do that much.

So, now, I walked out onto Deck Five of the Normandy, for what was probably the millionth time. We only saw this place one or two times in the game, yet it was so familiar to me now; so many more details of the Normandy were familiar to me now.

Shepard, Thane, Jack, and Abby were waiting. It seemed I arrived just in time, as they were all boarding the shuttle. I stepped on board, as well, and gave a nod of greeting to all of them.

"Let's get that IFF," I said.

"Let's hit it," Abby said, sliding into the seat next to Thane.

Shepard had already taken her seat at the far end of the shuttle, away from us as she examined a readout on her omnitool. She looked up only long enough to affirm that I was there and that everybody was strapped in before she said, "Get us down there, Joker."

The door shut behind us and I felt the floor drop from underneath us as the Normandy's ramp slid open. The rockets kicked in a second later, leveling us out and giving us some stabilization. The windows were tinted so that we couldn't see outside, but I knew exactly what the approach scene would look like.

Soon enough we hit some nasty turbulence. It was probably a good thing that we were all strapped in, or else we all would have gone flying. "Joker, what's with all the chop?" Shepard demanded.

"I'm doing the best I can," the pilot grunted. "The Normandy's being hit with it, too, the wind outside's gusting over five-hundred KPH." The chop continued, and it felt like Joker was having an issue controlling the ship. "Uh oh. There's a second ship alongside the Reaper - it's not transmitting, but the LADAR thinks its silhouette is geth."

"I guess we know why the science team stopped reporting in," Shepard said sourly. The ship jumped in the atmosphere and then leveled out. The turbulence had finally stopped. "Hey, what just happened?"

"The Reapers mass effect fields are still active," Joker said. "We just passed inside their envelope... eye of the hurricane, huh?" He paused, and I could hear him making some quick adjustments in the background. "The landing vector is looking pretty deserted. Sheesh, not a Cerberus ship in sight, but no geth, either..."

"That's because we had to keep the techs there grounded, just in case," Miranda said. She was up in the cockpit with Joker, apparently, unless she just happened to be talking from her quarters over the same frequency. "Needless to say, the landing area is safe and secure."

"Descending," Joker said. I felt the ship jerk a little bit as it was caught within the Reaper's false gravity well, and then I felt it settle on something solid. "Alright, airlock opening. I'm not seeing any surprises out there from the cams, so you should be good."

The airlock on the bottom of the ship opened, allowing in a burst of cool, recycled air. It wasn't nearly as cold as I'd been expecting. The airlock seemed to extend down into a small tube with footholds. It looked as though we'd have to climb down. "Thanks, Joker," said Shepard, peering down. Her weapon was already out, covering a wide arc. She took one step into the airlock and I heard her grunt as she hit the ground a few feet below. She must have softened her landing with biotics. "Clear," she huffed. "Come on."

We climbed out after her, but only Jack felt safe enough to mimic her and jump down. "Shepard," EDI said. "My sensors indicate that Cerberus oxygen wells are still operating within normal levels. You may take off your assisted breathing devices."

"Sweet!" Abby's was off first, but Shepard decided to keep her helmet on.

"I'm pulling out," Joker said. I heard the airlock close above us and the pressure plates slide into position. "If Miranda's right, your exit point is going to be in Sector Seven - I'll meet you there."

"Copy that. Thanks for the assist."

Jack seemed more than happy to take off her face mask. She inhaled the stale, recycled air through her nose and exhaled it, almost as though she was testing it. Thane seemed a little more reluctant to take his air mask off, perhaps due to his lung condition and the fact that he needed specialized air. In the end though, he took his off as well.

We headed down the corridor and I heard Thane murmur, "This place has an ominous feeling. I don't like it." I wasn't paying much attention because Shepard was moving up ahead, toward a section that had a few consoles. It looked just like it did in the game.

That was when Shepard approached a specific console, after looking them all over. She touched a key, then used her omni-tool to activate something. The screen on the console flickered for a moment, then a recorded log came to life, and a dark-skinned man on the screen began to speak:

"The airlock has been installed at the far end of the hold section. We've begun pressurization for shirtsleeve's work. The crew is... edgy. I've reassured them it is merely nerves." The image winked out as the log ended.

"I'm getting a bad feeling about this place," Jack said aloud. She didn't sound nervous, but there was a slight stiffness in her voice.

"Just keep on your guard," Shepard said. She cast a glance at Abby and I, as though wanting to make sure we were still present and accounted for, and then she looked back at Jack. "We'll get through this like any other mission."

"Just saying," Jack replied, "when I get these kinds of feelings, something's not right. I've been to enough places to know when something's around that could harm me."

Shepard began moving again, which cut off any further discussion or conversation. Perhaps that was for the best; sometimes it was better to just do something rather than stand around talking about it.

We pressed on, moving around the corner and to the end of another hall. Shepard paused at another terminal, looking at it curiously. Then she touched a control, and the screen came to life on it. Another face appeared, and the recorded message began to speak:

"We finished cataloging specimens A203 to B016. The doctor believes they would have decayed over the last thirty-seven million years; there's not enough data to support his claim. He asserting that it's 'patently obvious'." Once again, the recording ended.

"Interesting," Thane murmured. That was all anyone really said. But what else was there to say?

Once again, we pressed onward. Shepard kept her gaze focused straight ahead, though she kept glancing at me and Abby from time to time. Maybe she was wondering if we were going to be ambushed anytime soon. Abby seemed to give a little "not yet" kind of headshake, which seemed to get the Commander to relax slightly.

Next we came up to a door, which Shepard walked up to in order to open. That was when the entire ship shook and shuddered; it caused all of us to stagger, almost causing us to fall down. I ended up bumping into Jack and I instinctively grabbed her arm to regain my balance. She simply gave me a look, and I withdrew my hand and took a step back. "Sorry," I muttered.

"Whatever," was all she said.

"Normandy to shore party!" Joker's voice shocked us all.

"What just happened, Joker?" Shepard asked.

"The Reaper just put up kinetic barriers; I don't think we can get through from our side!"

"So we're trapped," Thane said quietly. "How disquieting."

"Then we'll have to take down the barrier generators from in here," Shepard said, sounding as though she were thinking very hard about this. "Joker: any idea where they are?"

"At the moment of activation," EDI said, "I detected a heat spike in what is most likely the wreck's mass effect core. Sending the coordinates now. Be advised: this core is also maintaining the Reaper's altitude."

"So when we take it out, the Reaper and us go flying," Shepard said, her helmet twisting around to look at Abby and I.

"And that means everyone dies, yeah, got it," Joker said.

"Joker, if any helmsman can reach us before this thing hits crush depth, it's you," Shepard said reassuringly. "We'll make a sweep for survivors and recover what data we can. Stand by."

"Aye, aye. Good hunting, Commander."

Shepard cleared her throat, looking at us both. "This would have been something to tell me," she said lightly. "It doesn't matter now. We continue on."

"Um, sorry, it seemed like a minor detail at the time," I said as we walked forward. "We can tell you this, though: There are no survivors. Just the geth, so don't bother keeping a look out."

We were now in the next room, which was pretty much a lot of open area with a walk way on it. The fight would be starting soon. I took a glance around, actually marveling slightly at being inside a real Reaper. It all looked so advanced, and creepy.

"Someone had to build these things," I muttered.

"I'm pretty sure either Cerberus built these walkways or they were already here," Abby said. "But look at how new this metal looks - I'm betting Cerberus installed these after they found them."

"That would be a good guess," Shepard said quietly.

"I have heard of these things before, these... atrocities," Thane said. "I thought they were exaggerated..."

"I wish," Abby muttered. She peered over the side, holding her assault rifle loosely with her other hand. "Wow... that's a long way down. I wonder how long it would take before you hit the bottom."

"Get away from the edge," Shepard said. "I don't want any stupid accidents."

"Fair enough," Abby said, backing away. She had goose bumps, but whether that was from the temperature or from the situation I didn't know.

The Commander looked at us, and then looked at Jack and Thane as though wanting to make sure everybody was staying well away from the edge. She walked up to yet another console, peering at it for a moment before pressing a control to bring up a log that was recorded on it.

That was when I saw the familiar scene that Abby had mentioned back in Shepard's quarters just two days ago, during our debriefing. Two men were standing just three feet away from each other, talking.

"You're married?" one of them said. "You never mentioned that."

The second guy said, "Katie has anger management issues. When my brother got married, the best man tried to hit on her. She kicked him down the church steps." He chuckled softly at the memory.

The first guy looked shocked, and his surprise was evident in his voice. "Wha-what? Katie is MY wife. I... I must have told you this story before."

"No," the second guy said, sounding baffled and puzzled now. "I know my wife. I remember... that was the only time I ever saw her wear stockings." He sounded confused, perhaps thinking about a vivid memory but starting to question its authenticity.

"Yeah," the first guy agreed, "the kind with seams up the back... That's what I remember, too."

The two men blinked in unison. "What the hell is this?" the second guy said. "How can we remember the same thing?"

The screen cut out. "This thing was messing with their heads," Jack said, looking around warily. "I say we get on with this mission and get the fuck out of here before it does the same to us," she added tensely.

"Those poor souls," Thane murmured softly.

"Let's keep moving," Shepard said. She looked around the area a little more, then we headed toward the ramp that would lead to the next, lower area. And I knew that the first ambush was coming.

Abby was the first one to mention it. "Contact up ahead, husks," she said tersely, lining up the sights of her assault rifle on to where the enemy was probably going to appear.

"There are high-pressure tanks by the husks," Thane pointed out as Shepard opened fire. Jack let out a little war cry as her body began to glow and she released a ball of white, biotic energy from her hand. It smashed into the canister and blew the husks to kingdom come, sending their broken bodies flying over both edges of the ramp.

But more husks were coming; their horrible, throat-rasping roars could be heard echoing throughout the area. We all took cover wherever we could. I whipped out my assault rifle and I saw Abby and Thane teaming up behind a crate to pick off some of the husks before they got too close. I did the best I could, picking off some of the farther husks.

Jack and Shepard seemed to alternate between firing their weapons and executing precise biotic attacks. They blew up a couple more explosive canisters at the right moments, and this-along with the continuous fire from me, Abby and Thane-managed to wipe out two waves.

But just as we thought the coast was clear, a third wave appeared. The husks seemed to come out of nowhere each time, simply crawling up over the edge of the ramp. Where were they hiding? Underneath the ramp or something? Either way we opened fire again, though this time there were no canisters left to blow up. So Shepard and Jack simply relied on sending waves of biotic energy to disperse the swarming husks by force, or to throw them over the edge of the ramp to their deaths.

Eventually, it was over. But everyone was still and silent for a long a moment, making certain that no more were coming.

"I think that there are no more in this area," I told everyone, starting to slowly and cautiously move forward, even though I knew that they were down for now. "And this proves that the geth were not behind the husks; it is all the Reapers."

"Maybe we should have brought Grunt," Jack muttered sarcastically. "He would have loved a chance to fight through these things."

"We brought you two for very tactical reasons," I told the biotic woman. "You and Thane are the best for this one."

"Keep moving, and keep your guard up," Shepard said. "And remember what Joker said about the geth ship."

We proceeded on ahead toward a section of the ramp that went up, and then we saw a trio of husks waiting to ambush us.

However, they never got a chance to move, nor did any of us get a chance to raise our weapons. Three very precise headshots came out of nowhere, sending the husks crashing lifelessly onto the floor.

"Sniper," Thane exclaimed quietly, glancing every which way. Jack's head twisted around even more, trying to catch a glimpse of whoever had fired.

"The geth," I muttered to Shepard. After all, why keep her in suspense?

Shepard looked at me sharply. "Are you telling me the geth just helped us?" She sounded skeptical.

I simply nodded. "Be ready for husks up ahead," I warned. We could discuss Legion later.

"What about that geth?" Jack asked, looking directly at me as we pressed forward. Shepard was scanning the area with her eyes; Abby was right near her, apparently serving as the Commander's direct backup. Jack didn't look scared or even all that angry, she simply looked as though she wanted _me_ to give her an answer.

"It's on our side. We'll find more out more about him later, trust me," I assured Jack with a nod. "I know it sounds weird, but it is true."

"Let's keep moving," Shepard said.

We moved toward the next area, where the walkway extended downward again. I knew that the next fight was going to take place there. I could already see Shepard's body beginning to glow softly as she started to build up a fresh biotic charge.

We weren't even all the way down the ramp when we could hear another throaty yell from one of the husks, and the swarm began anew. Only this time we could also see a pair of scions approaching as well.

Jack then shocked the daylights out of me by using a biotic burst of energy to pull a husk toward her and then she ripped its head off with her bare hands.

My jaw dropped. Jack pulled off a lot of good moves, both in the game and in reality, but I hadn't seen anything like that before. She definitely was creative, but I guess I should be thankful that Shepard decided to bring her on this mission.

_That's the woman I nearly slept with._

I took out my rifle, and filled another husk full of bullets. A scion nearly shot one of their...well, whatever that was, at me, but I managed to dodge it right in time. Mostly. My foot got hit by it, and I felt a surge of pain, even through my armor.

"Wow," I muttered. "They don't play games."

Thane focused his weapon on one of the scions, ducking into cover as he did so. I saw Abby firing her weapon and taking out a few of the husks, and then she had to back off a bit to keep from being overrun. Shepard and Jack used their biotic powers to keep the husks at bay, to prevent them from getting too close. The last thing we needed was for them to overwhelm us.

Thane managed to take down the first scion, but then the second one stepped forward and sent a biotic burst of energy pulsing toward the drell. It impacted the box he was hiding behind and the shockwave was just powerful enough to send him flying backward a little.

I shot down one of the husks that weren't being bombarded by Shepard, Jack, and Abby, before quickly turning to help Thane. The scion was approaching him, ready to pounce, but I quickly began firing everything I could at him. The bullets pierced into his, uh, skin or whatever that was, but it wasn't enough. I had to reload, delaying me slightly, but I kept at him.

"Come on, Thane, get up! I can't take him down alone!" I called to my companion.

Abby ran over and knelt behind another container, giving me just enough cover fire that I'd need to reload safely. "Did I mention that Zaeed gave me a couple of his funny grenades for Christmas?" she asked me, breathing heavily with an exhilarated smile on her face.

Thane was back on his feet now, going back into cover. "Then put them to good use," the drell called out in response to what Abby just said.

"I'll throw you like a TOY!" Jack shouted one of the catch-phrases I remembered from the game. To my surprise, I actually saw the second scion being thrown over the nearby edge, down into the abyss.

"Good one," I complemented, watching the scion disappear. I always enjoyed when enemies fell off random ledges. I looked around, and saw Shepard cleaning up the last few husks. I looked at the large platform before us, and it seemed that everything was clear.

"I think we're good," I commented.

Shepard hesitated, taking a good look around. Obviously she wasn't going to leave anything to chance. Finally she seemed satisfied, and she stepped out from cover and began to have more of a look around.

She approached yet another console, eyeing it carefully. She looked around at the husks that were propped up on large spikes in the distance, and then she pressed a control on the terminal. Yet another face appeared, and he proceeded to speak:

"Chandanda said that the ship was dead. We trusted him. He was right. But even a dead god can dream. A god... a real god... is a verb. Not some old man with magical powers, it is a force. It warps reality just by being there. It doesn't have to want to, it doesn't have to think about it, it just does. What's what Chandanda didn't get. Not until it was too late. The god's mind is gone... but it still dreams. He knows now. He's tuned into our dream. If I close my eyes now I can feel him. I can feel every one of us." The image on the screen winked out.

Shepard glanced out at the horizon again, looking at the large spikes with the immobile forms on them. "I remember seeing those on Eden Prime," she said softly. Her tone sounded very thoughtful. "Some people called them 'dragons' teeth'."

"This place looks as though it has been set up like an altar," Thane murmured as his giant, marble-like eyes gazed upon the horrible sight, unblinking.

"These people did this to themselves?" Jack said disgustedly. "That just can't be right."

"These people weren't in their right minds," Shepard told her. "Look at this," she indicated the area with a gesture of her hands, "They were seeing things, hearing things... they were being indoctrinated."

She continued to look at the spikes for a moment longer, then she turned to look at us. "We can't help these people now," she told us. "But we won't let the machines use their corpses like this."

"Agreed," Abby said, reloading. She looked perfectly capable of dealing with whoever disagreed with her right then.

I nodded as well, taking a good look at the spikes and the people on them. I'd seen them in both ME1 and ME2, but to see them up close was far creepier, like so many other things in this universe. It was very sad and dismaying.

Shepard walked past us, and that was pretty much our queue that it was time to move; we all followed her, and everyone seemed to be in good shape. Thankfully, no one had any bad injuries yet. Hopefully it would stay that way, and I certainly wasn't letting my guard down after Zorya. Not on a derelict Reaper.

We went through the next door, and entered a short hall. Not stopping, we went straight for the next door, and the Commander started to open it. Then we heard another message.

"Please stand by. Equalizing pressure with exterior conditions," the nice-sounding Cerberus automated message told us. "Remember, safety is everyone's concern. We have gone five days without a workplace death."

_Yeah, turning into husks is so much better._

The door opened, and I glanced at Abby. We both knew what was coming. All of us walked through, rifles at the ready, and Shepard started to give out orders, just like in the game. Before I could move, two husks rose right behind her, but they were immediately taken out by our new friend.

All of us looked in the direction of the shot, and we saw him there: Legion, only looking slightly different from previous geth that we had seen. He still looked pretty nice in person, though.

Thane's arm appeared to be nothing but a blur as he raised his pistol. Abby lurched forward, dropping her assault rifle, and hang on desperately to his elbow, throwing off his aim. "Don't," she gasped. "We need Legion! Don't shoot him!"

My heart nearly jumped into my throat, but it seemed that Thane backed down once Abby got to him. Legion all but ignored the small interruption, keeping his eye or photo receptors or whatever on Shepard.

"Shepard-Commander," he simply greeted, before turning and walking off.

"Well," I said, looking to the others. "There he is."

"And there he went," Thane said, his eyelids flickering once.

"Let's go," Shepard commanded, indicating the direction we were going next with the nozzle of her rifle.

And I knew there was still a lot of fighting up ahead.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

I sat alone in the quarters I shared with HK and Abby, on the center of my bed with my legs folded in what my first-grade teacher always used to call "sitting in Indian style". I held in my hands a stationary with several colorful pieces of paper. I twirled a pen around in my hand, trying to think carefully about what I was doing.

"Okay," I muttered quietly to myself. "Time to get started... preferably before they get back."

So I began to scribble on the first piece of paper:

_Dear Commander Shepard,_

_If you're reading this, then it means I'm not on the ship anymore. Well, at least it means I won't be causing any more trouble and you won't have to put up with me anymore, hahaha. _

_But anyway, I know that words aren't gonna cut it, but I really am sorry for all that I put you through. But... well, if I am gone now, maybe you can understand why I did some of the things I did, even if it's no excuse. Um... I know that you're probably pretty upset about losing the crew right now, and you're not happy with HK and Abby because they didn't tell you. But please understand that they did what they thought was best._

_So... I'm sorry again. And I'm going to trust you to get me out of this alive. And Commander, you're awesome. You really are. Take care of yourself, your crew, and HK and Abby._

I set down the pen for a moment, and I couldn't think of anything to add. So I simply signed it and stuck it into an envelope, marking it "Shepard". Then I picked up another piece of paper, and I began to write a new letter:

_Dear Garrus,_

_Hey man, I'm really sorry if I've annoyed you sometimes. But you know, thanks for letting me hang out and whatnot. It's been great to have you as a friend. You've always been a sweet guy, and you've always smelled sweet, too._

I grimaced, putting down the pen for a moment. Did I really want the letter to say that? It sounded so stupid. Then again... well, after all that had happened, I doubted that Garrus would be weirded out by it... not any more than usual, anyway. I pressed my lips together and continued writing:

_By the way... I wanted to say I'm sorry. That is... I kinda took some pictures of you when you didn't know about it. Don't ask. I just wanted to say I'm sorry. And well, just... thanks again. I hope you miss me, at least a little, haha._

I stared at the paper for a moment, then I simply folded it up and put it into a small envelope marked "Garrus". Well, at least I hadn't said anything that would incriminate Kasumi. But now, maybe I would be partially free of Abby's blackmail after this! That would be a plus... maybe.

I grabbed another piece of paper and started writing again:

_Dear Kasumi,_

_Hey. I think in some ways you're one of the best friends I've made while on the Normandy. At least... I really liked hanging out with you a lot. I know we've pretty much put it behind us, but I wanted to say again that I'm sorry about what happened on Tuchanka._

_Thanks again for those pictures you took of Garrus. Erm... I sorta left him a letter to apologize for it, though, because my conscience was bugging me. Don't worry, I didn't mention you. I just made it sound like I took them myself or something._

_Anyway... well, thanks for being there for me and for listening to me and whatnot. You're awesome, and I really hope I get to see you again after this is over. Take care of yourself, and just remember, your boyfriend will always be with you in a way, inside your own memories. That way, his memory will never die._

I signed the letter, and then put it in the Kasumi envelope. Then I continued on to the next one:

_Dear Thane,_

_Thank you for telling me that story you told me on the shuttle way back when. I'll never forget it. You know, just... thank you so much for that talk. I should have taken your words to heart. I guess things just started to blur together after we talked. _

_And... I'm really glad things worked out with your son. I hope that things will continue to go well for you. Keep Abby and HK safe, okay?_

I put down the pen. I wasn't sure what else to add, and... I wasn't even sure why I was asking him specifically to watch over my two best friends. I didn't bother to think about it too much; I still had a lot of letters to write. I signed it, put it in the Thane envelope, then began the next one.

_Dear Jacob,_

_Heh... I really am sorry I bit your finger. And for everything that happened that day in the training ring, really. But you know, I'm just not cut out to be a fighter. Hell, I think everybody knows that by now. And I guess we never really got to talk much or anything since then, but you know... you were always more Abby's friend and whatnot. Take good care of her, okay? Make sure nothing happens to her._

_And uh... thanks for dragging me out of the bathroom after Tuchanka... I guess. Good luck, give the Collectors a kick where it counts for me._

I signed it, and then moved onto the next one:

_Dear Miranda,_

_Thank you for walking around with me on the Citadel, I really had an awesome time with you. A whole lot better than I expected. Maybe if we all make it through this, we can hang out again sometime. You're really not a bad person to be with, and I'm sorry I ever thought that._

_I'm also sorry that I blurted out your sister's existence all those months ago, when my friends and I first popped up on the Normandy. I shouldn't have done that... though I shouldn't have done a lot of the things I did, haha. Take care of yourself, and just keep being yourself. That's what Shepard needs._

After signing it and sticking it in its envelope, I moved onto the next one:

_Dear Grunt,_

_Hey... you've always been one of the best krogan ever. Keep up the good fighting and you'll do alright. And well... maybe this seems stupid or whatever, but maybe I just wanted to say, in case I don't make it out of this alive... I kinda sorta had, um, just a little crush on you I guess. That's all, take care of yourself._

I winced. Then I sealed the Grunt envelope, and quickly moved onto the next one:

_Dear Samara:_

_Thanks for letting me stay in your room that one night. I really appreciated it. And well... you've always been awesome. Whatever you plan to do after this is all over, I really hope you have a good life. Maybe you could visit your surviving daughters sometime, they might like that. Maybe it would be good for you, too. Take care of yourself._

I sealed that envelope, then moved onto yet another letter:

_Dear Jack,_

_Not sure what to say. Just... thank you for the talks we've had, and I really hope that you can find whatever gives you peace and purpose after all of this. And just in case you and HK do get together eventually or something... go easy on him. He's still a little wary, especially after what happened between him and Morinth, and well... be extremely gentle, because he's a virgin and all, and... well I don't think you'd have to be as gentle as you would Joker, but yeah, you know._

_Anyway, make sure Shepard chooses either you or Samara to get her through the Collector swarms. You're the only ones powerful enough to do it. Take care of yourself, Jack._

I grimaced. Okay, that hadn't quite come out the way I wanted it to. I glanced over the words I'd written again, then I shrugged and put the letter into the Jack envelope, then I began to write my next letter.

_Dear Tali,_

_You've always been a sweetheart; take good care of those engines, and please look after Garrus, no matter what happens. I really hope your people can pull it together, because we're gonna need whoever we can get to fight the Reapers in the end. And I know HK is really fond of you; look after him, would you? Thanks, take care of yourself._

Once that letter was sealed, I started the next one:

_Dear Zaeed:_

_Well... now that Vido is dead, I hope you find some peace in life. Whatever happens though, take care of Abby. I know you both are buddies. Make sure she doesn't die, or if I die I'll come back and haunt you. That's all I guess. Take care, keep up the good fight._

I couldn't think of much else to add. So I simply signed that letter and put it into its envelope. Then I grabbed another piece of paper, and I tried to think of what to say to Legion.

But seriously... how would you write a letter to a robot? And for that matter... how could I possibly write a letter to someone I hadn't even met yet? Maybe I should just... try to subtlety say something to him after I met him. Or maybe I would write another letter later or something. I shrugged, then I grabbed another piece of paper.

The letters to HK and Abby actually took a little longer than any of the others did. I found myself rambling a little in those letters... going all the way back. I talked about the old RP days when we first met, including some of the antics from one particular role-playing game that I remembered the best. I also wrote down a few of my fondest memories that I'd spent with them, many of the times when they made me laugh and many of the wonderful times we'd had. I even made a mention in Abby's letter about the time that she and I won second place in a three-way tie in the "Villain" themed dueling circle challenge on that website where we first met. I wondered if she even remembered that or not.

In the end, each of their letters ended up being about four pages long-and I wrote on both sides of the pieces of paper. But I ended them both pretty much the same way:_ Love you guys, thanks for being my friends and being there for me. Don't forget me if I die, or I'll come back and haunt you and make you remember me._

Then I sealed up the last two letters. Now I had exactly twelve letters. I stuffed them into a large manila envelope and sealed it shut, then I put several pieces of clear tape over it just to make sure it would stay sealed. Then I scribbled my signature. Just my first name though, not my last name.

"EDI," I said aloud.

Her blue, bulbous, holographic "head" popped up onto a nearby console. "Yes, Sarah?"

I closed my eyes briefly, inhaling deeply and exhaling slowly. "Could you ask Kasumi to come see me for a moment? It's important." God, I just hoped that I could trust her for this. But I felt she was the one I could trust the most out of the Normandy crew. I just didn't want HK or Abby to even know that this envelope existed... yet. And I wasn't entirely sure if Abby would try to sneak a peek or not.

Okay, maybe I was just paranoid. But hey... I would probably try to sneak a peek, if there was an envelope like this sitting around somewhere.

EDI's form blinked out.

About four minutes later, the door slid open and I saw the slim, black-clad, hooded figure slip into the room. "You wanted to see me, Sarah?" she asked,

"Yeah," I said as I swung my legs over the side of the bed and stood. I held the sealed and taped envelope clutched tightly to my chest as I gave her a serious look. "Can I ask you to do me a huge favor?"

Kasumi eyed the envelope suspiciously. "It depends on what the favor is..." she said slowly.

I still kept the envelope pressed tightly against my chest, at least as tightly as I could without bending it or wrinkling it too much. "I was just wondering if you could keep this hidden, somewhere safe. And promise me you will not open it, or show it to anyone at all, unless something happens to me." I wasn't going to let her anywhere near it until I had her promise.

"Is it a will or something?" she asked, confusion written on her face and posture.

"Not really," I shook my head. I didn't want to say too much. "It's just... some letters. Please, can you promise to just hide it away somewhere in your room where no one will find it, and not to open it unless something happens to me? Please?"

Kasumi looked as though she were about to make some witty one-liner to defuse the tension, but she seemed to see that this was very important to me. "Okay," she said. She held out her hand. "They won't see the light of day until you need them back."

I hesitated for half a second, then I slowly moved the envelope away from my chest and placed it carefully, almost reverently, in her hand as if I was handing her a fragile glass figurine, or some sort of top secret document. "Just remember, you promised," I whispered, holding onto the other end of it as her fingers closed to take hold of the envelope. Finally I let go of it and allowed my hand to drop at my side. Then I raised my eyes to meet hers. "Thanks," I whispered.

"Hey, no problem," Kasumi said. "You're kind of starting to worry me, here... is everything okay?"

"Yes." That single monosyllable came out a bit too quickly, almost to the point of being a snap. I was certain she caught it. I kept my face wooden.

"Then why am I keeping these until something happens to you?" she asked pointedly. She lifted the envelope in her hand to inspect it. "You know what? Doesn't matter. I'll do it anyway. I think I know what it is."

I inhaled sharply through my nose, feeling my eyes widen. "What?" I asked warily. "What do you think it is?"

Kasumi just chuckled and turned away. "I have the perfect hiding place," she said, opening the door. "Don't worry. Unless the ship explodes, this baby's gonna be locked up tight."

I nodded at her and turned away. I figured it didn't matter too much what was going on in that head of hers, as long as she kept her promised. "Bless you," I murmured. I only ever said that when I was particularly grateful.

"No problem," she said. "Tell me what it is after we all get out alive, 'kay?"

I turned and grinned at her in spite of myself. "Yep," I said simply. I found myself unable to say much. "And..." I inhaled again, and I suddenly felt tears stinging my eyes. "Kasumi..." I found myself crossing the distance between us and putting my hands around her shoulders in a gentle hug, seriously hoping she wouldn't mind. "Thanks," I whispered again. I guess writing those letters had taken more out of me than I thought.

"Hey, hey, relax," Kasumi said, patting my back comfortingly. "There, there. What's wrong?"

I closed my eyes, and then tried to blink back the tears. I did not look at her face. "When you get there, give the Collectors hell for me. Okay?"

"Is something about to happen?" Kasumi asked, her arms stiffening in response to my words. "Hey - hey, Sarah, you have to be coherent right now. Is something about to happen?"

I pulled away from her and I knew that I needed to end this conversation _now_ or I was going to say something. "Kasumi, thank you again. Hide the envelope... and thanks. Bye." I then stepped into the tiny bathroom on the far side of the room and purposely closed the door, locking it behind me. Then I turned on the shower in an attempt to block out anything else Kasumi might try to say, and to muffle my own breathing as the tears began to fall.

_Damn it. _

_

* * *

_

**(HK)**

The last husk fell, and burnt corpses were all around us now. We all had some small cuts and scrapes, most likely, but we had charged through the Reaper, killing every husk and Scion that we could find. Which was a lot.

I wiped some sweat off my forehead, and followed Shepard as she grabbed some spare supplies, before quickly picking the lock on the door that would lead us to the IFF, and the Reaper core. It took a matter of seconds, and the door swung open. We all walked inside.

I immediately looked at the console in the middle of the room and to the left. "There it is," I stated.

Shepard activated her omni-tool and connected it with the computer's Wi-Fi interface. With a few buttons she bypassed the Cerberus firewalls with the codes Miranda had given her and retrieved the crucial piece of hardware. "Big file," she commented, glancing reflexively towards the large metal doors that we would be passing through to leave. "It'll be easier just taking the local copy, we don't have time for a big download."

As she spoke, her hands were moving faster, across both her omni-tool and the keyboard. I don't know what she did or how she did it, but her omni-tool suddenly glowed green with acquisition and the computer looked grayed-out and empty. "And here it is," she said, reviewing it with a frown. "This thing is probably the most valuable piece of equipment on this Reaper. Let's try not to destroy it."

"Good idea," Abby said fervently. "Look, the mass effect core's just ahead."

"I know," Shepard said, deactivating her omni-tool. "We're nearly there."

Shepard wasted no time and opened the next door. That blue shield went down seconds after the door opened, and we saw Legion at the console; he shot a few husks away, but like in the game, when he turned, one husk managed to get a good punch to the geth's head, sending him to the ground...unconscious, if geth could be unconscious.

And now, the fight was ours; we shot down the husks that were by Legion, and I saw the core shut itself up.

"Shepard, watch the core!" I called. "We can cover you!"

We went to the best positions automatically, not even thinking about it. Abby and I had the most firepower in the group and went up front to cover the Commander as Jack and Thane dropped back towards the rear. "You take right, I got left," Abby told me, dropping to one knee, her assault rifle jerking softly in her hands as she fired expert shots at the incoming enemies.

I followed her suggestion, and turned to the right, shooting as fast as I could at the oncoming husks. Most of my shots were precise, but a few managed to get a little farther than I intended; luckily, it did not take long to take them down. As swarms of husks rose from beneath the platforms, I had to wonder why Cerberus kept such a dang large team here. Even for investigating a Reaper, this was huge.

Bullets and biotics were all over the room, and the yells of the husks could be easily heard. I re-loaded faster than I ever had before, really pushing myself to my limit this time. This mission was so critical, and there wasn't that much time, so I had to. I watched husk after husk burst into flames, glad that their numbers were diminishing.

Abby was probably the quietest I'd ever seen her when we were fighting, all cold and rock-solid intensity that just didn't translate well into the image of the experimental chef I'd been privy to a few days ago. But now, even if she had decided to talk, I probably wouldn't have been able to hear her over the sounds of fire coming from directly behind us and the whoosh of grenades arcing overhead.

"More to the left," Jack yelled. By the time I'd turned my attention over there, either she or Thane had gripped an entire group of them in a tight biotic embrace. In one practiced motion Abby popped the top off of a small cylinder and threw it towards the middle of the pack. It exploded with the force of a small bomb, incinerating all of them in its blast.

"Nice!" I heard Shepard yell.

There were still more of them, though. I could only hope that Shepard took out that mass effect core fast.

I kept popping them off, one by one, but it was insane. Husks obviously had no mind or consciousness, but it was like the Reaper, with what little sense it had left, knew what we were doing, because the husks had not come like this at all before. Not even on our big journey from where we first saw Legion to here; now, the husks were just going all out.

Thank the Lord there were no scions to deal with.

I threw out a spare grenade or two that I happened to have, and it took off a few husks in one shot. While they burnt, I shot several more, and I knew I needed to reload. However, in that moment, I realized something: I didn't have any more thermal clips for my assault rifle.

I nearly swore, but even in a time like this, I managed to hold back; as quick as I could, I put my assault rifle away, and took out the old pistol that I had used for eons. However, even that had taken too long, as a husk was running straight for me, and managed to get a good punch in the face.

I grunted, stumbling backwards, but hurried to get back into action. Finally able to use those hand-to-hand skills that Jacob had taught me on the battlefield, I gave the husk a good hit back, sending it to the ground. I proceeded to shoot it, and the others that had made their way up here, before turning my attention back to the other husks out there.

Shepard mumbled something behind me the sounded something very close to, "How many husks does it take to fix a mass effect core, anyway?"

"I'm running low on ammo," Abby announced. "HK's down to his pistol. If you're gonna tear this thing down, Shep, you need to do it soon!"

I heard Thane cry out and I turned my head toward the direction. I looked just in time to see him slamming the butt of his rifle into one of the husks so forcefully that its head was knocked off. Its neck simply burst open and its insides spilled out a little as the head fell on the floor, then the drell matter-of-factly shot down several husks before they could overwhelm him. Apparently one of them had simply gotten too close for comfort, which required melee tactics instead.

I swerved back to my own fight, and shot down several more husks; it didn't take much to kill them at all, it was just that there were too many. And, as attached as I was to the pistol, after using my assault rifle for so long, I was realizing how slow it was. I couldn't shoot as faster as I could a few minutes ago, which wasn't good. However, I was still holding up.

Abby was helping out as much as she could, though, and I appreciated it. She was covering a wider arc of fire than I was, helping me out when I least expected it.

"Damn it, I'm out of ammo," I heard Shepard curse. But Shepard was Shepard, and she was a quick thinker. "Jack, you and me. Let's do some damage."

"Thought you'd never ask," Jack snarled.

The mass effect core seemed to ripple even more so than it had been, shaking a little within its chamber. A line of energy seemed to be emitting from behind us all the way to the core, disrupting its field and generator capacity. Shepard was beginning to growl with the strain.

"Keep them covered," Thane said, throwing a husk to the side with his own biotic abilities.

The mass effect core suddenly imploded with the added pressure, the shockwave sending us all flying backwards. Abby and Thane were on their feet faster than the rest of us, standing in front of the group and executing the surviving husks with cold efficiency. "Get up, hurry!" Abby snapped. "Get Joker in here."

Shepard stumbled to her feet and ran for the damaged geth at the head of the walkway. The Reaper was beginning to tremble as the various power systems within began to fail, and we were all struggling to maintain our balance. "What the fuck are you doing?" Jack yelled. "Leave that thing where it is! We don't have time, Shepard!"

"Tali said that nobody has ever captured a geth intact!" Shepard panted, draping Legion's arm around her shoulders.

"You know the risks, Shepard," Thane said.

"I know them. Come on! Joker, get us out of here, _now_!"

Abby ran forward to help the Commander with Legion, and we all rushed as fast as we could out the door and towards Miranda's recommended meet point - Sector Seven, whatever that was. "Open the portside airlock," Shepard commanded.

The Normandy was suddenly there in front of us, bucking a little to the side in an attempt to fit into the small space without damaging anything. The husks were beginning to climb over the railings away, moaning as they always did. Jack, Thane, and I gave Shepard and Abby some covering fire as Shepard thrust Legion's inert body towards the airlock.

Abby took a running leap and soared through the air, her arms waving. "Whoa - whoa, whoa, whoa, this is so weird!" she squealed, flailing desperately towards the airlock. I watched her hit it safely.

"Go!" Shepard told us, firing at the incoming husks with her pistol.

I was next, immediately charging forward and off the platform, and taking a huge jump towards the airlock. It felt so weird, yet almost fun, to be in the air like this and heading straight for the airlock; I usually didn't care about things like this, but this had to be one of the more interesting and fun parts of ME2, and I was thankful to experience it.

I hit the airlock, landing on my feet, and turned to wait for the others, panting. All of this was almost over.

Jack, still panting heavily from exertion, leaped into the air with much less force than I was expecting and barely made it. Up close, I noticed that she was pale and shaky.

"Go!" Shepard ordered Thane. The drell fired a couple more shots at the incoming husks and made his jump, landing heavily next to me. Shepard turned around and took a running leap, somehow more graceful and leonine than any of us had been. As soon as her feet hit the ground, the door closed. "We're clear. Go."

The Normandy shot away, and Joker was so eager to get out of the blast radius that he didn't open the other side of the airlock until we were safely out of the danger zone. The buffeting winds that gave the Normandy its awful turbulence jerked us around in that small, confined space, and Thane created a biotic field that held us roughly in the same place so we didn't end up smacking into each other.

As soon as we were out of the atmosphere, the entire crew relaxed. Thane let down his biotic barrier and the door opened, revealing the interior of the Normandy. Abby and Shepard resumed their duty of carrying Legion and went out first, meeting the cheers and clapping of all who were on deck-duty.

They subsided quickly, though, after everybody realized what Shepard was carrying.

"Thane," Shepard panted. "You and Abby take this to the AI Core... post a guard. I'm exhausted."

"I'm happy to help, my si'ha," Thane said in a low, reverent voice as he took the Commander's place.

Abby and Thane lumbered away, and Shepard sagged against the wall. She took off her helmet and glanced over to Joker. Miranda was standing behind him next to Jacob, looking stern. Both Shepard and Jack didn't pay her much attention, though, and it looked like Jack was recovering a bit faster than the Commander. "I'm going downstairs," Jack said. "Need me, I'll be down there sleeping or whatever." She left.

The entire bridge seemed to be looking at us. "Uh, Commander?" somebody asked concernedly. "Did you just bring a geth on to the Normandy?"

Kelly jogged up the bridge, her eyes wide. "Commander - "

Shepard held up one hand. "Yes, there is a geth aboard. Take the appropriate precautions. EDI, I'm expecting you to watch him carefully. Other than that, I would really like to catch my breath if that's not too much to ask."

We all waited patiently for Shepard to recover her second wind, and when she did she twitched a finger in Miranda and Jacob's direction. "Debriefing room," she said. "Let's see what this IFF can do."

Shepard left, followed closely by Miranda and Jacob. The deck was deathly silent.

"A geth," somebody swore. "Looked like somebody took a chunk out of it pretty good."

"But is it still active?" another person asked.

"Hey, uh, guys?" Joker asked. "Let's keep the predictions to a minimum. The Commander knows what she's doing. Get, uh, back to work."

"Are you okay?" Kasumi uncloaked herself right behind me.

In my anxious state, I nearly jumped several feet. Though, knowing Kasumi, I should've been expecting that. I turned to her with a sigh. "Thanks, Kasumi, good to see you too," I muttered. "But yeah, I'm okay. It was just really crazy out there. We've never been in anything like that before."

"I hear you," she said. "Hey, do me a favor and rest up. You deserve it for whatever's coming up... good job."

I smiled at her. "Thanks. A lot of it was Shepard, though. And Jack; they were the ones who got the IFF core of the Reaper down in the end, especially Shepard, but I'm glad that I was able to help. That may not be the most major mission, but it's a big one out of the way," I told her, starting to move towards the elevator. "I need to go shower and get out of this armor. I'll see you guys later?"

Kasumi nodded and went to sit next to Joker.

I stepped inside the elevator, and immediately headed for Deck Three. I felt like I was going to collapse from exhaustion and the general intensity from this mission, but I could feel slightly relieved now; we had the IFF, and we had Legion. The Normandy could now be complete, but on the other hand, that meant one thing:

The suicide mission was just around the corner.


	44. Sarah

**A/N: All will be explained...**

**(Sarah)**

The last five minutes felt like five months.

I was on my way to gather the cleaning supplies I'd left in the male crew quarters when the elevator door slid open as I walked past, revealing two very weary-looking individuals I could've recognized in any crowd. Shepard smiled tiredly as she stepped off of the elevator.

"Hi, Commander," I greeted, raising my hand in a clumsy gesture that was somewhere between a wave and a salute. "Um, everything is going good here and I've just finished cleaning. How're you doing?" I asked, meeting the eyes of the Commander and HK as they both stepped out of the elevator, asking them both the same question.

HK gave me a smile that looked pretty tired. "I'm fine, just a little worn out," he replied. "How are you?"

"I'm good," I said with a shrug. "Don't even ask me that. I mean... you're the ones who just had to face down all those monsters and get the whatcha-call-it."

"The IFF and the geth," Shepard said, apparently not too put-off by my lack of communication skill. She sighed, pat HK once on the shoulder, and said, "I need a shower. Sarah, can you do me a favor?" She didn't even wait for me to say 'yes' or 'no.' "After you're done with what you need to do down here, can you bring my armor plates up to my room and bring me a spare set of clothes? I think I'll shower down here so I won't be tempted by the bed."

My eyes widened a little with surprise. I figured she would ask HK or someone else to do that, perhaps Kelly. Then again maybe it was just because I was handy at the moment. I was a little amazed she was actually giving me permission to leave this deck in a way, though.

The devilish and rougish part of my mind actually considered, very briefly, the thought of sneaking onto the bridge just for a quick look or to say "howdy" or something while I had the chance. But I quickly smashed the thought. I had done quite enough, and the last thing I wanted to do was damage Shepard's trust any more when she had asked me to do this one simple thing.

"I'll do it right away," I told her with an eager nod.

Shepard nodded and walked past me, heading straight for the showers. "I think I'm going to go get some rest myself; I'll take a shower later," HK said, starting to head in the direction of our room. "I'll see you later, okay?"

I nodded at him. "Yeah, take care of yourself," I told him.

"You, too," HK shot back, before walking off.

I watched both him and Shepard go, then I spun on my heel and went toward the elevator. The armor plates had apparently been stripped off in there; they lay in a half-hazard pile on the floor. I gathered them up as the elevator door shut behind me.

I rode the elevator in silence as it went up toward Shepard's quarters. I couldn't even remember the last time I had been up there. Was it the time when Abby, Kasumi, Kelly and I had helped the Commander put on makeup? Ah... those were fun times.

Lately I had been feeling a lot of regret. I'd done a lot of stupid things... but the only thing that could be done now was to focus on the present.

The elevator stopped and the door opened. I clung to the armor plates a bit awkwardly as I approached her quarters. I pressed them tightly against my chest as I tried to free a hand just enough to open the door.

I managed to press the button, then just as I crossed the threshold I stumbled a little and dropped most of the armor components. They fell and clattered noisily on the floor at my feet.

"Great," I muttered as I stooped down to pick them up. Apparently I couldn't do anything right. Just as I finished picking them up, I straightened and then noticed that the blue, bulbous form of EDI was present, on the console right near the door.

"What?" I said. "Don't you trust me to do this one thing right?" Okay, I hadn't meant to sound THAT testy.

"Sarah, I am not designed to trust; I must simply keep surveillance on everything that happens on board the Normandy, and I just wish to make sure that everything is alright," EDI replied in her usual, cool voice.

Yeah, of course. She was just being a typical computer. "Sorry," I said. "I know you're just doing your job." With that I looked around, trying to figure out where exactly the armor went. Then again... it wasn't like Shepard had ever given me a tour of her quarters.

"Um... EDI?" I said hesitantly.

"There is a console with a holographic design of Shepard's armor; it is where she keeps most of her clothes and can read the facts about her armor. It goes in the compartment underneath the hologram on the far side of the room," EDI explained to me.

"Oh yeah," I said with a nod. "Thanks." I walked over to the area she indicated and stooped down to carefully put the armor away. After that I straightened, and then it was time to ask my second stupid question of the day. "Where does she keep her clothes?" I asked.

"In the set of drawers to the left of where you placed the armor."

"Oh yeah... duh." I refrained from smacking myself on the forehead and quietly approached the drawers. I slowly slid open the bottom drawer, peering inside. In a way it felt like I was trespassing, even though I was performing a favor that Shepard had asked of me. It was just... I didn't like it when people looked in my closet at home, or pawed through my clothes. How could anyone stand it?

However, apparently I had opened the wrong drawer; this one seemed to contain... well, delicates. I was about to close it when my eyes noticed something in particular.

My eyes widened a little. "Oh... my God," I breathed, feeling something that was between horror and amazement. "I didn't know the Commander had it in her... was THAT what she wore on that night when she and Kaiden...?"

I didn't realize until too late that I was actually saying that out loud.

"Sarah, please remember what your exact job is," EDI interrupted; it seemed to be her discreet way of saying 'leave it alone for everyone's sake'.

I slammed the drawer shut. "Sorry," I said, partly to myself and partly to her. I then opened the top drawer, where I saw an official-looking Cerberus outfit. Eh, it would do. If Shepard didn't like it she could change out of it later. I reached in to gently pick up the clothes-

-And that was when SOMETHING appeared. It was right under the clothes I had picked up, and it seemed startled as soon as I disrupted its little hiding spot. I blinked and stared, for a moment wondering if I was seeing what I was really seeing.

"Uh..." I said, backing slowly away from the drawer and holding the clothes awkwardly, "EDI?"

EDI didn't speak for a moment; it was as if she was examining what had appeared before me. "It is a spider; a tarantula, to be exact. A dangerous spider in itself, but it is not giving off normal readings."

"Yeah and it doesn't LOOK normal either," I exclaimed. "Look, I'm just going to take these clothes to Shepard and-"

Suddenly, the spider let out a shrill noise, like a hiss. Before I knew what it was happening it had leaped out of the drawer and onto the front of my shirt. I let out a yelp of alarm and threw Shepard's clothes, swatting and slapping at the strange spider-thing. Somehow it managed to cling to me though, and it scampered up my chest toward my throat.

That's when it bit me. I gasped, feeling it ripping through my skin and flesh as if it was trying to burrow into my throat, and its venom began to sting. I inhaled sharply and realized I was having trouble breathing now.

"Sarah, my database shows that this spider is giving off readings similar to that of a husk," EDI said, before immediately accessing the ship-wide comm. "Alert: There is a problem on Deck One; we need immediate assistance in Commander Shepard's quarters. Emergency assistance required."

It felt like a burning poison was flowing from the wound and into my veins. I gasped, clutching at my throat and trying to breath. I was only vaguely aware of the hot stickiness that covered my hands as I touched the wound on my throat, a wetness that my own blood. I heard a terrible gurgling noise in my throat as I sank to the floor, pressing myself against the wall as I tried to breath.

I continued to fall deeper and deeper into an abyss of pure pain, and the spider-husk, or whatever it was, began to climb off of me and onto the floor. Seconds seemed like eons, but out of the clear blue, the spider thing was suddenly flattened with a large crunch.

Kasumi appeared over me, out of nowhere.

I looked up at her, coughing and trying to breath. It felt like my throat had filled up with... something. And it burned. "K-K-" I tried to say her name but all that came out was a gross gargling noise. I couldn't speak.

Her words seemed to come from the end of a long, long tunnel. "Medical team to Deck One, Sarah's wounded. She was attacked by-"

And then, to the horror of my fast-fading mind, I heard Kasumi scream.

Kasumi shuffled away, backpedaling furiously and swatting at a large, grinding metal shape that was climbing up the side of her leg. The spider landed in front of my face, and I saw the details in full. The legs were crushed on half of it, exposing the sparking wires underneath, and blue veins seemed to be bulging out of its bulbous body. A large, tooth-shaped stinger hung underneath, but then I realized that it wasn't a stinger - it glinted like metal in the harsh light.

I only got to observe this in one second, though, because the spider suddenly darted away with unnatural speed, dragging its crushed legs behind it and scratching the metal flooring.

"_Shit," _I heard Kasumi curse. "EDI! Get me some help!"

I raised my eyes to look at her in the face, but she'd retreated up the small stairs leading to Shepard's office, looking around desperately. I thought, at first, she was looking for the spider, but then she did something that took away those suspicions all together.

She took Shepard's datapad from the desk and held it in front of her in a defensive position, crouched and ready for another attack. There was a grinding of gears, and the black spider-husk appeared again, crawling on the side of the fish tank to jump out at Kasumi. She swatted it away with unparalleled accuracy, but the spider unexpectedly stuck to the other side of the datapad, grabbing on with its hairy feet.

Kasumi dropped it with a loud curse and stepped on it with her boot. Hidden underneath the dropped datapad, the spider-husk caught the brunt of her boot and I could see the crushed metal parts from underneath.

It stopped moving. Kasumi stayed like that for a long second, ready for it to try another trick, and then she stomped on it again for good measure.

Silence.

And then...

"Sarah, stay with me!" Kasumi's boots appeared in front of my face in that next instant, as if she'd teleported there. "EDI - "

I still couldn't speak. I couldn't even breath, and I felt like everything around me was going black, as if I was falling into a deep void of darkness. I felt my fingers twitching and I realized I was trying to move my hand. I feebly reached out... reaching for what? Kasumi's hand, perhaps? Maybe I just... wanted to feel the warmth of a hand, of contact, from a friend, one final time...

Kasumi knelt down, but she didn't seem too intent on grabbing my hand. She placed two gloved fingers against my throat to stop the flow of blood from the wound, using the other hand to tilt my head up and open my eyes more fully. I stared at her, unfocused, and I had the sudden, black dread that something very, very bad was about to happen to me.

I parted my lips, wanting to say something. Anything at all. But what could I say? The blackness seemed to be swelling up all around me, as if the ship-even the entire universe-were fading away from me. No... I was the one fading away.

I desperately tried to make a sound. _KASUMI_ my mind screamed, yet nothing escaped my mouth except for strained breath and a wet, raspy noise. How could I tell her how much I valued her friendship, her forgiveness? How could I tell her to say something to HK and Abby, Shepard, Garrus, and the others... when I couldn't even speak? But I had no idea what I could possibly say anyway, so maybe it was just as well that I couldn't speak.

I tried to look at her. I hoped that maybe, just once, she could somehow read my mind... sense my feelings, my regret, everything. Time slowed down as seconds became like hours, and it was like looking at a slow-motion movie. My heartbeat seemed to thunder in my ears, and even that seemed to slow down.

_Kasumi,_ I thought,_ please... understand._ Could she use those ninja insights of hers to understand everything I couldn't say right now?

Her words, unintelligible, rumbled like the distant thunder of a far-away storm. I could still feel her hands on my body, performing basic first aid, but a strange numbness was spreading throughout my limbs.

I found my lips moving-at least I think they were-and I tried my best to mouth "I'm sorry." After that I was unable to move any part of my body whatsoever anymore; I could barely hold my eyes open.

My eyes then closed... and did not open again.


	45. Picking up the pieces

**Author's Note:**

Yes, the last chapter was a cliffhanger! Why did we write it like that? Because it was an important chapter. 1/3 of Team MilkyWay has now been destroyed by the Reapers' manipulations, and it was felt all around that a shorter chapter would best portray that moment.

This doesn't mean Sarah has stopped writing with us – far from it! She is still co-authoring with us, taking on different characters, but the Sarah in TMW is gone. This next chapter deals with the aftermath of that – the chapters later on will be Legion's loyalty mission, and then the Suicide Mission. And maybe – beyond?

WE'RE ALMOST THERE!

First of all, this cannot have been achieved without each and every single one of you. We have almost TWO HUNDRED reviews. TWO HUNDRED. That's just… wow. We are all so touched and so amazed that what we've written has become something that people look forward to reading. To see others take interest in the characters we create is the deepest compliment, and I'm very serious when I saw how touched we all, personally, are.

Second of all – the five or so month delay between chapter 43 and chapter 44. I realize that this might have been taken as an ominous sign by some, and I completely understand, having watched fics go down the drain after a long period of time with no updates. I won't bore you all with the facts of our different lives, but until last week, when the three of us reconvened again for the first time to write, I had absolutely no time to be on the computer for leisure. This is due to the fact that I've recently acquired a bit of a job, and among other commitments like school, things got a little hectic!

But no, we're NOT done and we're NOT finished with TMW. We were just catching our second wind. :)

So read on! Enjoy! And know that we love every single one of you!

* * *

**(Abby)**

The remains of the spider-husk lay in the center of Mordin's main table, crushed, dismantled, and dead, dead, dead. I'd only taken one look at it before taking a seat in the corner, bowing my head. I could hear Shepard and Mordin discussing the implications in low voices, but I couldn't even bring myself to listen. I'd refused to even look at the body - Kasumi's initial retelling of the attack had been enough. She was in Mordin's lab, too, but unlike before, she now carried her sidearm.

We all were.

HK was in here somewhere. So was Tali, Garrus, Jacob, and Miranda. The room was too small to hold all of the ground crew at the same time, so Shepard had called in only the people who needed to be there. People who would most likely lead their own teams against the Collectors once we reached their base. They were all silent, though, listening as hard as they could to Shepard and Mordin as they hypothesized what, exactly, had happened.

And as for Sarah's body... It was in the Medical Bay, covered under a white sheet on the third bed on the left. Doctor Chakwas was performing the autopsy - I didn't feel as though I needed to be present for that.

_We came through so much..._

_Only to lose her. Just because of a damn wish on a chainmail._

I should have been crying, but crying would be a disservice. I knew I was going to. I knew that the loss would only get deeper, and deeper, and deeper. I knew that, in a way, it was my fault, too.

I was the one carrying Legion into the AI Core, along with Thane. That was the only way the husk could have gotten in, I was sure of it. Joker was running a wash over the recent security videos to see if they were tampered - they probably were - and I knew that it was going to link to me, somehow. I just had this feeling.

I wasn't going to cry in front of anybody. That wasn't how I worked. I just wondered how long I'd be able to bury the grief until I was able to unleash it on somebody - something - a Collector - a husk - a Reaper.

I wanted to run. I wanted to keep running, not away but towards. I wanted to run into this so-called dangerous Reaper, rip his brains out, and then feed it to the Shadow Broker.

I wanted to be doing something - anything - other than sitting on a blasted storage box, wallowing in what I _could have _done.

I glanced around, and HK was standing nearby, with his arms crossed. Much like me, he wasn't crying, and didn't look horribly devastated on the outside; he just looked solemn, and like he was feeling a bunch of chaos on the inside. He glanced back at me, and just gave a very small sigh, before looking back at the others, shifting uncomfortably.

Another few minutes passed, and he finally walked over to where I was sitting, taking a seat beside me. "I can't believe this," he muttered, sounding half-frustrated and half-shocked. "I mean...a spider husk? Who's ever heard of a husk that was a spider? I...I..."

He obviously couldn't find any other words to get out.

His soft words caught the others' attention. The room went suddenly silent, and they all looked over at us, as though we carried the answers. _The key to their salvation_, I thought grimly.

"The Reapers are getting bolder," I muttered, keeping my head bowed, refusing to look them all in the eye. "They're experimenting - or something. The tarantula was probably on the derelict Reaper and hitched a ride with us. The Reapers aren't dumb. As time progresses, they're going to have more and more variations. Things are about to get harder. We already know that they'll be using krogen, salarians... Why can't they use something else? Who says they can't?"

"That's true," HK muttered back; extremely recently, information had come flowing into our minds about what was in store for the future of the Mass Effect universe. All we could assume was that it was ME3 news, and one news piece was about husks of other species. "It's just so unexpected. How could we miss this?"

I could only shrug. Who knew? I decided to stop talking. I had nothing more to say, anyway.

"We have to be careful," Shepard said quietly, breaking the silence. "I don't know why I never saw it coming before. But we have to adapt."

"I might have solved the mystery of the husk's origins, Commander," EDI said. "Dr. Chandanda apparently brought him aboard the Reaper."

"Why in the world would he do that?" Tali asked curiously.

"The arachnid was the Doctor's pet," EDI said. "From what Joker and I have uncovered, the husk stowed away within the hole of our new geth acquisition. It then proceeded to the men's bathrooms, unseen, and used the ventilation tubes to crawl into Shepard's cabin, where it most likely was going to kill her."

The implications of what EDI said hung in the air.

If Sarah hadn't gone up there, she'd still be alive, but the Commander may have been dead. As soon as she went to sleep, as soon as she let her guard down, the husk could have pounced then and there.

"Hold up," said Jacob. "How the hell could the Collectors have known enough about tarantulas to create a husk out of one? Isn't that why they collect other sentient beings - humans, krogan, quarians?"

"Dr. Chandanda was quite possibly running experiments on the tarantula," EDI informed. "He's published his works in notable scientific communities within the Alliance and Cerberus."

"Curious," Mordin said. "With such knowledge, Reaper could have easily ripped it from his mind when he was indoctrinated. With such intricate details, quite logical that the Reaper would have been able to make the needed adjustments." I saw him prod the mass on the table with a pair of metal tweezers I'd used for squid and starfish dissections back in school.

"So now we have to worry about human spiders, too," Garrus muttered in disgust. "Wonderful."

"Brings a whole new spin on arachnophobia," Kasumi whispered with a shake of her head. "Commander - can I leave now? I don't like looking at that thing."

Shepard nodded. "Take a break, Kasumi," she said quietly. "It'll be okay."

"Yeah. Sure." Kasumi left, then, disappearing through the doorway that would take her on to the bridge.

Shepard sighed and I felt her turn her gaze on the two of us. "You both should go take a breather," she said.

I thought about that for a moment. Did I want to be alone? Did I want company? What, really, did I want at this exact moment?

I got up and left without a word, following Kasumi's path. I waited patiently for the elevator, ignoring Kelly's 'come-talk-to-me-I'm-a-shrink' look, and then I stepped on. I got off at Deck Four and took an immediate right, walking into Zaeed's room without knocking.

He wasn't in there, so I took a seat next to the garbage disposal - where I should be put in, I thought darkly - and brought my knees up to my forehead. He walked in not a long while after, and part of me suspected that EDI had called him down. I heard him sigh. The door closed behind him, and his heavy footsteps echoed in the confined space. He stopped in front of a table and I heard the unbuckling of a couple of straps that obviously belonged to his armor.

He sat down next to me, dressed in normal, every-day clothes, and he put an arm around my shoulders in a very uncharacteristic manner. I burrowed myself deeper into the hug, grateful that I was touching human flesh and not the cold, emotionless armor everybody wore too much. "It'll be okay, kid," he said, squeezing me close. "It's going to be alright."

I sincerely doubted that, but I appreciated the gesture all the same. I closed my eyes and gave myself over to the hug.

* * *

**(HK)**

The news of Sarah's death was still very raw and new; we were all still looking into this strange spider-husk, and things were still very depressing. I didn't know how to act; I wasn't in tears, but in a way I wanted to be. Sarah was truly one of my closest friends, and in this world, one of only two people that knew me really well.

We had been in a thousand near-death experiences throughout this adventure; Sarah had, too. And out of the blue, some spider that was indoctrinated by the Reapers is the one to kill her. We didn't see anything about that in our 'visions'; it was so sudden.

Yet it was real. Sarah was dead.

Sarah was _dead_.

I had to get away from everyone else for now as they continued to reel from all of this; I just needed a brief break. Walking out of the men's bathroom in Deck Three, I wasn't watching where I was going and bumped right into someone.

"I'm sorry," I muttered, before looking up and seeing that the one before me, who was going into the bathroom, was Jack.

She looked at me. Her face contorted with annoyance, and for a moment I thought she was going to snap at me to get out of the way. However, she closed her mouth when she realized it was me. "Oh, hey," she said. She glanced at a couple of pieces of paper in her hand, then she handed one of them to me. "Kasumi asked me to give you this if I saw you," she said simply.

"Oh, really?" I asked, slightly interested as I took it. "Know anything about it?"

"Yeah, I got one too," Jack replied, her eyes looking at the piece of paper she kept in her hand indicatively. "It's from your friend. Looks like she took the time to make her peace with God and men, as somebody said." Her face actually softened a little as she said, "I'm sure it'll mean something to you, though."

From Sarah?

I was slightly taken a-back; as far as I knew, this death was unexpected. Sarah hadn't planned to go up there and get bitten by a tarantula. It was all so sudden, so why would she be writing letters to us i-

Then it hit me; the Collector attack was, and still is, coming up. Sarah was so fearful of that, but if she had come to accept her fate...well, now, that didn't sound like a good way to put it. But if she knew what would happen, then it wouldn't surprise me if she wrote goodbye letters to everyone.

I wasn't sure if I could handle this right now.

Then again, it was now or never. And I was...interested to see what she had to say. I began to open the letter, even with Jack standing right there, and began to read it.

I read the letter, and as I read Sarah talk about how much she cared for me and Abby, I couldn't help but feel tears finally creep into my eyes. I hadn't known her face-to-face until this fiasco, but it was still so hard. She had written a very long-winded letter telling us goodbye, and now that it was a permanent goodbye, it was even harder.

Finally taking the letter away from my eyes after finishing, I looked at Jack. "I know you probably think I'm a wuss for getting emotional," I said to her. "But this death... the loss of this friendship, there really aren't any words."

Jack opened her mouth, then closed it. "Come here," she said, grabbing me by the elbow and escorting me into the bathroom. Her touch wasn't rough, but it wasn't gentle either. After she made certain the door was closed, she turned to face me. "Hey... I just want to talk I guess," she told me with a little shrug.

I nodded, not sure what to think of this, but I'd go along. Maybe I needed it. "Alright then," I responded simply.

Her fingers curled around the note in her hand, crumpling it a little. I had no idea what it said, but I had to assume that it was her letter from Sarah. "Your friend said something that got me to thinking," she finally said. "No," she then corrected herself, "actually, I've been thinking about it. It just made me want to say something, or whatever." Then she shifted her weight on her feet, and seemed unsure how to continue talking.

I raised an eyebrow. "Well," I said, trying to put on a strong and positive tone, no matter how hard it was at the moment. "You can just say it, if you'd like."

She stuffed her note into something that might have been a pocket on her pants-or at least, it substituted as a pocket. "So... you really never... did anything with her, or Abby?" she asked. She seemed to be phrasing the question carefully, as if trying to use tact for once. Go figure.

I blinked slightly, and narrowed my eyes, before easing up slightly, trying not to offend her. "No, not at all. Very far from that," I assured her.

"Somehow, I believe you," she said thoughtfully. "Like I said before, I've never met a guy quite like you before. Sarah actually left me some... advice." Her eyes darted toward the pocket that the letter was in before locking onto me again. "Makes me think that maybe there was a dirty mind locked inside that air-head of hers." I couldn't tell if she was trying to make a joke or not.

Whether she was or not, it was true. "There was," I said; if the situation was not so fresh and grim, I would have laughed. I was curious as to what advice Sarah could have left Jack though; she and Jack didn't interact much. What did Sarah have to say to her? "What kind of advice?"

Jack hesitated, and then shrugged. She matter-of-factly took the piece of paper out of her pocket and handed it to me.

It was a letter from Sarah, to Jack.

Again, I wanted to laugh, but couldn't. "'_Be gentle_'," I repeated, almost wanting to shake my head. But she was right. "Yes, gentle is always best with me. That's... very nice of her. Not what I expected, but I'm glad she did that. Stuff like this really... bore on Sarah's mind a lot - the possibility of dying."

"And here I thought that all she did was act fucking stupid and drool over her turian," Jack stated. "But... I don't know. I know this affects you, and... it isn't going to be the same around here without her. Ah, goddamn it," she sputtered, "I'm no good at this feely stuff and it makes me ill. But... well, you know." She looked away, folded her arms and leaned against the wall beside the door. I appreciated what she was trying to say, though it was obviously making her uncomfortable to say it.

"I understand, definitely; thank you. I know it's hard for you to talk like that," I acknowledged out loud with a nod of gratitude. I was still filled with a lot of grief and sadness. "You know, it's just...I don't know. That friendship...there are very few that match up; Abby is one of the extreme few. Sarah and I talked over a computer for a long time, but we were there for each other; we had fun. We talked each other through the bad times for years. And now she's dead."

"People die all the time," Jack told me. "It's always different though, when you lose someone who happened to mean something to you. That's why it's never a good idea to let anyone get too close, or to make yourself vulnerable around anyone. If by some chance they don't end up using you, you end up losing them in some way."

I tilted my head slightly. "Maybe," I admitted. "But I think there's more to life than that; we need to trust. I don't regret trusting and letting Sarah in, because she needed it, I needed it. Even though she's gone now, I don't regret our friendship."

I looked at the floor, moving slightly. "It's just sad; she didn't deserve that. She didn't deserve that sort of ending, and yet she got it; now she's gone and we're left in mourning. Her family and other friends will never know that she's dead, either."

Jack shook her head. "I always figured that every time someone died and it wasn't me, my chances of survival went up," she said slowly. "I have to say though... that was a bad way for her to go. She was an insane bitch sometimes, but that shouldn't have happened to her."

She sighed, then began to pace the limited space in the bathroom with mild agitation. "I keep thinking about something... more thoughts are crawling around in my head like little bugs. I..." She stopped and turned to face me. "If it could happen to her, it could happen to anyone... even you," she finally said. "I've seen people die before, and I always figured that this whole crew is expendable. We're out to stop the Collectors, right? But..." She made a sound that was something like a sigh, and turned away. "I don't want to see anything happen to you," she finally said. "I don't know why. Maybe I've grown attached to you somehow. But..." Now she turned to look at me again. "I just..." She trailed off.

I managed to forge a light smile at her. "It's okay, Jack; I don't want anyone to die, including you. I know we've had our, uhh, spats lately, but I really do like you and care about you. I think I always have," I said to her. "No one here needs to die."

She looked at me for a long moment in silence. Then she slowly moved toward me and placed a hand on my arm. "I... really want to ask something," she told me.

I could feel myself growing tense, but I was trying really hard to stay calm. Well, as calm as I could be right now. "Yes?"

"I know you've said 'no' before," Jack said earnestly. "But... no one knows how much time any of us have left. Would you... be with me, just this one time?" She looked directly into my eyes.

And those eyes of mine went wide; I was just frozen for a moment. Did Jack just ask me to have sex with her? Oh, even after dying, Sarah was still setting off pure madness. Nonetheless, Jack was being serious, and I...knew that she and I had been growing close lately. I wasn't sure what I felt for her; not really. It was so weird right now.

But the fact was that I was 17, one of my best friends had just died, and...I didn't know if I could deal with all of this right now. Usually, a seventeen year old teenage guy would hop at the chance to sleep with someone like Jack, but I wasn't quite one of those guys.

"Jack...I...in a way I'm grateful..." I began, gulping. "And I...don't know how I feel about you; I know we've spent a lot of time together lately, and I may like you, but I...one of my best friends just died. She was just killed, and I feel like it would be wrong of me to just hop in the sack with you right off the bat. And I'm not sure if I'm ready yet; I'm so young, and I just don't know. I need time to get through all of this, and I just...like I said, I don't know if I want that quite yet in my life."

She looked at me for a long moment, then she actually gave a little nod. "I guess I would actually be disappointed if you gave in that easily after all of this," she told me sincerely. "I think... somehow that's part of your... charm. Any other guy who's spent as much time with me as you have would have given in by now."

With that, she suddenly leaned forward and pressed her lips affectionately against mine.

I didn't pull back like I had before, and actually just kind of let it...ride out for a moment. We both stood there, our lips locked, until finally we pulled back; I was a little taken off guard, once again, even if it was Jack. I just stared for a moment, not quite sure how to react to that.

"Um...thank you?" I said with a cough.

"If you ever decide you... want to," she said, "you know where to find me." With that she left the bathroom, letting the door shut behind her.

I just stood there for a moment; I wasn't sure what to think. In a way, I really didn't mind it; I was growing to like Jack quite a bit, and maybe even in that way? It definitely wasn't an, erm, bad kiss, but at the same time, there was just too much to handle right now. The talk with Jack had been nice, but Sarah had just died, and the time was ticking as far as our mission went.

I'd have to handle my romance saga later.

* * *

**(Abby)**

The ship felt really, really empty. Zaeed had dragged me upstairs after about an hour of silence in his rooms, saying I needed to get cleaned up and get myself some food. I'd taken a shower and dressed in some nice, clean clothes, and now I was sitting at one of the tables in the mess hall, scraping my fork around my plate with no real appetite.

It's funny how, when something bothering you, your senses attune to the general area it's located. It felt as though my entire right side was burning, not because it was of course, but because to my right was the medical bay... and in there, I knew, Doctor Chakwas was performing an autopsy. The windows looking into the medical bay were dimmed, and I knew that she would refuse to see anybody until she was either done or they were dying.

Commander Shepard had disappeared in there a while ago, though. I had a strange vision of her as the legendary Gibbs from NCIS, consulting Ducky on the death of a comrade. I didn't know whether I was amused by that comparison or not, though, so I kept it to myself and tried to remember that Shepard's first name was _Amelia_ and not _Leroy_.

Zaeed sat next to me, eating in silence, and over time Thane came and sat at the table beside us, his back to the wall as always. I suppose I couldn't really blame him. For all of the leaps and bounds he made socially, he was still a survivor at heart, and the recent attack - I forced myself to think of it - must have put him on edge.

"Will there be more of them?" Thane asked after a long period of silence, his throaty voice seeming like a whisper in the air.

"Yes." I couldn't eat any more. I felt sick. "Krogan. Salarian. Asari. Variants. Even rachni."

"Are we prepared?"

"I don't know what happens after - " I forced myself to stop, and to think. I did know what happened after the suicide mission, at least a little bit. The Shadow Broker, Arrival... and Overlord, if Shepard put it off until then. "Well, I know a bit." And then I knew that Shepard was also going to head to Earth and stand trial after she helped out Admiral Hackett. I could only hope that, somehow, I figured out very quickly what would happen in Mass Effect 3 so that I could guide them through the scenarios.

If I never left this strange, parallel universe, that was.

I realized I never answered his question, though. "No, we're not prepared," I muttered.

Thane nodded to himself. Zaeed, tactfully, kept quiet, though I felt that he wanted to complain about my lack of knowledge or press for more details. I was kind of glad he didn't.

Just the thought of everything, though... It made me feel really, really sick. I hadn't vomited in a very long time, but I knew that if I ate something else it would all come up again soon. I pushed the plate away from me and put my head on the table, weary and exhausted.

"What's next?" I asked, forcing myself to keep my mind on the task at hand. "Has Shepard said, yet?"

"Nothing from her yet," Zaeed said. He pushed his plate away, too.

"She needs to go and talk to Legion, then," I said heavily. "And she'll do that, hopefully. he can't forget we have a geth onboard. And then events will play out..."

I purposefully let my voice falter and drift off. I sighed.

"If the two of you die, we will be put at a serious disadvantage," Thane said, again his words sounding like a whisper.

Didn't I know it? I knew I was mortal. After Nyxeris, how could I ever believe otherwise? We could be hurt. We could be maimed - emotionally and physically. And now, I knew, we could be killed.

What was it like to die? Were you snuffed out like a candle? How could you _not _exist?

There had to be some form of consciousness after death. I couldn't imagine it otherwise. Maybe we were reborn, like the Hindu people believed. Maybe we all went to Nirvana, or Heaven, or wherever what higher being we looked up to sent us.

I didn't exactly know how that worked in this place, though.

I wondered where Sarah went.

I understood what Thane was saying though. He might have not said it aloud, but I knew that he was asking me, silently, if HK and I would die, too.

And now, I'd just thought of something else, too - Shepard wouldn't let us put ourselves at risk any more. No.. she was going to keep HK and I cloistered. We were too valuable for her to lose. Sarah had always been a backup, in case we were out of commission (like what had happened on Illium) but now that she was gone . . .

I had to detach myself from the situation. Think tactically. I couldn't afford to break down yet.

Since Sarah was dead, that only showed the others how vulnerable HK and I really were. They were going to take more precautions. They were going to treat us less like the soldiers we'd earned the right to be, and more like the valuable officer they were escorting from point A to B.

Well, I wasn't going to let that happen.

HK, Sarah, and I had been writing up everything that would happen in the future and saved it to a disk. HK and I would have to write about Arrival later, because I felt as though that had happened recently and we hadn't had enough time on the ship to do so... but what if I tried something else?

Wasn't Samara skilled in telepathy?

I didn't know if I liked the idea or not. I didn't know if it would fly with HK at all, either. But maybe Samara could use her asari powers and rip all of the information we had from our minds. That way, she would get room layouts, dialogue choices . . . I just didn't know how far Samara's powers stretched. She was a matriarch, after all, and a skilled one. She'd probably take the information - all of the information, even the stuff we'd kept secret - and she'd know the truth.

I figured I'd hit HK with the idea later, but what we were currently doing seemed to be working out okay. And EDI probably knew where the chip we were storing everything on was. It was hidden quite cleverly inside whatever pair of boots I wasn't currently wearing at the moment. A very good hiding place, I thought sourly.

"I don't plan on being a victim to the Reapers or to my own dumb luck," I muttered angrily, my voice muffled from inside the cocoon of my arms.

They didn't say anything more, and for that I was glad. For a while, the only sound was Thane eating his food in silence, but then the shifts rotated and the crewmembers who'd just gotten off of their rotation were coming for their meal. Lunch, dinner, breakfast, late-night snack - I didn't know. I'd forgotten what time it was. Probably late - very late. I felt like I could sleep for an entire day.

I saw a large krogan walk into the room from the corner of my eye. He noticed us at the table, got his food, and plopped down right across from me. He hit the built-in seat so hard that the entire table shuddered.

I noticed he was carrying an envelope in his hand. "A human cannot crush me," the krogan said in a low, threatening voice. "Remember that."

"Watch it, krogan," Zaeed said.

"What brought that statement to mind?" Thane asked curiously.

Grunt gripped the paper letter in his three-fingered hand, a growing frown on his face. "The dead fortune-teller thought she could crush me. She couldn't. Neither can you," he told me.

I blinked, and then I got angry. I opened my mouth to speak, but Zaeed grabbed the letter out of his hand and opened it up to read. He frowned at the handwriting, trying to make it out, and I leaned over his shoulder.

It was... a letter from Sarah.

And she said she 'had a little crush' on him.

I got up abruptly and left the table, taking my tray of food with me to the counter. Behind me, I could hear Zaeed trying to explain the subtle and complex nuances of love to the young, tank-bred krogan, but I didn't want to hear any of it. The letter had brought back a memory of getting an envelope in the mail, written in the same handwriting, decorated in a multitude of green stickers and paper. I wiped my eyes angrily and waited a long time before going back to the table.

As mad as I was, I didn't want to be alone.

Grunt eyed me suspiciously as I took my seat, and I had a feeling he'd just gotten a lesson that he'd honestly been better off not knowing. He and I locked eyes and he grunted to himself. "Bullshit," I heard him mutter.

"Everybody got a letter," Thane said. "All of the ground crew, at least. Kasumi has been handing them out."

"Haven't opened mine yet," Zaeed said. I didn't remember him getting a letter - I'd basically been with him since that meeting in Mordin's lab - but perhaps Kasumi had handed it to him while I was showering.

My eyes filled with tears again, and I wiped my eyes very conspicuously. I felt Thane looking at me, but I paid no attention. I figured as long as I didn't draw attention to it, nobody would mention it. My face felt like it was on fire.

"You got one." Zaeed didn't make any move to give it to me, though. "The boy has it. HK."

"Why call him HK, by the way?" Thane asked.

He'd asked that question before, and I'd answered it. Drell had photographic memory, better than any other species I knew, and there was no way he could have forgotten. I knew then that he was trying to distract me, again, and I grasped at the subject change desperately.

While we were talking, I heard Grunt say, very pointedly, to Zaeed: "When are we going to take care of the body?"

"Chakwas is taking care of her. She's running tests."

I had a feeling that Grunt's idea of 'taking care of the body' wasn't what a human would mean.

And then, suddenly, I felt as thought Grunt didn't mean that he wanted to eat Sarah. I actually had a thought then, a crazy thought, that maybe he actually meant what any reasonable human would mean.

That... was touching. It was too touching.

I wanted to be alone, now.

I got up abruptly. "'Scuse me," I muttered. I walked out of there pretty quickly and angled for my room. HK was in there, reading a long, long paper letter that looked like it could've been part of the English Final Study Guide. He looked up at me, and I knew then that he and I were sharing the exact same emotions.

I walked over to him and raised both arms halfheartedly, hoping for a hug. I was already crying.

HK looked at me, looking worn and tired, and without a word, stood up and rushed over to me, opening his arms and embracing the hug. I could feel a few tears fall onto my soldier, too, and I knew that we'd both finally released some of our emotion.

"It'll be alright," he whispered.

I began to sob in earnest now, hugging him tightly. "P-promise me you w-won't go," I whispered between gulps of air. "D-don't leave me here. I don't w-want to lose someone else."

"I know you don't; I really don't want to, either," HK told me, squeezing me tightly as well. "I'm...really going to try to stay right here, for both you and me. For all of us. I don't intend to go anywhere any time soon."

I took a deep breath, and then another, trying to control the wobble in my voice. I sniffed. "How are we going to do this without her?" I asked. "Why didn't we see this coming? Why didn't we know that this could _happen_?"

"I...don't know. I have no clue why we..." HK began, but trailed off sniffling. "I never really thought of this happening; we've known Sarah for five years. Five years, even if a lot of it was electronic. I can't imagine life without her, especially now, when we're still so new to all of this."

"It's not_ fair_." I shivered a little bit, but not from the cold. I sniffed again. "So what'd Sarah write you?" I asked.

"It was a very nice letter; it was long, too, if you hadn't noticed. Basically, it talked about how great our friendships were and all that. You can read it if you like," he told me; it sounded like he wasn't in the mood to recap it all. "It's just so strange. It feels unreal; I never really thought she'd die. I never thought any of us would!"

"'parently we're not immortal," I muttered. "If she had to die, why couldn't it be during something we could've foreseen? There were no mutant tarantulas in Mass Effect 2! Probably not even in Mass Effect 3! Where the hell did that come from?"

"That's the most confusing part. Husk tarantulas? It barely even makes sense; it was the last thing I expected," HK said. "Do you...think the Reapers planned it? Did they want that tarantula to get out and kill Shepard or something?"

"Spider-husk was in Shepard's room," I said, detaching from him and sitting on the edge of my bed. "Jumped out at the first person to touch her clothes. Yeah, I'd say it was pretty intent on giving Shepard some hell."

If Sarah hadn't caught the spider, then Shepard probably would've been dead.

"That's just too weird; this didn't happen in our visions," HK remarked. "It's kind of scary. What else could happen without us having any idea? We're nearing the end of this, any way, but we didn't foresee this at all, and unlike our kidnapping, it wasn't anything that we set into motion."

"I carried Legion in with Thane," I whispered. "I think the spider-husk took a ride in. Maybe it's because I wasn't paying enough attention, or..."

"It's not your fault," HK told me reassuringly. "It's just the fact that it exists. It shouldn't, and I don't want to get any more of these surprises. Maybe I've gotten too comfortable with us knowing all, but this one really took us off guard. It got Sarah killed!"

"And it could get the others killed, too," I muttered. "Just because we know what happens plot-wise doesn't mean... doesn't mean we know all of the variables. HK, if it had been you or me up there, we would've been killed, too. The only reason Kasumi was able to take it out is because she saw what it was capable of first. We've been relying on our own foresight too much when we should've been focused on other things, too. This was on the _NORMANDY_, too! What about the Collector Base? Can you imagine what that's going to hold for us?"

"There are husks galore there," HK replied thoughtfully. "I hope we don't see any husk spiders crawling around there...gah, I don't know what we're going to find now. I really, really hope that this spider was our only surprise."

The door slid open, revealing Commander Shepard.

I glared at HK.

Shepard looked a little hesitant, but then I dismissed that idea. She'd dealt with friends mourning over dead friends before. And, just like I knew she would, she took a few confident steps into the room, so sign of hesitance at all in her bearing. "Hey," she said softly, gripping our shoulders. "I need to talk to you two. Then I'll leave you alone."

I nodded, and HK sat next to me on the bed. "Shoot," I muttered, avoiding her eyes.

"I just spoke with Legion." She let that hang in the air for a moment, and then said, "We're going to investigate the geth collective."

I nodded. Not new.

"I want only one of you to come with me this time. In light of recent events, we need to take every precaution we can. And if you don't want to go, you both can join Joker in the cockpit to get us a run-down." Shepard's voice was firm, but not unsympathetic. "There's where we stand."

HK looked at Shepard curiously. "I understand why, I think. So we both can't come any more like we did," he repeated. "Um, how long exactly is this going to be? Just this one time, or is one of us going to be staying in the Normandy at all times?"

"EDI is still installing the IFF as we speak," Shepard said. "After we take care of Legion, I want to make one more supply run before run the Omega 4 Relay. It won't be forever. We do need the both of you - very much. In fact, we've come to depend on you more than we should." Shepard didn't look like she was regretting that fact, but she'd always been a hard person to read. "I'm hesitant to put the both of you in danger at the same time, though. That's why we're going to split you two up for now. And during the Suicide Mission, you just won't have as much front-line duty as you'd been expecting, but that wasn't going to happen anyway."

"Ma'am," I said seriously. "I want to fight."

"I know." Shepard pursed her lips. "Look, I know what you're going through. I can't help you. Sarah will get a fitting funeral, and we're going to blow that base up."

That made me feel moderately better.

"HK," Shepard said, turning away from me. "I want you to come with us this time."

"Oh really?" HK said, slightly surprised. "Thank you, but why me?"

"Flipped a coin," Shepard said wryly.

HK and I exchanged a look. We'd done that plenty of times before for RPGs and stories. From the gender of a born baby to which hottie a character hooked up with, flipped coins seemed to rule our fictional lives.

"That's fine with me, Commander," HK said with a respectful nod. "When will we get to the geth space station?"

"One day," Shepard said grimly. "But after this, we need to prepare for our final mission. Other colonies have gone missing."

"Does the Illusive Man know about Sarah?" I asked.

"Yes," Shepard said with a nod. "Miranda had to inform him."

I looked away.

"I'll leave you two alone," Shepard said, withdrawing. "HK - be ready. If you don't want to go, now's your chance to say so."

He shook his head. "No, I want to go; it'll probably help me forge on and get my mind off of this. I'll try to be ready as best as I can," he assured her. "Thanks."

Shepard nodded and left, leaving the two of us alone.

"I want to go kill some geth," I muttered peevishly, laying down on the bed with a heavy sigh.

HK just gave me a look, and it looked like he was seriously contemplating something. "We have a big problem, though; much bigger than killing geth," he remarked. He looked around, and then when he spoke again, he lowered his tone of voice. "You and I know that this is not the only time that the ground crew will be leaving the ship before the suicide mission."

A dark, dark dread stole over me. "Oh... yeah."

Shoot.

"If Shepard has one of us go and one of us stay here, then one of us is going to be in the position that Sarah was going to be in," HK whispered; he obviously didn't want EDI to hear. "We can't really tell Shepard about the attack...not really. But I'm not sure that we can convince her to take both of us after her most recent decision; she's going to be much more guarded now that Sarah's been killed, and you know how hard it is to change her mind about anything. If we can't do either of those things, though...then one of us will be captured."

"Then we can't let that happen," I said seriously. "Somehow we both need to be on that shuttle."

"She will be taking the entire ground crew down there, which is different than usual anyway," HK said thoughtfully. "At the same time, I don't know. She's really going to want to play it safe...I want to convince her otherwise, but I dunno. Would she be comfortable leaving one of us in a shuttle on a planet while she and the other one of us go out to deal with...well, whatever?"

I pursed my lips. "I don't know... I really, really don't know," I said, shaking my head. "I guess... we'll have to play it by ear. We'll have to go careful, and... I don't know. We'll figure something out. We always do, right?" I grimaced.

HK didn't answer. "Right," I whispered.


	46. The Geth Infiltrator

**(HK)**

About a day had passed since Sarah's sudden death, and we were fixing to enter the Sea of Storms, where the geth space station was. It felt as if we were zooming through things, and rightfully so; time was ticking. Maybe, though, everything was just going by faster now than before. The news of Sarah's untimely demise was still very raw, and it still felt so weird.

I'd dealt with a few losses before, and they all were shocking, as far as I could remember; they all hit me hard in their own way, but I don't think that any had come as close as this one had. Sarah was one of my closest friends, and one of the few that we had in the Mass Effect universe. It was still so unreal.

However, I felt the emotions starting to subside; was I still upset over her death? Of course, and I wasn't sure when I'd stop being upset over it. But after the first day, things were always better. Sleep helped, and I felt a little more like I was nearing normal again, instead of just being shocked and devastated. It was always like that.

Something else that helped was a major feeling of "forge on." I found it funny how when you were really forced to march on and face things, you could really put whatever tragedy aside, as much as it hurt, in order to get things done. That was what we had to do here, and I wasn't surprised. This was the Normandy, and everyone had a huge sensation of "keep going and defeat the Collectors."

This was a military ship, so everyone knew that we still had a job, and they weren't quite like the people that you'd see on a drama series, where someone's death would cause everyone to have a mental breakdown. In a way, I had felt like doing just that, but all of this was helping. Instead, though, we were all going on about our daily duties. Were any of us over her death? No, not by a long shot, but we had to keep going.

A prime example of this was Commander Shepard herself; I could tell that Sarah's death affected her in her own, Shepard-like way. As many times as Sarah and Shepard were at odds, Shepard did care about her, and Sarah was a member of her crew and had died. Shepard wasn't stone cold over it; she was very understanding, as well. Yet at the same time, she still didn't let too much emotion show, and was heading onward to what needed to be done. Shepard had dealt with loss many times before; Ashley's death came to mind. She knew how to get through this, and focus on the mission.

And that was just what we were doing, even right now. Abby and I both were walking into Shepard's quarters, where she wanted to have one of our typical briefings; we'd give her a rundown of the mission before we left.

"Hello, Commander," I greeted, as she came into sight once we were inside her private chambers.

"And hi, Legion," Abby said, having peered further ahead into the room. Next to Shepard's terminal, Legion stood deathly still as only a machine could.

"Let's take a seat." Shepard led us to the lounge area and the two of us sat down beside each other. Shepard, as usual, sat across from us. Legion's metal footsteps followed, but he did not sit, instead preferring to stand at the base of the three stairs leading up to Shepard's office. "Don't worry - I made sure there weren't any more spider-husks," she assured us, sensing our concern.

"Thank you," I replied, taking a glance around the room. The idea of a spider-husk even existing, let alone being in Shepard's quarters, was still such a strange one. I looked back at her, with a quick look to Legion. "So, um, where would you guys like us to start?"

Shepard motioned to us, looking at Legion. "Legion, this is Abby and HK. Abby, HK - Legion knows of you."

"Affirmative," Legion stated.

We exchanged a surprised look. "How?" Abby asked.

"We decrypted the transmissions between Shepard-Commander and Liara T'Soni, a former crewmember of the Normandy SR1. We travelled to Helym and discovered the old base and the files within. We were interested."

"So... you believe us?" Abby asked.

"We find a concurrence between what you have related to the Commander and the success of missions undertaken," Legion said. "Shepard-Commander also believes you. There will be mutual gain for both parties involved."

I nodded at him, or it. "It's very nice to meet you, Legion; in our visions, we always liked you. You're definitely an asset to have on our side," I commented, even though it would mean virtually nothing for the geth. "And I'm glad that you believe us; sometimes, there are surprises, but a lot of the time we can give you guys some info, at least."

"Acknowledged. We anticipate the exchange of data."

"Which brings us to the reason you're here," Shepard said, leaning forward, elbows on her knees. "Same standby. What do you expect to see once we're on the vessel?"

"A lot of it isn't anything that either of you haven't seen before. You're going to be fighting heretics, which you're used to," I said to Shepard; she had a lot of practice when trying to bring down Saren. "As far as the battlefield goes, it's only a little different; there are going to be these areas where the geth aren't really active unless they see you, and if they do, this alarm goes off. You have to take out the hub."

I paused for a moment, recollecting my thoughts on that mission; it had been a while. "There are going to be automated turrets around, so you should really make use of them; they're a big help, and they'll come into play later."

"Yeah, Legion can hack into them remotely, but only for a short while," Abby said with a nod. "Also, the inside of the station will be low-pressure and no oxygen, so you'll be wearing masks. And the geth have these... security strips, I guess you'd call it. They're inlaid in the floor and set off alarms if you step on to them. The alarms are restricted only to the room you're in, however. The geth will wake up from their hibernation mode and attack you. You'll have to kill all of the geth anyway in other to make it to the next room, but if you want to get the jump on them, move into a good position before firing on them. I also believe that Legion will find evidence that the heretics have copies of their patrol routes in their data hub. They have runtimes within the geth network."

Legion's face seemed to 'twitch' in surprise. "That is unsettling."

"You should wait until you see it yourself, though," Abby said. "I'm only tossing that out there so you have more proof that we're who we say we are. Otherwise, I'd keep it quiet."

I nodded. "Definitely," I agreed. There wasn't much else, except the big decision at the end; I debated on whether to tell both Shepard and Legion this or not. It was so big, it felt like it was one of those things that we should wait on, but at the same time, Shepard needed to really think about what she wanted to do. And Legion would figure it out quick, anyway.

"There is one last thing," I began, glancing at Abby, before looking back at Shepard. "This mission isn't going to be as simple as it seems. Legion, you're going to find out that instead of destroying the heretics, you could also re-program them; basically, they will be back on your side. There's going to be a control panel where you can choose to just destroy the station, or change the heretics."

I paused, taking a breath and letting this soak in for both Shepard and Legion. I continued to look at the friendly geth. "You're going to be conflicted on this; some of your platforms, or whatever they're called, will favor re-programming, and others will favor destruction. There will barely be a majority; it's going to be split half and half, for the most part. You won't be able to decide."

Then, I looked back at the Commander. "Therefore, the decision is going to be left up to you."

Shepard blinked. "You're saying that I can either destroy the entire heretic race, or reprogram them?"

"Pretty much," Abby said with a nod.

"I don't know what's worse. I don't like either idea."

"Unfortunately, both ideas are the only options," Abby said. "There's no way you can let them go on their way, siding with the Reapers. Yes, it's... morally ambiguous. I tend to think that it's for the greater good, though."

"We will... build consensus on the matter," Legion said.

Shepard seemed to be staring us down, but her eyes weren't focused on us - she was looking far, far away. "I'd only be enslaving them," she mused.

"Do what you think is right, Commander," Abby said. "That's really the best advice we can give you. Make sure to take this downtime to look at every possible angle."

"We don't know how either will change things in the future; our visions never went that far, or they haven't yet," I explained to Shepard. "So either one will complete your mission, and it will help you, Legion. But like Abby said, Commander, do what you think and feel is right."

I stopped talking for a moment, thinking I was finished, before one last, important detail came to mind. "Oh, and whatever you do, there will be a lot of fighting; the heretics are going to try to stop us with all that they can, so we'll need to make use of those turrets I mentioned and fight them off while the console does it's thing. And, no matter what you choose, we'll have to escape fast; if we choose to re-program the heretics, then there's going to be some huge wave sent out that could kill us all. If we choose to destroy the station, then...well, you get the picture."

"Boom goes the dynamite," Abby muttered.

"Acknowledged," Legion said. "We will take what you said into careful consideration. Shepard-Commander, we think that we should broach the topic of our fifth companion."

Shepard did some quick finger-counting. "I think you mean our fourth. Abby isn't making the trip. We're taking more precautions now than we have in the past."

Legion's pause was a little longer than usual, but, in a very human way, he bobbed his head up and down once in a curt nod. "Understood. Then we must discuss our fourth companion."

"It's an infiltration mission," Shepard said. "We need to get in and get out fast, but we need to account for the geth along the way. We need a fighter, but somebody who can be discreet enough to let us slip by their sensors."

I began to think, trying to remember who was stealthy. "There's Thane; he's a trained assassin, so he's an expert at that," I chimed in. "Then there's Kasumi, an expert thief; she's really good, too. Mordin might be good at it, as well."

"Overall, a good balance of people," Shepard mused. "Legion, how do you prefer to fight?"

"This unit employs a sniper rifle to great effectiveness in medium to long-range distances," Legion buzzed. "This unit has a 99.98 percent accuracy in a variety of battle situations. It also employs hacking techniques against mechanical enemies and employs a drone."

Shepard nodded. "Very good. You'll be in the rear, then. We won't need Mordin for this. Thane would be an overabundance of long-range. Kasumi is a better option for this mission. I'll let her know she's coming with us."

I nodded. "Sounds good to me," I agreed. "I can't think of anything else that we need to tell you. Abby?"

"Just a question," she said. "Commander... are we going to Aite for Project Overlord, or are we waiting until after we finish up the Suicide Mission? I just want to know."

"We're waiting," Shepard said. "Either we wait, or the Illusive Man sends somebody else. At this point, we can't afford to think about it."

She nodded. "Gotcha. Other than that, then, I guess I'll hang in the cockpit... keep an eye on comms." The tone of her voice didn't say that she was happy about it, though.

I briefly shot a regretful look at Abby, sorry that she had to stay behind, but I supposed that I could understand Shepard's reasoning. "I'll be ready when we get there," I assured Shepard. "How long?"

"An hour," Shepard said, rising. "I'll let you go to get ready." That signaled a universal end to the conversation. "I'll meet you three in the cockpit. Legion, HK - be ready. EDI, signal Kasumi."

"Yes, Shepard," EDI said.

A little less than an hour later, I had suited up and was ready to go; in addition to my usual armor, I had my helmet on for when we roamed the halls of Heretic Station. I walked towards the cockpit, with Abby behind me, and saw that Legion and Shepard were already up there.

I was ready to do this loyalty mission, so that everyone would trust Shepard in their own little way, and we could move on. It also meant moving on to the crew, and possibly one of us, being captured, though, but we'd deal with that when the time came.

It would also be good just to get out and do something, no matter what; it got my mind off of Sarah's death.

I looked back at Abby as we entered the cockpit. "So, you'll be okay up here while we're gone?" I asked.

She rolled her eyes. She was obviously trying to make light of what was going on, but I'd known her for a long time. This hurt. "Relax," she said. "I doubt I can get in trouble up here."

Shepard, who seemed to have been listening to us, chuckled.

"Here comes Kasumi," Abby said bracingly, gesturing with her chin. Kasumi had just come up the elevator and was making her way towards us.

"Hey." Kasumi was checking her omni-tool, making sure that things were still working. "Legion, can you do me a favor?"

Legion, armored to the teeth with weapons Jacob had loaned it, looked at her. "Specify your query."

"Tell me if you can still detect me after I do this." She typed in a command and disappeared in a faint shimmer of light.

Legion cocked its head quizzically and looked around. "This unit cannot detect you."

"Good!" Kasumi uncloaked, now next to Shepard, who jumped. "Just making sure."

Shepard sighed.

I actually managed to laugh slightly. "It'll come in handy when sneaking around the space station," I said, glancing at Kasumi. "Believe me, you'll need it."

"Speaking of being undetected," Joker chimed in, glancing back at Legion. "You know it's just our heat emissions that are hidden, right? They can look out a window and see us coming."

Legion turned its attention to Joker, moving closer into the cockpit. "Windows are structural weaknesses; geth do not use them. Approach the hull at these coordinates," it instructed, turning around and entering the mentioned coordinates into a console.

After a few seconds, it spoke again. "Access achieved. We may proceed."

Joker, meanwhile, mocked Legion with his little robot move, waving his arms around like one of those cliché robots in a movie. I resisted the urge to snort, and Shepard gave him a stern look and shook her head. Silently, Joker got back to the task at hand.

Abby giggled.

"Let's head in," Shepard said, moving us towards the airlock. "Keep an ear open, Joker."

As she disappeared into the airlock with Legion, I noticed Abby's shoulders slump a little bit. She gestured to the door. "Get in there, get out fast," she instructed me.

"I'll try," I whispered, direly hoping that I could. It was even more important now.

It didn't take long to get inside the station; we managed to force our way through the airlock at the other end undetected, and we all quickly landed safely on the ground inside the station. The four of us stood there for a second or two, while Legion seemed to examine the place.

"Foreteller-HK and Foreteller-Abby were correct," Legion confirmed, turning back to us. He focused on Shepard. "Alarms are present, but sensors have been reduced. We have infiltrated their wireless network and filled the data storage with random bits."

"And that helps us how?" Shepard inquired.

"The heretics must scrub this 'junk' data. They have partitioned themselves into local networks, working in parallel. As the Foretellers stated, a station-wide alert will only be triggered by accessing the main core. We have also confirmed the second option previously discussed; we were not aware that the virus was complete. Our arrival was timely. We have not yet reached consensus on this new data."

Shepard simply nodded; thanks to all the information that Abby and I had revealed, this would probably be a much shorter conversation. "We've got a job to do," she said, moving past all of us. "Let's do it."

"Shepard-Commander," Legion spoke up, causing everyone to turn in its direction, "we have considered the option suggested to us by Foreteller-HK and Foreteller Abby; we are unable to discern if it is a better decision to destroy this station or reprogram the Heretics to accept our truth."

So Legion was definitely considering both options now. I couldn't help but wonder which option Shepard would choose.

"Either way the Heretics are wiped out... either killed or remade, what's the difference?" Kasumi asked, her voice sounding slightly "tinted" through her air mask.

Somehow Shepard's frown could be heard through her tone as she replied, "I wouldn't

brainwash an organic race. I can't see treating the geth differently."

"The question is irrelevant," Legion said. "If we do not rewrite them, we destroy them. That is why we are here. Do not hesitate now." His lit, single "eye" seemed to bore through Shepard's helmet as it stared into her faceplate. "They will exterminate your species because their 'gods' tell them to. You cannot negotiate with them. They do not share your pity, remorse or fear."

"I agree," Kasumi commented. "Besides, they're only synthetics. Just fancy security mechs." Of course she would see them as nothing more than machines; she was a master at dealing with machines, and she could probably take a geth apart and put it back together, then reprogram it to tap dance and sing the Star-Spangled-Banner.

With all of that said, we all set off; we began to move through the station, and I admired the Quarian's work. I wasn't much of a technician like they were, but when something looked all fancy and nice, I generally tended to stare at it for a minute or two. We headed down a ramp, and walked into the first room that had the alarms and inactive geth.

"Impressive," Kasumi said aloud. Her voice was quiet, but it was amplified within the room and made it sound like she was speaking loudly. "Kind of reminds me of a place Keiji and I broke into many years ago."

Shepard said nothing, taking in the room in a careful, sweeping glance. She was taking in her surroundings.

"Interrupting data streams will alert local networks," Legion commented, basically repeating what we'd already told them, but in a smarter way. "We recommend pre-emptive strikes against hard-link routers."

Shepard led us forward, the four of us very carefully edging through the room without stepping on the green outline that went throughout the room. We made it across the room, and Shepard examined the hub that was standing across from us, with 'sleeping' geth all around it.

Without a word, Shepard unleashed a wave of biotics and it took out the hub and the few geth in one swoop.

"Good job," I remarked under my breath, impressed.

Shepard didn't reply, and we all approached what was left of the hub. She salvaged what she could, before stopping and continuing to look at it.

"Why are all the Heretics attached to these hubs?" the Commander asked as she peered at the damaged technology through her visor. Kasumi peered at it as well and seemed to be scanning something with her omni-tool, but she said nothing.

Legion turned its head toward Shepard and replied, "These are mobile platforms. Hardware. The crew is software," it explained. "They are communing through the station's central computer."

Shepard gave a slight nod, processing this information. "Let's keep moving," she said.

"Yes," Legion agreed, his monotone synthesizer somehow sounding eager.

"Interesting how it's all connected," I commented, though this was common knowledge to me by now, considering that I'd 'seen' this mission a few times. The geth were still very intriguing...robots or whatever they were. Synthetics.

All of us made our way away from the hub and into the next area, which didn't have any alarms and was a much wider space. Shepard picked up the pace as she lead us down the walkway, jogging despite the heavy armor she was wearing. Legion's metallic footfalls could be heard clanking against the floor as he followed her closely, and Kasumi was very light on her feet. She always relied more on stealth than armor, so that was why she could move quickly and easily. And after working out so much with Jacob and having been on so many missions, I was surprised at how much muscle I'd managed to build up. I kept up with Shepard easily as well.

It wasn't long before we saw the turrets just up ahead. Shepard spotted them immediately, tensing and aiming her weapon directly at them in case they were going to fire at us.

"They aren't active; these are some of the ones that we'll be able to use to our advantage," I assured the group. "Like I said, we'll be seeing more of those."

Shepard relaxed her guard slightly. "Correct," Legion said just behind her. "We can assume control of any defensive turret."

"On it," Kasumi said, instantly tapping her expert fingers across her omni-tool. A moment later the nearest turret glowed, and then it became active. "We're good to go," she informed us. "I can even hack into a few more if you'd like."

"Do it," Shepard nodded.

We moved ahead to where another turret was stationed, and Kasumi took control of that one as well. Each time, she took a moment to make certain the "friend or foe" parameters were set, not wanting the turrets to hit us-especially Legion-by mistake. She was probably telling them to avoid his particular energy signature.

Then, as we pressed toward the next corner, several Heretics came into view and began to shoot at us. We all opened fire, and Shepard sent a wave of biotics to knock the closest ones off their feet.

There were a couple of average heretics, as well as one geth Hunter. I focused my energy on that, quickly filling it's armor with bullets; soon, I saw its shields go out, and I proceeded to fire once again. I felt a few bullets hit my armor, forcing me to briefly take cover, but after a couple minutes of going back and forth, the Hunter fell.

The battle seemed to be over almost as quickly as it had begun, but there were more Heretics just up ahead. Shepard and Legion released a spray of bullets that took them down easily. Their robotic bodies sparked as they fell to the floor in a heap of metal and wires. The stench of fried circuitry filled the air, though thankfully our air masks kept the worst of it from reaching our noses.

Shepard cautiously lead the way to the next area and we immediately noticed the green lines on the floor. "Looks like there's more of them," Kasumi stated unnecessarily. "Everybody watch your step."

The Commander gestured for us to stay back as she slowly pressed forward, scanning the room with her eyes in an attempt to locate the nearest hub. She quickly spotted it, then loaded up her Cain and then took a couple of shots at it. The mechanism exploded satisfactorily, and all of the geth that had been hooked up to it fell to the floor in heaps of broken, burned and twisted metal.

So another potentially difficult fight had been avoided. Things seemed to be going rather smoothly so far, although I knew there was still plenty of time for something to go wrong.

Shepard took a quick glance around, making certain the coast was clear. She cast me a quick look as if to make absolutely sure. At my nod, she pressed onward as she once again took point.

We found ourselves heading toward another door that would lead to another area. Shepard crept toward it cautiously, glancing over her shoulder toward us briefly as if to make sure we were all still present. Then she activated the mechanism release to open the door.

As we entered the next hallway, we suddenly found ourselves under fire from the Heretics; and this time there was no cover available. Kasumi vanished, and Shepard and Legion opened fire.

I managed to take out the nearest geth with several well-placed shots; all of my time in combat and practicing down in the gym was definitely paying off, more and more. Shepard and Legion each took out another one, and Kasumi appeared out of nowhere right behind a fourth geth. It did not even have time to register the fact that she was there before she delivered a power attack that destroyed it, sending it crashing to the floor in a heap.

"All clear," Kasumi announced after a moment. Shepard didn't seem entirely convinced until she looked around a little herself, then she once again took point and proceeded to lead us down a couple of corridors that went upward, almost like ramps or stairs without the steps. It was obvious that we were headed toward an upper area of the station. I knew that our biggest battle in this station would be coming soon, and I hoped that it would all be over soon.

Once we reached the top of the second corridor, the geth once again opened fire on us. Shepard reacted instinctively, a ball of fiery white-blue energy exploding from the end of her arm and bouncing down the hall, knocking several geth off of their feet. As Legion and I opened fire to take out the fallen Heretics before they could get up, I couldn't help but be a little impressed with Shepard's biotics. I even thought that that could match one of Jack's powerful biotic bursts.

...And why was I thinking about Jack at a time like THIS?

We made short work of the Heretics, and once again Kasumi used her powerful sneak-attack to take out our remaining foes. This time her sneaking around worked so well that she managed to take out not one, but two of the Heretics. Then she quickly rejoined the rest of us, once she was sure the coast was clear.

"Well, that's done. Next?" Kasumi said almost casually.

"Keep your guard up," Shepard told us, even though we were all alert and tense already. She then lead the way to the end of the corridor, to yet another door. We entered into a much larger room this time, and I knew it was a sign that we were gradually reaching the end of this mission. But we still had a long way to go.

"There's more geth up ahead," I announced, remembering this part.

As if on cue, several more Heretics appeared on the far side of the room. This time we had more time to react, however, because it took them a few seconds to get into range to shoot at us. Kasumi immediately went to work, gaining control of a nearby turret through her omni-tool. I ducked for cover and began firing at the nearest geth. I almost thought I heard Legion making some kind of remark about how these were not "real geth", in an effort to correct me, but I ignored it. Legion might be able to multitask to the point where he could have a conversation while fighting, but I certainly couldn't!

The battle was intense, and for a little while it felt as though we were fighting geth after geth as we fought our way through the large room and headed through the corridors. We continued to keep up the pace, continually putting the pressure on the geth Heretics as we forced our way through the station.

* * *

**(Abby)**

_The medical bay stuck out in my mind like a sore thumb. I couldn't just forget about it, or ignore it. It was one of those things that you couldn't un-notice, that you were drawn to by a morbid curiosity that transcended common sense. For the longest time I'd been in conflict about seeing Sarah's body for myself, electing not to on more than one occasion. But I was drawn to it now, and I was... scared, yes, but I had a feeling that something was about to happen - something I didn't want to happen, but would anyway._

_The door to the medical bay was made out of the same material as the rest of them. It was air-tight and code-locked, but, usually, it was wide open. The windows that allowed us to stare into them were tinted today to disguise the form on one of the beds. I noticed something was wrong when the door had to keypad at all - it wasn't red, it wasn't green. It just wasn't there. My hands touched cool metal, and I imagined I could hear scuffling on the other side._

_The door slid open, like I knew it would, and Chakwas looked into my eyes with a calm that didn't fit with the aura of wrong that seemed to permeate the air. What? What did I want?_

_Chakwas walked past me as if in a trance, and I watched her go with horrible sadness. I forced myself to turn towards the medical bay, looking for the telltale lump underneath white sheets on one of the beds. I looked for a long time, blinking and clearing my eyes of fog, but there was no body. None at all._

_I realized that Chakwas seemed more hunched than usual when I'd seen her, and I turned my head slowly, very slowly, to the kitchens. Chakwas had a bundled-up figure slung over her shoulder, and she was talking calmly to Grunt and Rupert. The former seemed to be drooling. The glint of it caught on the light._

_I walked out slowly, feeling as though I was slogging through mud. The air of wrong got thicker and thicker as I approached. Their voices were nothing more than mumbling to my stuffed-up ears. _

What are you doing_? I wanted to ask. _Give her to me_._

_Grunt took Sarah from Chakwas's shoulder and placed the body on a table next to them. I knew then what they were going to do, and I began to cry, but I couldn't move. _Let her go_, I screamed, locked in my mind. _

_Grunt took the sheet off of her, exposing her pale, unmarked face. She looked like she was still alive - just sleeping. I saw her chest rise up and down._

_Grunt took her arm and began to gnaw on the flesh, and Rupert went to a cupboard to grab a plate. Chakwas dragged over some chairs so they could sit. I was able to approach slowly, very slowly, and I watched in horror as Grunt chewed noisily, blood and juices dripping down his scaly chin to drip on to the white sheet. It reminded me of a grisly scene in the Return of the King, where Lord Denethor was eating his meal as his son was wounded in battle. _

_And then the three of them turned to me, an unspoken offer to partake of the flesh. I took a step backward, horrified. _

_Their eyes began to glow._

_A great, evil will suddenly pressed itself upon my mind._

_"_**You exist because we allow it,"**_ they chorused. "_**And you will end..."**

_Sarah's face twisted in a grimace of pain as a shadow of a spider crawled on her chest. It disappeared into her throat, and bright crimson dripped down her pale, dead skin to pool behind her head. I noticed that her eyes were open, staring blankly at the ceiling. _

_Her mouth opened of its own accord, releasing a single sigh of air I could barely hear. _

_"_**Because we demand it**_."_

_And the spider crawled over the top of her tongue, too big for her mouth, and lunged towards me._

"Abby?" A gentle hand was shaking my shoulder. "Abby, wake up!" It was a gentle, soothing voice-a voice that belonged to Samara.

I wrestled with her a little, ducking further into the pillow of my arms, heart beating fast. I realized then that I was dreaming - but it was so _real _- and that I needed to calm down. I took a couple of deep breaths and didn't raise my head. I needed to find a way to control my facial expression. "I'm awake," I grumbled in a muffled voice.

The Justicar's hand moved back, then she leaned over me with a concerned expression on her normally cool features. "You were making strange sounds in your sleep," she told me quietly. "Breathing hard, and saying strange things. Are you all right?"

I sat up, blinking hard in the harsh light. We were in the mess hall. I'd probably fallen asleep at the table. "Just a bad dream," I mumbled. "It was... it was pretty vivid." I wiped leftover tears from my face. "It was scary."

Samara looked at me a moment longer, then gave a little nod. "It is... difficult to lose someone you care about," she finally said. "Would I be correct in assuming that you had a dream about Sarah?"

"And Harbinger," I muttered. "He... spoke to me. And I think that he's the one who influenced the dream."

The words just spilled off of my lips. I didn't even think about it, but I believed it in every fiber of my being.

Harbinger was toying with me.

The elegant asari's eyelids flickered twice. She then slowly sank down into the chair nearest to me, folding her hands in her lap as she looked at me. "Are you saying that this 'Harbinger' can communicate with you?" she asked curiously.

"He's... done it before," I whispered. "Sporadically. Nothing... concrete. This was the most vivid I've ever heard him. Before, when he... spoke to me, he said I couldn't stray from the path I've chosen. It's scary, Samara. I don't like him in my head!"

She was looking at me very intently now, in a way that was almost like a protective, Grandmotherly way. "He is not trying to indoctrinate you, is he?" she asked me, her eyes wide and sincere. Apparently she had done her homework on the Reapers and the Collectors since coming aboard.

I shook my head. "No, of course not," I said. "I still want to kill him - more than ever! If I start to show compassion for him... then we'll know. Then we'll really know, right?"

Samara seemed to consider my words for a moment. "Yes," she finally concurred. "However, it may be possible that Harbinger is attempting to gain knowledge from your mind. The Reapers most likely know all about you by now, and they will want to know what you know about the future." Her blue-toned lips curved downward slightly into a small frown. "We may need to... take action in order to preserve your knowledge." She looked very thoughtful.

"HK, Sarah, and I have already started," I said. "We've copied done everything we know on to a data chit. We've hidden it somewhere. If we die, then... well, I guess Shepard will have it if she looks around hard enough. But I don't think that will be enough."

Samara leaned toward me a little more, as though she didn't want anyone-not even EDI-to hear. "There is another precaution we can make," she told me in a very quiet whisper. Her voice was so low that I almost couldn't hear it. "I have not mentioned this to Shepard, but it could prove necessary if anything happens to you and HK."

I blinked once. "Are you suggesting what I think you are?"

She cocked her head to one side. "What do you think I am suggesting?" she asked, sounding intrigued to hear what I was thinking.

"I was... going to talk to you about maybe trying to preserve the information in a more... lasting way." I didn't like doing this without HK, but maybe this was the best choice. "Y'know." I giggled a little nervously. "Embrace eternity?"

The corners of her mouth lifted into a slight smile. "You truly are a fore-teller," she told me in admiration. "Did you know I was going to suggest this?"

"I was thinking about it yesterday," I admitted. "I truly think it might be one of the only ways to ensure things go off without a hitch. But... you may not like everything that you see. And I don't know how to control what you can and can't see, either. The way our dreams take place... it's like a game. And if I tell you - or show you - then you'll be surprised. But you wouldn't be able to tell anybody."

"I could do this in such a way that even I would not be able to access the information unless something happened to you and HK," Samara informed me. "Asari who have been alive for as long as I have usually master a talent of sub-dividing our brains when we have a desire or need to. I will be able to take the information from your mind, and lock it away into a portion of my mind which will remain locked away and untouchable, unless certain circumstances call for this area to be unlocked. If that happens, the memories will flow freely into my mind. And, in this way," she concluded, "I will not have to deal with your visions, and I will not risk endangering the mission in any way without cause."

I blinked again, surprised. I didn't know this. In fact, the idea appealed to me more and more. "That's - that's incredible," I said. "I really like that idea."

She sat there silently for a moment, appearing to be deep in thought. Even though her face was a blank mask now, I could tell from her eyes that she was having an internal debate with herself, perhaps considering every pro and con about the idea.

"Now may not be the time," she finally said. "Perhaps... we should wait and see. There are still two of you, but if something happens to one or the other..." She trailed off thoughtfully.

"If something happens to me, tell HK I want him to do it," I implored her. "Right now... maybe right now's not the best time. But Samara, I'm just fifteen. HK is just seventeen. We've done a lot, yes, but that doesn't mean that we'll make it to the end. Just listen." I hushed her, realizing she was about to say something. "Please. Regardless, before the Suicide Mission, I'm going to forward all of the info I have to Joker or EDI. But if you're willing... If you're willing, I'd really rather we do it your way."

"Very well," she replied to me. "We will see how things go." She looked at me for a moment longer, then rose from her chair in a smooth, fluid motion. "Take care of yourself," she told me.

I watched her go, and then got up. I didn't want to be on this deck any more.

I took the elevator up to the bridge. I wanted to see how the mission was doing.

* * *

**(HK)**

We'd just finished off another geth hub, and the surrounding geth, without too much difficulty; so far, the mission had gone okay, and I knew that we were nearing the end. The worst part was up ahead, though, so I couldn't relax just yet. Still, the mission hadn't been too bad, and I think that destroying geth helped take my mind off of other things at the moment.

Shepard led the group of four, as usual, into the next hallway once we grabbed any bullets and spare objects that we could that had been lying around the last area. Now, we were at the geth servers, or databases, or whatever they were called.

"What are these?" Kasumi inquired curiously, looking at Legion.

"Processors. Each contains thousands of geth," Legion answered. All of our eyes were fixing on the canister-looking things through the glass window.

"Can they not see us?" she asked.

"They are no more aware of us than you are of cells in your bloodstream," Legion answered, as we all moved closer to the home of these thousands of geth.

"These aren't like the other hubs we've seen here," Shepard said, moving towards the wide view screen. "I can't tell if this is part of the ship's mechanics or something geth interface into."

"This is a database," Legion explained, going into more detail. It was strange to think that there was so much data in these things; they didn't look that big or interesting. "It contains a portion of the heretics accumulated memories."

Legion paused, starting to scan the area separated from us by the window. Its eye gazed to one canister in particular. "Wait," Legion said. Even though it was an emotionless synthetic, it sounded surprised. "We discovered copies of our current patrol routes in this database. This suggests the heretics have runtimes within our networks."

"Are you actually surprised that they'd spy on you?" Shepard asked. "From what I've seen, you two haven't exactly had the same views on how the galaxy is run."

Legion looked at Shepard. "You do not understand. Organics do not know each other's minds; geth do. We are not suspicious. We accept each other," it explained calmly and confidently, if a geth could sound confident. "The heretics desired to leave. We understood their reasons; we allowed it. There was peace between us."

"Peace is a fragile concept at best between two sides whose opinions are so opposite," she replied. "You had to know that they wouldn't keep their end of the deal for long."

"Human history is a litany of bloodshed over different ideals of ruler ship and afterlife," Legion remarked. "Geth have no such history. We shared consensus on such things."

It paused for a second or two again. "How could we have become so different?" Legion wondered out loud. "Why can we no longer understand each other? What did we do wrong?"

"Freedom comes with a price." Shepard looked away, far into the databases, and seemed to be trying to make out where the end of that room was. "Responsibility. They made a bad choice; let them own it. The only thing you can control in this instance is yourself - not them."

"If this is the individuality you value, we question your judgment," Legion said bluntly. "This topic is irrelevant. We must return to the mission."

"Have you come to a consensus about this yet?" she asked.

"We are still trying to build consensus. Some processes judge destruction preferable; others rewrite."

That seemed to be the end of that conversation, and I found myself wondering what Shepard would choose to do; without Mass Effect 3 to go on at the moment, we had no clue what potential effects re-writing or destroying the heretics would have. The decision was a crucial one, though; it pertained to the geth and would no doubt end up playing some kind of role in any future conflict between the quarians and geth.

All of us moved onward, and we entered the next room. It was the room where a much larger battle would take place, and where Shepard would decide how to handle this. I glanced around the room as we very, very slowly crept through it. Things were quiet enough. I was already trying to analyze good places to take cover.

We'd need it.

All of us took a good look at the surrounding area as we approached the computer that overlooked the room below. "Overriding the turrets down there will be important, too," I muttered to Shepard, before both she and Legion began to look at the console.

"Kasumi, HK - watch our backs," Shepard said.

"On it," Kasumi said, moving to the side.

"Have you reached consensus yet?" she asked. "Legion, we don't have much time."

"No, but we still have time; right now, we will upload a copy of our runtime into the core. It will delete all copies of the virus. When complete, it will notify us," Legion explained, while Kasumi and I continued to glance around the room. "The indexing operation will take time. The heretics will respond with force to our upload; we must hold this room. We can override some of the station's internal systems to defend us. Are you ready to begin?"

"Completely," Shepard replied.

Legion began to type furiously on the console, before speaking again. "File transfer begun. Shepard-Commander, where would you like us to activate defenses?"

We all began to lock and load, basically, while Legion said one last thing. "Alert: Heretic runtimes downloading to mobile platforms."

"Okay, here we go," I muttered, crouching down at the edge of the balcony that hung over the room below. Shepard began to direct Legion to override turrets, and geth began to swarm the area at the same time.

I quickly aimed at a couple, and began to fire as fast as I could; Shepard and Kasumi were doing the same. Several geth were down within a few seconds, and some others were shot down by the turret. However, there were still a fair amount that would make it up the stairs.

All of us stood up and began to run back, preparing for their arrival up here. I took cover behind several boxes on the left side of the room, and made sure that I was positioned in such a way that I wouldn't get hit from the other side, either.

The geth were there within seconds, and the firefight began again. Every several seconds, I removed from cover to fire at the geth; it was a process that was working. Just as I began to take out another one, I was hit by an array of bullets, but they weren't really piercing my armor. Thankfully.

Shepard tossed some biotics at them, and I could already hear Kasumi performing her shadow strikes. I continued to fire as best I could at any remaining geth that were trying to get the upper hand on us, and it wasn't long before they all were taken care of.

Round one was over, but this wouldn't be the end.

Shepard glanced over at Legion, then at me. I could read the worry in her eyes, but it was deep, deep down. I had a feeling that she was beginning to formulate her own opinion on the consensus issue, but I had no idea what the outcome would be.

"You were right," she said. "There really wasn't much to tell us about this mission."

"It's all up to you, Commander," I said honestly, on the subject of the decision. "We really don't know much about how it will effect anything, but it's a big one for sure, because it's the geth. I'm sorry that we can't be of much help this time."

"Alert: Heretic runtimes downloading to mobile platforms," Legion announced again, which meant that it was back to the battle.

We all approached the front, again, and took our positions; the geth were flooding in, but it didn't seem like anything that we couldn't handle. Legion hacked a couple more turrets, and gunfire rained down upon the geth, from both the turrets and ourselves.

A fair number of geth were taken down, more than before, but some were still going to make it to us, as expected. Again, we all darted back and fanned out; Kasumi and I were on the left side of the room, and Shepard and Legion were more to the right.

I took my shots at the geth that were heading our way, and managed to take out one; as I was standing, taking the last shot that would take it down, I was suddenly sent flying backwards into a box a few meters away. I slumped to the ground, and felt dazed for a moment; I was aching and felt hurt all around.

Then I realized what happened: A rocket had hit me.

Inwardly shaming myself for not being more watchful, I stood back up, despite any remaining pain; it wasn't too bad, actually, but definitely was something that gave you a nice jolt.

I rushed back to my previous position, and scowling, I turned my attention to the geth that had fired at me. I furiously fired at it, and it wasn't too long before it was down. I felt a weird sense of satisfaction that was probably wrong.

We continued fighting before they all were down. All of us sort of re-grouped again towards the front of the room; it wouldn't be too long now.

"You okay?" Shepard asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine; it hit me pretty hard, but I'm okay. I've been through worse," I replied; I appreciated Shepard's concern. She really did care about her crew, despite how firm she had to be sometimes in order to get all of us through this long mission to stop the Collectors.

"Alert: Heretic runtimes downloading to mobile platforms," Legion repeated. They were getting more persistent, but I figured that we only had a couple more rounds.

Shepard immediately got Legion to hack two more turrets down below, and we all focused our efforts on demolishing as many as we could. Quite a few were destroyed, but like always, some quickly made their way up the stairs. Everything felt like it was moving quicker and quicker.

Once again, we scattered, and Kasumi hacked one of the turrets that was on our side of the room. It knocked out several geth, while we focused on any others. Both rockets and bullets hammered the geth.

Kasumi suddenly vanished, and before long, she appeared beside a geth hunter, and took it down without any difficulty. "Go Kasumi," I remarked. Even after all of this time, the ninja's skill still amazed me with how she was able to do that.

I fired at the few other geth that were still here, and they tried to resist, but it was useless. Shepard and Legion had also cleaned up their side, but before we could even say anything to one another, we heard more coming from down below. Legion hadn't even had time to announce it.

Shepard ordered that Legion hack the last two remaining turrets, and rockets began to pelt the geth. Several fell, but the majority managed to make it to the stairway. We all took our usual positions, and this time, I tossed a few grenades at the geth. The following explosion sent a few to the ground, while we fired at any others with our rifles. The heretics were really fighting to retain control, judging by how adamant they were in this battle; we did have the upper hand, but they were refusing to give up. Bullets and rockets were everywhere. It sounded like the fight at the other end was pretty intense, too.

We continued to fire at the geth for a couple more minutes, but they were getting better at evading Kasumi and I, taking cover themselves. I did manage to take one out, but two still remained.

However, before either of us could make any more moves, a large blast of biotics hit one, and it slammed into the wall, defeated. I glanced back to see Shepard standing behind us, joining our side of the room. When the other geth peeked out, she took it out with one clean shot.

"Good job," I complemented, as the three of us all turned around to see Legion finishing off the last geth. It looked back at all of us, but mainly seemed to be focusing on the console.

"Data mine and analysis complete," Legion said, starting to approach the computer.

Relief washing over me, we did the same.

Now it was time for things to get real interesting; Shepard had to make her decision.

"Shepard-Commander, it is time to choose," Legion told her. Both of them were the ones standing nearest to the console, with Kasumi and I right behind them. "Do we re-write the heretics, or delete them?"

"What about you? What have the geth decided, Legion?" she asked.

"We are conflicted," Legion admitted. "There is no consensus among our higher-order runtimes: 573 favor re-write, and 571 favor destruction. Shepard-Commander, _you_ have fought the heretics. You have perspective we lack. The geth grant their fate to you."

Shepard shook her head, but she didn't disagree. She'd known this was coming. She drummed her fingers on the edge of the computer for a long time, thinking. "There is no right or wrong answer," she said. "Either way, I'm erasing other minds - by brainwashing, or by outright murder."

"Shepard, the Heretics need to be stopped," Kasumi said.

"Agreed. But rewriting them is no better than killing them."

"More troops in the long run, Commander," Kasumi said quietly. "I don't like it either, but we can't pick and choose the option where everybody makes up on their own and gets along with their lives. This is war."

"I realize that," Shepard said. "Legion... what would happen if I rewrote the geth? Would they realize immediately what happen?"

"No. They will agree with our judgments and return; we will integrate their experiences. All will be stronger," Legion answered. "They will have no concept of what has happened. However, there is a non-zero probability of error."

"HK, what will happen if I rewrite the geth?"

Well, just put me right in the spotlight, Shepard.

"Um, well...we actually don't know much about what the consequences of either will be," I said. They needed to know that Abby and I didn't know what this choice would really do, and I heavily doubted that either one of us was going to find out within the next few minutes. "If you rewrite the geth, then as far as I know, the geth will re-join Legion's geth. And we'll have to make a quick escape from the station, but like I told you, we'll have to do that either way."

Shepard had a way of holding herself, including a certain set of her mouth, that told me she wasn't happy. And it was probably with me. "Rewriting the geth is as bad as Reaper indoctrination," she told Legion. "I can't morally allow myself to do that."

Legion glanced at me. "It is interesting to us how you and Foreteller-Abby are able to predict the exact circumstances on missions and the exact choices that Shepard-Commander is forced to make, but are unable to predict the consequences," he said. Geth couldn't feel irritation, but if they could, Legion would probably feel some, just like Shepard.

Legion looked back to the Commander. "Acknowledged," it said, before beginning to work on the console again.

So Shepard had made her decision; we were going to destroy the heretics. In a way, I didn't blame her. I just hoped that it wasn't a decision that would screw us over in the end.

"Collapsing antimatter magnetic bottling mechanisms," Legion said, as the console began to change slightly. That sentence had completely lost me. "Done. Recommend withdrawal to the Normandy."

The entire station shook slightly, and all of us shook with it. The door to the far right opened, and I glanced back at Shepard, Kasumi, and Legion. "We have about three minutes," I told them. "We need to hurry."

"So let's get out," Shepard agreed. "Hurry!"

"Right behind you," Kasumi said fervently.

Without any time to spare, all of us charged forward, rushing into the next corridor. I could feel my nerves tightening, as they always did at this part; now, though, it was reality, which made it even more major. Especially now that we knew even better than before that we could die at any moment.

A couple of geth popped out as we ran, and I wasted no time in unleashing a barrage of firepower at them; the others did the same. At first, I was still running, but their bullets began to penetrate my armor, so I was forced to take cover, as well as the others.

Shepard took out one, while I fired at another. It didn't take long for me to destroy it.

We rounded the corner, and found several more right ahead. Kasumi took out one on her own, and Legion did the same; Shepard tossed a grenade out, which helped nicely.

With one remaining ahead, I just decided to charge; we didn't have time to mess around, and we all knew it. Seriously praying to God Himself that I would make it out of this alive, I ran and fired at the geth, while trying to dodge it's bullets. A few hit my armor, but I was doing surprisingly well for the most part, and the others were right behind me.

Finally, as I neared it, I simply gave it a swift punch in the head, which sent it to the ground. Shepard then took the lead again, and we rounded the next corner to see our final obstacles: Two Geth, and a Geth Prime.

Shepard was done beating around the bush. There was a ripple of the air n front of me, and I had a sense of a great, powerful force moving past me. The air seemed to condense at a certain spot between the two geth, and I felt as though gravity itself was dragging me slowly but surely towards that point.

Shepard had created a Singularity.

The geth, well-versed in biotic attacks, weren't able to drag themselves away fast enough before their shields were drained, but they were able to maneuver their weapons around to fire at Shepard, who just stood there, concentrating hard. The bullets never made it past the Singularity, arcing out of the weapons as soon as they cleared the barrel and disappearing into nothingness.

If we weren't on the verge of this entire place being blown to bits, then I probably would have stared in amazement, but we had to keep going. All of us now focused our efforts on the Geth Prime, I fired as fast as I could at the looming synthetic, and Legion did the same. Kasumi disappeared, and hit it with a Shadow Strike, which took out it's shields.

After several more seconds, Shepard rejoined the battle, firing at it as well; her biotics probably needed a minute or two to recharge. A minute or two that we didn't have, so gunfire would have to do.

We all fired at the Geth Prime as fast and hard as we could, and tried to avoid its own attacks. The bullets constantly pierced it's plating, and every single one of us knew that time was ticking; my chest was in a knot while I was desperately trying to destroy this huge geth.

Several more seconds passed, and at last, it fell. No one had time to celebrate; the four of us turned and scrambled for the ramp ahead. Shepard led all of us, and soon, we were standing in front of the airlock. She quickly opened it, and after the airlock swung open, all of us darted inside the Normandy.

Safe at last.

About an hour passed, and all of us were recovering from the mission; it definitely wasn't the worst. In fact, I thought that I held up rather well; it was just tiring. And more nerve-wracking towards the end. Now, though, Heretic Station was gone. The Normandy had escaped just in time, and we were on our way out of the Sea of Storms.

I was in the mess hall after a shower to freshen up, and Abby, Kasumi, Garrus, Ken, and Gabby were all there. Legion had simply gone back to the AI Core, and I wasn't sure where Shepard was, but I was just glad to be resting.

"Do you think she made the right decision?" I asked Abby curiously. Shepard's decision had still been on my mind somewhat; the game didn't exactly classify it was Paragon, which Amelia Shepard basically was. On the other hand, though, she was sticking to her morals. And Shepard was a good woman, but she wasn't one or the other, either; sometimes she changed things up a bit in reality. "Do you think it was right to destroy the heretics? I really couldn't give her a concrete answer one way or another, and we both know that I still couldn't."

"I always thought that the nicest thing to do would be to rewrite them," Abby said wryly. "But... I can kind of see where she was going with that. It's not what I was expecting, but maybe it's for the best. What do you think?"

I nodded. "That's pretty much how I feel; I was a little surprised, but I see her point. And who knows if they would've turned back or something eventually. I don't think it was a bad decision," I explained. "It's definitely a big one, though. Hopefully Legion is satisfied."

"At least half of them will be perturbed," Abby said with a chuckle.

"Hey, Gabby, why do we call an orange... orange?" Ken was asking, gathering his food from the kitchen counter. Predictably, he had an orange in his hand.

"Because that's the color it is, Kenneth," Gabby said, rolling her eyes.

"Yes, but why don't we call lemons yellows? Or grapes purples?"

"You're _really_ happy about that geth base, aren't you?"

"I think I'll have some purples," Ken said cheerfully, grabbing a few grapes out of a bowl.

A movement out of the corner of my eye caught my attention. Tali, unnoticed to the others except for Abby and I, stalked into the Medical Bay, her sidearm visible on her hip. We both exchanged a meaningful look.

Kasumi, having just taken a shower, dug into her food at the other table with gusto. Garrus hovered above her for a moment, awkward-looking, and then he sat across from her. "So," he said quietly.

"So..."

"Got a letter from Sarah."

"Yeah - I think we all did."

"Apparently she took some pictures of me."

Kasumi cocked her head innocently. "What kind of pictures?" She snorted. "It wasn't a secret that she had a little crush on you, Gar-bear."

Garrus fixed her with a solid look. "That's beside the point."

"Ah-hah."

"I was wondering if you knew anything about those pictures."

Kasumi's smile was a little too easy. "Relax. If she went off on her own to take some pictures, I don't know anything about. I wouldn't worry too much about it, though. She can be a bit weird."

Silence. It stretched across the air, sucking all the mirth out of their conversation. Garrus continued to stare at her, and Kasumi continued to eat. Ken and Gabby were joking on the other side of us, and Rupert was mumbling something about germs and jockstraps back in the kitchen. And then Commander Shepard jogged into the Medical Bay, unnoticed by any of the others.

Finally, Garrus broke it. "If you come anywhere near me with a camera," he said threateningly, "I might actually forget you're on our side."

She saluted playfully. "Yes, sir!"

My eyes were briefly glancing in the direction that Shepard had went, knowing what was so urgent. How would Shepard handle this one? A little more craziness was about to go down. I would normally be tempted to go in and check, but it seemed that we had another small situation on our hands with Garrus. So Sarah had decided to tell him that she had Kasumi snap those...photos of him.

You really didn't want to leave anything unsaid, did you, Sarah?

"Um, Garrus," I said nicely, looking at the likely irritated turian. "What exactly did Sarah tell you?"

"Just some stuff," he said, stabbing a piece of dextro-friendly meat with his fork. He obviously didn't want to talk about it.

"Hey, Abs, are you going to send me in your votes or what?" Ken asked, elbowing Abby.

"Soon, soon," she assured him.

"Here, have a purple," he said cheerfully.

Gabby just shook her head.

"Hey," Ken said suddenly, "this is the end of it, isn't it? Are we going to take the fight to the Collectors now, or what?"

And then everybody was looking at us.

I froze, unsure how to react to that; what made it hard was that a crew member asked me a question. Ken was going to be captured soon, and Gabby along with him, as well as either Abby or myself...possibly. We were still holding out hope that we could avoid that somehow; nonetheless, whether we did or didn't was irrelevant at the moment. Ken was going to get captured, and I couldn't tell him that.

I didn't like lying, either.

"I think Shepard has one more order of business to take care of," I answered, trying to sound honest and not at all nervous.

"I'm tired of all this bloody waiting," Ken said. "I want to finish what I signed up for. It's so close."

"Relax, the Commander knows what she's doing," Gabby said calmingly. "Don't get too excited."

"Maybe you should ask Shepard if she's like an orange or a purple," Abby said slyly.

And then I saw Tali leave the Medical Bay.

It was almost a pity that quarians had helmets, because you could not see any facial expressions; you could barely see their eyes. It was hard to tell whether she was satisfied or angry or what; I had enough faith in Shepard to handle it correctly, but I was still slightly nervous.

My eyes darted to Ken and Gabby. "Quick, one of you get your boss over here," I whispered.

"Who? The Illusive Man?" Gabby asked.

"No, Shepard!" Ken said. "Sheesh. But why? She's not even on this deck."

"I mean Tali!" I snapped, hoping they'd get to her before she got away.

"You think the quarian's our boss?" Ken asked. "She wishes."

Gabby looked around, but Tali had already disappeared. "Uh, I don't think Tali is on this deck."

"You called her your new boss once!" I exclaimed, but sighed when I realized that she was gone. The situation was settled now, somehow, so I may as well explain myself. "Sorry, but Legion and Tali just had a faceoff. You didn't even have to have visions to know that it was coming someday, and I wanted to know how Shepard handled it. It really matters."

"I'm sure Shepard pulled out fine," Abby whispered."Remember when she threatened to kill herself during the Grunt and Mordin standoff?"

I nodded. "You're right; I trust her. I guess we'll find out eventually," I said with a sigh.

Abby bit her lip, and then she tugged at my sleeve."Hey, can you and I talk in private? It's important."

I nodded. "Of course," I said, standing up. "Want to go to our quarters?"

"Yeah. Let's go."


	47. We'll see each other again

**A/N: Getting close to the suicide mission… No worries, we are in process of writing it. In the meantime, see if you can think up any other tasty krogan snacks in comments! :D Varren nuggets, anyone?**

* * *

**(Abby)**

It wasn't a hard thing to explain. Actually, it was pretty straightforward. The hard part was accepting the fact that we may or may not allow a strange asari Justicar poke around in our heads. The pitfalls of the plan, well . . . they were pretty much obvious. "She could realize that this isn't what she thinks it is," I said with a frown. I'd thought about this very hard since she'd first pitched the idea. The benefits of it weighed the same as the risks. "And that would lead to awkward questions. Loss of trust . . . I don't think so. But still. The risk is there. Letting anybody poke into our minds is a little scary. Even if we trust them."

HK looked around, calm and seemingly unnerved; the mission probably hadn't been too easy, though. And I imagined that he was trying to be careful about who in particular could hear us, like we all were. "Well, even if this was what they think it is," he said in a low tone, "the idea of anyone creeping around in my mind is weird. I don't think it's a bad idea, just one that makes me a little uneasy. I trust Samara, but I worry that this wouldn't be quite as . . . simple and fool-proof as it sounds."

"I don't know," I said honestly. A thought had crept into my mind, but I wasn't planning on voicing it aloud . . . Samara obviously wouldn't do it, but melding minds was how asari mated with other people. Even though it wouldn't exactly be a meld for the purpose of sex, the idea was still there. It wouldn't have been more uncomfortable even if Samara and I stood naked in front of each other. _She won't rape you, she won't rape you_, I kept telling myself. Hopefully I could convince myself.

"Samara is a matriarch," I said, "and I'm pretty sure that she knows precisely what she's doing. She wouldn't lie. But even if we make it through this mission, and we're here 'til the end of days, what's to say she won't dig through what she's assimilated? I just don't know. I don't know if it's worth the risk. But it may be. And we can die. We can be killed by some unknown variable. Even if this isn't real life, I care for these guys. I would die for them, as crazy as that sounds. If I leave this world, I need them to have some kind of guidance."

"I care for them, too; they're real people now. Real, living people that I've grown to care for," HK agreed with a nod. He still looked like he was chewing this over. "And I don't want to leave them in the dark; I like the idea, but I have the same problems that you do. Shepard would also have the data that we left her, though. I don't know if giving Samara everything inside our head is absolutely necessary. Then again, we never know when something random's going to pop up, like it did with Sarah."

"Exactly." I couldn't think about that now. I needed to function properly. I swallowed a bit, and the tightness in my throat went away. "Okay. So . . . let's make a pact. If something happens to one of us, we need to hit up Samara. If it doesn't . . . let's just keep rolling on."

HK was silent for a moment, before nodding. "Alright, sounds good. Right now, I think we're okay, but if something new comes up, we can go to Samara and see what we can do. Sounds like the best plan."

"We'll keep ourselves to ourselves unless we need to," I agreed. "Cool! Well, that is totally settled, then!" I sighed. "And now . . . we have to wait until stuff happens. Wonderful. At least we'll be together. Til the end, right?"

He smiled, and nodded. "For sure; I wouldn't have it any other way. If I have to wait for something like this with someone, I'm glad it's one of my closest friends," he said.

We were almost there. We just had to survive.

* * *

Shepard called us all to the Meeting Room a little while later. We were still operating on the standard Eath 24-hour rotation instead of Citadel Station hours, which meant that it was about three o'clock in the morning on the southern tip of Japan. The rest of the ground crew, however, didn't seem to be in the mood to complain. In all actuality, it didn't look like any of them had even gone to sleep. I was tired, and HK had to be doubly-so, but there was a solemn air about this meeting that suggested that the end was near - and that spiked everybody up a little bit.

Shepard had taken the small window of downtime to shower and change into her usual Cerberus fatigues. In the beginning of our journey, she'd worn that Cerberus suit Sarah had fancied so much, but with the stress of the mission she had been recycling the old Cerberus fatigues more and more. Maybe she was just trying to hold on to a fragile past with the Alliance Navy - maybe she was just trying to be one of the guys. But she still looked like a Commander, and I could respect that. She still looked like the one in charge, and I felt as though she would always look like that, and she would always have control of her own fate.

Shepard was her own woman. She was sad, she was tired, but she was hellbent on revenge. It was enough to make up for the mental fatigue. And we were nearing the end now. Shepard was just catching her second wind, if she'd ever lost her wind at all.

The state of the crew wasn't much of a different matter. Jacob looked as calm as ever, arms crossed, watching Shepard intently with dark eyes; Mordin wasn't fiddling with his omni-tool, for once, and stood at attention next to him with a strange tightness to his shoulders; Miranda stood to Shepard's right, her hair freshly washed and makeup freshly applied, a careful and impassive look upon her face; Garrus and Tali stood side-by-side near the door, watching the Commander intently as children would watch their mother; Samara and Thane conversed quietly, though I couldn't hear their words; Kasumi was standing by the other door, her head bowed and arms crossed, listening intently; Legion was as still as only a machine could be, though I almost detected some amount of smugness in his frame . . . it could have been just me, though; Jack and Grunt stood unashamedly close, and I could see Jack giving HK short glances out of the corner of her eye, as if making sure of his location; HK and I stood next to Zaeed, who had randomly decided to continue to clean Jessie during this meeting.

Shepard waited patiently for everybody to arrive, and when they did, she raised one hand. Whatever slight murmurs present in the room faded all together, and we gave her our full and undivided attention. People of all backgrounds, spirits, and mentalities watched this one, commanding woman with a measure of respect almost bordering on the supernatural.

Not one soul in the room looked away, and I felt as though, in that moment, a strong bond had formed between us all, a strong bond that bound us to each other, to Shepard, and to the crew of this ship.

We would give our lives for her. We would die for each other.

She hadn't even said anything, and I felt as though my throat was beginning to close again, erring on the edge of tears. I dry-swallowed again.

_Beautiful_, I thought. _This is what we've worked for. This is what we need. We _will_ survive._

"I'm not going to bullshit you this far into the game," Shepard said quietly, her hands behind her back. "We're at the thresh-hold of one of the biggest battles of our lives. We can't delay what needs doing much longer.

"Our ship? It's the best ship in the whole damn galaxy, bar the Ascension. Our crew? They can get the job done. And you guys know what you're doing. You are all competant in what you do. You are all masters of your craft. I would not trade any of you for a batallion of the finest asari shock troops, salarian STGs, or krogan battlemasters. You all are worth a batallion of them in your own right. And more in my eyes.

"EDI is in the process of installing the Reaper IFF, but we still have something to do. The IFF will take time and processing power, time we won't have. That's why, in five hours, I want all of you on the Kodiak."

HK and I looked guiltily away from each other.

"We'll be heading to a Cerberus facility," Shepard continued, shooting a warning look at Jack. "The Illusive Man wishes our presence there. He'll refit us with new weapons and give us a few more surprises, I'm sure."

"We're going to a Cerberus base?" Jack asked, an aggressive tone to her voice.

"Yes," Shepard replied. "I'm not a big fan of them either, but what they did to you has to go into the background now. We'll deal with Cerberus after we kill the Collectors."

"You bet your sweet ass I will."

"The Illusive Man will be upgrading our armor and shields to full capacity," Miranda said. "He'll be giving us the kind of tech that we just can't replicate in the Normandy's labs, regardless of Doctor Solus's talent, or of Tali's expertise. These have been waiting for us since this mission started."

"Hunh," Zaeed grunted.

"Don't worry, they'll double-cross us after we do their dirty work for them," Tali assured him.

"I'm not thrilled about the idea," Shepard said. "But for now, Cerberus is our ally," (Miranda pointedly looked away at this, and Jacob fidgeted uncomfortably) "and we can't turn them away."

"Shepard-Commander, we must voice a concern," Legion stated.

"Feel free."

"This unit is a rarity, and Cerberus has a tendency to capture those they believe are worth studying. We were not part of your plan, and therefore Cerberus may attempt to collect on its bounty once we arrive."

"The Illusive Man knows that you are valuable to this crew," Miranda said. "There won't be a problem."

"Trust me, Legion," Shepard said."If the Illusive Man attempts to one-up any of you while we are refitted, I'll tell him to suck it."

I giggled. I couldn't help it. The sound was so out of place in that meeting that many eyes jumped over to me.

"We understand this metaphor, and concur with your solution," Legion said.

_Suck on my shotgun_, I thought, my mind ever in the gutter.

"Good," Shepard said. "Everybody be at the Kodiak at 0800 hours. And thank you for being here. We _will_ succeed - if not for ourselves, then Sarah and the rest of those who the Collectors have killed on behalf of the Reapers."

"We wouldn't be here without you, Commander," Kasumi said, a smile in her voice.

"We would all be dead if it weren't for you," Jacob said, confidence in his voice. "After Sovereign, you can do anything."

"We trust you," Garrus stated.

"We're right behind you, Shepard. To the end," Miranda said with a nod.

"Battlemaster," Grunt said.

Shepard bowed her head in appreciation. "I'm not infallible, but I promise you this," she said. "Regardless if we beat them or not, we will make the Reapers fear us. Dismissed."

And then, to my shock, they all saluted. Every single one. I snapped my right hand to my temple with a smile.

We were going to kick some ass.

* * *

**(HK)**

About three hours later, I wasn't feeling well. It was weird; I'd been fine during the mission, and even for a while afterwards, but my stomach was just starting to feel awful. I'd had this before; it wasn't the end of the world, but it was acid reflux of sometimes, and it was bad. My stomach was slowly getting to the point where I couldn't do much. The only things that made it go away were letting it pass, which took a few hours, or throwing up.

I walked into the Med-Bay, feeling my stomach tightening and getting worse. Why did this have to happen now? Of all times, now; I'd been okay up until this point. I'd been fine on almost every mission up until now.

"Dr. Chakwas," I said, stumbling in. "I'm, uh, not feeling so well . . . I think I'm having some stomach acid or something."

The doctor glanced up from whatever she was doing. She was sitting in a chair, facing a small screen that had what appeared to be the image of someone's skeleton. It looked a little "off" somehow, but she shut it off before I could get a good look.

"How long have you been feeling this way?" Chakwas asked me, standing up and walking over toward me. "Here, sit down on this bunk." She rested a hand on my arm and sort of guided me to sit on one of the bunks, just a few feet away from where Sarah still lay . . . underneath a heavy white sheet.

Being so close to the corpse of one of my best friends didn't help any, but it was easy enough to ignore right now; I sat down on the bunk, and looked at Chakwas as my stomach began to churn. "Uh, not too long; maybe about an hour? My stomach only started hurting slightly, but it's been growing. I can tell it's getting worse, especially now."

"Hmm," Chakwas mused, placing a thoughtful hand on her chin. She seemed to be studying my face, as though looking for any signs of illness or ailment that my skin or eyes might offer. "Did you eat anything recently? What was the last thing you ate or drank?" she asked me.

I thought for a moment; I actually hadn't had too much to eat, aside from a few regular meals, but I did remember having a snack not too long ago. "Umm, some cheese from the fridge; it was colored kinda weird," I recalled.

Chakwas seemed to think about that for a moment, and then she narrowed her eyes. "Was it blue?" she asked me in a serious tone. "Blue like an asari's skin?"

I nodded. "I think so . . . I just sorta thought it was a new type of cheese or something."

The doctor sighed. "HK, that was krogan cheese, made specifically for Grunt as a treat." She sighed and began to rummage through her medicine cabinet nearby. "Lie back on the bed; you're going to be here for a while."

I was getting déjà vu back to when Sarah drank some krogan ryncol; too bad she wasn't actually here now. Rolling my eyes, I lied back on the bed, feeling my pain continue to intensify. "Wait, wait," I said, a cold realization hitting me. "I have to go somewhere with the rest of the ground crew pretty soon."

Chakwas shook her head without looking at me; she was focused intently on a small medicine bottle, pouring a couple of capsules into her palm. "I'm afraid you won't be going anywhere, HK," she told me with a frown. She put the cap back on the bottle and then placed the bottle back into the medicine cabinet. "Rubert made that cheese from spoiled varren milk, and he added trace of ryncol for flavor. I need to keep you here for observation. Here, take these; they're chewable." She held out her palm, offering me two white pills.

Suddenly, I was frustrated that no one had bothered to label the cheese, and I was even more frustrated that I didn't bother to think about the blue cheese being something not meant for humans. But I was more overwhelmed with worry and concern; if I couldn't go with everyone else on the shuttle, then that meant . . . .

Oh no.

I quickly took the pills and began to chew them up, hoping that they would help me somehow. "Doctor, I have to go with the others," I insisted, after swallowing.

"I will call Shepard right now and inform her that you will not be going," she stated firmly. "You just lie back and rest." With that, she headed straight toward the nearest terminal. "EDI, patch me through to Commander Shepard, wherever she is at the moment," the doctor requested. After a moment, I heard the Commander answer and I listened silently to their conversation.

"Yes, Doctor Chakwas?" Shepard asked.

"Commander, I'm afraid that HK will not be able to join you and the others when you leave the Normandy," the doctor said in a quiet, formal tone.

"Why not?" Shepard asked, a tad sharp."Is he okay?"

"He will be," Chakwas answered quickly, her tone reassuring. "It seems that he ate some krogan cheese by mistake. I gave him some medicine and I will keep a close eye on him until he is well. But I would strongly recommend that he stay in medical for at least twenty-four hours."

Shepard was silent for a disturbingly long time."You have to be kidding me. Krogan cheese is blue. He ate odd-colored cheese? That must have tasted like acid."

"It had a weird taste, sorta, but I didn't really notice," I admitted out loud, although I wished that I had. I was trying to forget about the pain in my stomach, but it was getting worse. "Shepard, I have to go with you guys. I really can't stay here."

"Absolutely not," Chakwas said with a shake of her head. "Shepard, it would be unwise for HK to leave the medical bay. I need to keep an eye on him in case he goes into anaphylactic shock."

Shepard's sigh was audible. "I'll be down before we head off to check up on him. Take good care of him."

"I will, Shepard. Chawkwas out." With that, she killed the connection and then turned to face me again. "Now, just relax while I take a blood sample and run some scans," she told me simply.

I couldn't relax right now; my life could be in danger right now. I was now facing the problem that Sarah had been facing during most of her time on the Normandy. If I stayed here, I was going to get captured; I could try to escape somehow, but I wasn't sure how well that would fare. I just . . . .I couldn't get taken by the Collectors. The thought was terrifying; a million things could go wrong. I could die.

I had to calm down. I just had to calm down and figure out something. I had to figure out some way to handle this. I took a few deep breaths, trying to keep control of myself. I already felt a large amount of horror, but I had to just think.

_I can't get captured._

Okay, I had to do something; sitting around and worrying was something that I did way too much in situations like this, and I didn't have the time to do it this time. I had to talk to Abby about this; unless a miracle happened, which I would pray with all my might for, I was staying here. No, no, no.

I needed to discuss this with Abby.

"EDI," I said, looking over at where her blue head would pop up. "Can you get Abby down here please? Thanks. Tell her it's urgent."

Abby arrived a short while later, looking suspicious and concerned. She pointedly avoided looking at Sarah, but I saw her face whiten. She took one look at me, crossed her arms, and pursed her lips. "You're not looking too good . . . "

"I'm not feeling too good, either; apparently I ate some krogan cheese, thinking it was just some new type of cheese for humans. Not one of my smartest decisions," I grumbled, glancing over to make sure that Chakwas was a good distance away. I turned my eyes back to Abby, trying to ignore the pain in my stomach. "My stomach is feeling really, really bad right now; Chakwas told Shepard that I have to stay here for twenty four hours at least. I can't go with you guys."

After that, I simply gave her a knowing look.

She blinked. "No. That's not right. You should come with us."

"I know I should; I really, really need to, but Chakwas is insisting that I stay here. She won't let me leave," I told Abby. "Do you think we can change her mind? I've been trying, but she seems pretty convinced."

My mind was swirling with thoughts; if I did get captured, what did I need to do? Did I need to do anything? No, I couldn't think that far, I still could find a way to get out of this. Then again, I could be kidding myself, too; was there anything I needed to do?

Gah, this was too much right now. There was too much stress without all of this.

Abby turned around at once. "Doctor Chakwas, he has to come with us," she stated. "If we're going to be taking on the Collector Base, we need what the Illusive Man will give us. He needs it."

Chakwas turned around, and shook her head. "I'm sorry, Abby, but that's out of the question; HK's health takes first priority, and you will have to bring whatever is there for HK back here, if at all possible. He cannot go anywhere right now; certainly not off ship. The case is closed until further notice."

"Dr. Chakwas, there has to be something," I said, grasping at any straw that I could. "Any more medicine? Could it pass or anything? I've had things like this before."

"Well, assuming that you've never eaten any alien food before, then this will be much different than any normal situation where food does not sit well on your stomach; rest assured, HK, you will get better, but it cannot simply pass within the course of several hours. As I said, it will take at least a day, if not a little more," Chakwas explained.

"Any medicine?" I wondered.

She shook her head. "No, I am doing all that I can."

I ran a hand through my hair; it was hard to relax when my stomach felt like it was going to explode and there was a big chance that I could get taken by Collectors before the day was up. I always understood Sarah's concerns, and I still wouldn't go as far as she did, but I was finding myself growing to understand her worry and actions even more so than I did.

"Alright, thanks," I said to the kind doctor, before looking at Abby. "What're we going to do? I'm trying to think of something, anything, but I can't. I just . . . .I don't know. I can't stay here, I just can't."

"You can't," she said, her eyes wide with fear. She was shaking her head. "You can't. I need to get you out. I need to get you out - but how?"

"He is not leaving this medical facility," Chakwas said firmly.

Abby didn't take her eyes off of me. "HK . . . Why did you have to eat weird food? Why?"

"I don't know!" I exclaimed, extremely mad at myself for doing that. "I didn't think it was bad, I just . . . I don't know about all the foods that exist, so I thought it was okay. Now I've gotten myself into this . . . dang it. Dang it."

I exhaled a breath. I didn't know _what_ to do. I felt like I still needed to fight Chakwas' orders and get out of here somehow; I felt like I had to. Somehow, someway, I wanted to get out of here and onto that shuttle. At the same time, though, that was looking impossible; she wouldn't budge, and it's not like Abby or anyone else could bust me out with her watching so closely. I almost felt like I needed to be prepared to be captured or something, but I didn't want to accept it.

And how would I prepare? What in the world could I do? It's not like I had the time to write my own goodbye letters to everyone, or like I was up to it, and right now I wasn't even sure what the heck I would say. How does someone prepare to get taken by bugs at all, anyway? They don't take anything with them.

I closed my eyes and sighed, overrun with conflicting thoughts and emotions.

"I'm sorry," Abby was whispering, her voice full of pain. "I'm sorry - I can't - I'm sorry. I'll find you. I promise, I'll find you."

I suddenly remembered that this was as hard on Abby as it was on me, just like it would have been hard on all of us if it had still been Sarah here. I had to calm down for all of our sakes, and get a hold of myself. There had to still be some kind of hope. "I know, I understand, I'm sorry; I'm the one that was stupid this time. I'm really, really sorry," I said honestly, wanting to convey that first off. "Okay, we have to . . . I don't know, we have to think and prepare somehow."

I paused, still unsure on how to 'prepare', but I figured that there were a few things that Abby and I needed to talk about, if I was going to be . . . gone soon. Ugh, no, I didn't like that thought. I didn't want to accept it; it was a common feeling, to not want to accept something. I'd had it before and I was definitely having it now. But I guess I have no choice.

"If I'm not here when you get back," I whispered, trying to keep Chakwas and EDI from hearing. "Go to Samara like we discussed earlier."

I was almost trying to think up ways to avoid getting captured if I did stay in the med-bay, which seemed almost certain now, but I wasn't going to be able to move like I usually could. If I was able to move and fight like normal? Then sure, there was a good chance that I could escape somehow, but not when I was sick like this. My only hope was that my stomach would improve, even slightly, by the time the Collectors got here.

"And please, please," I continued, a tone of pleading creeping in. "Make sure that Shepard comes straight to the Collector base."

I gulped at the thought of the alternative.

"She will," Abby said firmly. "I'll make her. Just - don't leave me. Don't leave me alone here. I won't be able to bear it. I don't want to lose anybody else."

I slowly nodded. "I don't want to, either; I don't want to leave you alone here. I don't want to leave you and all of the great friends and comrades that I've made here . . . .I really don't," I whispered. "But I . . . I . . . don't know what to do. I want to figure out a way to get out of this, and I'm going to try my hardest, but I just don't know."

I had to be positive; I couldn't give in just yet.

"What are you two whispering about back there?" Chakwas said, causing us both to start. Her eyes were narrowed. "Abby, if you can't leave him alone, I'll have to ask you to step out. He'll be right as rain when you get back."

Abby ran a hand through her hair and nodded, forcing a normal expression on her face. "You're going to miss all of the fun," she said with a smile that didn't belong. "I'll . . . see you when I get back."

I felt my heart sink even more. Would this be the last time I see her until the Collector Base? Or worse, could it be the last time I see her?

No, I wasn't going to think like that. I refused.

"Okay," I told her with a nod, trying to force a smile.

"Okay," she repeated, her face twitching. She gripped my shoulder. "Okay. Okay? Okay!" She turned around and left, the door closing behind her.

Chakwas watched her go and tutted. "She always acts a bit odd when she comes in here," Chakwas assured me. "She doesn't like this place that much."

And then she handed me a bucket with a knowing look.


	48. I'm sorry

**(HK)**

I'd spent the last couple of hours with my stomach in a huge amount of pain, throwing up every so often. I'd been on the Normandy for so long, and this happened at the exact wrong time. I'd been fine until now, but I _had_ to eat that cheese. That blasted krogan cheese that was going to get me captured. All that had been on my mind was how to possibly escape capture, but I couldn't think of too many ways in this condition. Hopefully I'd make it until Joker arrived.

Still, I wouldn't give up; I refused to give up.

Dr. Chakwas had once again gone back to her monitor, apparently looking something over. She seemed to be rather intent about something she was studying, even though she was keeping a close eye on me and my vital signs as well. I couldn't really see what she was studying from where I lay, though.

"Hmm," she mused aloud at one point, and her eyes darted briefly in my direction. It took me a moment to realize she wasn't looking at me, but the bed that was a few feet away from me-the one with Sarah's dead and covered body on it. The doctor only looked at it for a moment, and then she glanced back at the screen thoughtfully.

"Is everything okay?" I asked with curiosity.

Chakwas's eyes darted briefly in my direction. "Nothing you need to be concerned with," she told me with a small smile, although there was kind of an odd, thoughtful look in her eyes. She cast another look at the monitor, and then she got up and walked toward the nearest terminal.

"EDI?" she said to the AI, and the blue, holographic form popped up. "Patch me through to Kasumi, please."

"Right away." The AI vanished.

Kasumi answered almost immediately, and she sounded a bit harried. "Hello?"

"I'm sorry for bothering you," Chakwas said in a formal tone. "But I need to ask you a quick question, since you were there when Sarah died."

"As long as it's quick, because I'm heading out now. I told you everything that happened."

Chakwas frowned. "I know you did, but I am curious if there might have been something else. When the husk-spider attacked Sarah, did you see it do anything specific? Did it simply bite her, or did it possibly inject something into her? Was there anything else that you saw?"

The sigh was audible. "I don't know. There was a lot of blood. That's all I remember. It tore into her throat and... well, you know the rest."

"Thank you, Kasumi," Chakwas said in a mild, dismissive tone. Judging from the expression on the doctor's face, it was obvious she hadn't heard anything she'd hoped to hear. "Good luck out there," she added in a gentler tone. "We truly don't need to lose anyone else."

"I hope we don't, either," she replied. "I'm sorry, but I have to go now. We're heading out right now."

Chakwas gave a little nod, even though the communication was audio only. She killed the connection and then walked away from the terminal, casting another thoughtful look in the direction of Sarah's body. Whatever was going on, she obviously wasn't ready to let it go.

They were leaving; they were about to head out, so any chance of me going with them was gone. I had to avoid getting captured by the Collectors, but right now I wasn't even sure how well I could move; I could move, but I couldn't dart around like I usually could. And what was going on with Sarah's body? That was worrisome, too. Too much was going on.

The doctor shook her head slightly, as though momentarily brushing off whatever she was thinking about. She then turned to look at me, flashing a small, sad smile. "In some ways, it is still hard to believe she is gone," she mused thoughtfully. "At times I felt like she was more of a headache than she was worth, and yet..." She sighed. "She was truly unique."

I nodded in agreement. "Sarah was a very unique woman, that's for sure," I concurred. "She could be a pain, yes, but she was one of the most special people I knew."

Chakwas nodded a little in acknowledgement, and then she actually chuckled a little. "I was just thinking about how we seem to have recurring incidents partly due to krogans," she commented. "Sarah had to see Mordin after she drank some ryncol on Omega, when our mission first started." She shook her head a little. "That feels almost like it was years ago now."

She gazed toward Sarah's body again for a moment, and then looked back at me. "I also remember when she ended up in the medical bay because Grunt had hit her over the head soon after you and Abby had been captured on Illium. She didn't seem to remember what happened, but I spoke with Grunt later and... found out more than I really wanted to know."

I raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

Now Chakwas actually looked a little awkward, even sheepish. That was unusual for her. "Well," she said cautiously, "you know that Grunt was beginning to go through his coming of age phase at that point, right?"

"I don't know much about krogans and their hormones, but yeah," I said with a small shrug, which made my stomach tense. Ugh.

Chakwas somehow managed to look mildly amused and disturbed at the same time. "Apparently Sarah was wandering around the ship at that point, trying to clear her mind. And she just happened to wander in on Grunt when he was starting to feel... certain urges. He had his armor off and he was... ah," she actually blushed a little. "Shall we say, experimenting with himself. Next thing Sarah knew, she was unconscious, simply for having walked in at the wrong moment."

My eyes went wide, and I suddenly felt a lot more nausea. _Thanks, Chakwas, for giving me that delightful mental image._ "Well, that's good to know," I muttered.

Chakwas looked directly at me, appearing concerned. "Oh, I apologize for that," she said. Apparently my face looked green enough for her to notice. "Let us talk about something else."

Before I could say anything however, the door opened and then Shepard and Abby entered the medical bay. They were both suited up and ready to go, Shepard in her armor and Abby in a blue tank-top and some knee-length shorts. Shepard looked ready for war, but Abby looked like a regular teenager. The difference between them was striking. Abby didn't even look like she was dressing for a fight.

"Hi, guys," I said with a light smile, even though I was feeling very, _very_ far from happy. I was sick and worried, but I needed to put on a brave face; I still didn't want anyone getting suspicious. Despite the fact that it was tempting to alert everyone of the impending Collector attack, we still couldn't do that. Even if my own well-being could be in danger now, we still couldn't tell anyone. It wasn't any different than it was during all the time that we thought Sarah would be captured.

Shepard came up to my bedside, but Abby hung by the door, her arms crossed and staring at me. She probably saw the bucket I'd been using to vomit in and decided to keep her distance. "You're not making things any easier for me, HK," Shepard said reproachfully.

"I'm sorry," I said sincerely. I really was sorry; this ultimately did fall on me for eating that cheese. "All over some cheese... if I'd knew that there was anything wrong with it, I wouldn't have eaten it, but it didn't even cross my mind. I'm sorry that I got myself into this. More sorry than any of you know."

Abby looked away.

Shepard sighed. "I suppose we still need somebody here to man the defenses," she said. "You'll be safe in Doctor Chakwas's hands until we get back. Just concentrate on getting better... and just between you and me, it's probably best that the Illusive Man not have his hands on the both of you at the same time."

I raised an eyebrow. "Maybe that's a good point."

_Though I don't know if Collectors are better than the Illusive Man._

"Thanks, though," I said appreciatively. I almost wanted to go off into some long-winded speech, thanking Shepard for everything, but that would definitely look too suspicious. I'd have to keep it simple. "Be careful out there, too, with Cerberus and all."

Shepard smirked. "Don't worry about us. The Illusive Man and I have a deal, and he still needs me to take out the Collectors. We'll be back before you know it. Just stay out of the cheese. You're a big boy."

I would've laughed if I wasn't sick and about to be captured. "Thanks. I'll try," I said.

Shepard gave me a pat on the head and turned on her heel, not one for goodbyes. "Be back later, Doctor," she said.

Abby took a deep breath and came up next to my bed. "I'm going now."

I smiled at her, and nodded. I didn't want to make this some long-winded goodbye, either, for multiple reasons; no time, and I didn't want to believe it was a permanent goodbye. I wanted to believe that no matter what happened, it would be short term. I couldn't act like I was going to die, even with the capturing threat looming.

"I survived being held hostage by Collectors once, I can do it again," I whispered, trying to inject some positivity into the situation.

However, before she left, I did have one thing I needed to tell her; there was one big loose end that I'd feel really bad if I left open.

I took a deep breath. "And could you do something for me later?"

"Sure. What?"

"Tell Jack that I really did care about her," I admitted, looking down slightly. "And that I'm sorry."

Abby shuddered a little bit. "If you do end up banging her," she said in a low voice, "get tested later. Just saying." She cleared her throat. "Oh, and I helped rescue you one time - I'll do it again."

I glared at her. "I didn't mean to...oh never mind. But thanks, I'm sure you will," I said, gulping slightly. "Just stay strong."

"Alright. I need to go now. So... see you later," she muttered, looking away.

I frowned. "Bye," I said softly. Then, suddenly, I felt a wave of nausea come over me. Ugh, I knew what was about to happen.

I grabbed my bucket.

Abby disappeared.

* * *

Thirty-five minutes had passed since I'd thrown up into the bucket; and I knew that that was how long the others had been gone. I felt nervous.

Chakwas was sitting at her monitor once again, intently looking at something. After a little while she got up and came over to my bedside to check on me. "HK, you seem awfully tense," she told me with a frown. "The way you looked out of the corner of my eye... I would think that you're about to be attacked by geth or something. Are you alright?"

_Geth? Close. You're one game late on that one._

"I'm okay," I lied, although I hated it, because Dr. Chakwas' safety was involved in this just as much as my own was. "Just still feeling sick and all; there's a lot going on. A lot of pressure on everyone, and food poisoning doesn't help much."

Maybe it was my tone or something she saw on my face, but Chakwas looked at me for a long moment, as if not entirely convinced. However she nodded after a moment and said, "Perhaps I should give you a sedative to help you relax. You won't get better if you stay this worked up."

My eyes went wide; that was the last thing I needed. "Ummm, no thanks; no sedative, please," I said. That'd limit my efforts even more.

Now the doctor seemed even more suspicious. "HK, is there something you're not telling me?" she asked carefully. "Something that you didn't tell Shepard?" Her eyes darted briefly toward Sarah's covered form, then locked onto my face again.

"No," I replied simply, lying through my teeth. I hated it, but I had no choice.

Chakwas looked skeptical. I could see conclusions drawing in her minds - probably based on my behavior and Abby's. She opened her mouth to say something, but a shrill beep sounded twice over the ship's intercom. "The proximity sensors?" Chakwas asked, aghast. She turned to her computer and rapidly read a crimson warning plastered across the front of her screen.

She turned to look at me, her eyes wide. "It's the Collectors," she said. "They're right on top of us."

Outside of the medical bay, I could see the other officers beginning to hurry for the weapons lockers.

Chakwas turned disbelieving eyes to the window, holding a hand to her mouth as she watched the preparations. "You knew about this," she whispered. "You knew this would happen to us."

And she glanced towards Sarah's body. Her look of betrayal instantly became one of revulsion. The white sheet atop of her body twitched.

I could hear the gunfire already. The first of the Collectors piled in from the elevators, dragging with them Praetorians and Scions. The full horror of the moment was not lost on me. Everybody had a weapon, even Rupert, but they were at a loss. One Collector, two, three - they went down, but more piled in, oblivious.

Harbinger strode on to the deck, unarmed, and just watched it all.

Chakwas ran to the door and began to recode the lock, moaning obscenities under her breath.

And then a Scion noticed us. It turned, facing the windows, and let out a blast so strong that it shattered the bulletproof windows of the medical bay, showering us in bits of glass. Chakwas screamed, backpedaling furiously as another Collector advanced towards us, flying through the empty windowsill. It landed heavily and pointed its weapon at Chakwas. Without a thought, it pulled the trigger.

Chakwas collapsed. The Collector scooped her up in one motion and exited through the window without even a glance at me.

I was filled with guilt; poor Chakwas. I felt like I did betray her, and the rest of the crew that was fighting for their lives right now, and in a way I had, but it wasn't like any of us had a choice. If we believed that we could've told them about this attack, we would have months ago, especially once we believed that Sarah would get taken with them. It wasn't an easy decision.

I didn't have time to think much at this point, though; as sick as I was, I had to move. My stomach still felt horrible, but I could get up and try to make a break for it.

I sat up and quickly slid off of the bed, despite my body moaning in protest. Standing up, I continued to look at the havoc before me; crew members were everywhere, trying to fight for their lives in the midst of their terror, but the Collectors were snatching them all. It was a disgusting sight to see. Just seeing the enemy crawl around the Normandy was bad enough.

None seemed to pay any attention to me yet, for some reason, but I knew that'd change soon enough. Although Joker would be able to get through the main deck, I wasn't about to try; going to the AI Core myself may be a safer idea.

I turned and began to head towards the AI Core as fast as I could, picking up the pace more than my stomach would've liked; I had to slow down after a few seconds, because I knew that if I started zooming along then I'd barf along the way.

Still trying to get to the door at a fast pace, I kept going, casually glancing to the side to take another quick look at the invasion outside the Medical Bay.

That was when I saw a Collector aiming it's gun right at me.

"Dang it," I muttered, quickly ducking to the ground and rolling to the side as it fired at me. I'd managed to roll over to Sarah's bedside, which seemed like a nice enough cover spot.

Ugh, that move didn't sit well on my stomach, either.

After a few seconds of waiting, it seemed like the coast was clear; I stood up, and glanced around.

Something strange caught my eye; a sheet had been covering Sarah's entire body. Now, it was still on her, but it had slipped off of her head. As far as I knew, no one had messed with it at all.

As I was looking down at my deceased friend, my jaw dropped at what happened next.

Her eyes opened.

"Sarah?"

* * *

**(Abby)**

The shuttle ride was a little cramped, but it wasn't something I couldn't deal with. We all hadn't been in this shuttle since Commander Shepard and the rest of them had rescued both HK and I from Nyxeris all of those months ago. When that had happened, Zaeed and Grunt had blown up the septic tanks and the bodies of my captors were probably still rotting in their waste. I'd never felt as much pain as I had when Harbinger tortured me, and I knew that nothing I could ever physically experiance would match it. It had taken a week to recover most of my strength, but even longer for the mental parts to wear off. The fear, the terror . . . no, that would never go away.

And, just like I had on Helyme, I'd sentenced HK to certain torture.

I couldn't have done anything without alerting Shepard, though. I kept thinking, you know, I could've done something, but I couldn't lie to her. She was my friend. As was HK.

As with Sarah, I knew that we'd be able to get to him in time . . . but that was when there were three of us. I didn't want to be the sole person in charge of everybody's safety.

And the others . . . they would never, ever trust me again.

I was quiet on the ride out, sitting next to Jacob and looking out of the window. We'd just taken a mass relay out of the sector and were hours away from the designated coordinates.

"After this," Jacob said suddenly, looking around, "what do you see yourselves doing?"

Shepard, who was playing a game on her datapad, looked up. "Sitting back, enjoying a nice beer with the galaxy's finest," she answered without hesitation.

"A spa somewhere," Kasumi said. She was sitting on Jacob's other side, a paperback book in her gloved hands. "Under an alias, of course. Some nice, good-looking men giving me a massage . . ."

She shot a sideways look at Jacob to catch his reaction, and I heard his familiar chuckle. "What about you, Samara?" he asked.

"My oath to Shepard will be completed once the Collector threat has been neutralized," the old, graceful asari said. "Thankfully, the Code does not require me to kill any of you after my term has ended."

Zaeed, who was busy exposing the innards of one of his many inferno grenades, looked up curiously.

"I'd like to see you try," Jack muttered in an aside.

"Why would the Code require you to kill us?" Shepard asked.

"Not all of you." Her serene eyes looked at a few choice people - Zaeed, Jack, Grunt, Kasumi. "But a few. Thankfully, I am not required. I would have to kill you, Commander Shepard, if you had made me do anything dishonorable in your service, but I would not be allowed to kill those I have worked with unless I witness them do something wrong outside of your service."

"Are you going to kill me after this?"

"No. You have become a good friend, and a mentor to this old asari." She smiled.

Silence. Then: "You'd have your hands full with her anyway," Zaeed grunted.

"It's because I'm a thief, isn't it?" Kasumi asked, faked outrage apparent in her voice.

"I would merely have to turn you into the local authorities," Samara replied.

"If you could find me first," Kasumi said archly. "I bet I could hide better than your daughter. Not to bring up bad memories, though."

"And I would not put much heart into finding you, honestly," Samara said. "But I am warning you. Out of respect for the friendship we have established as comrades in arms."

"Oh. Well, thanks for the warning," Kasumi said cheerfully. I almost could have imagined that she winked.

"I could take you," Grunt said quietly.

"Don't start it, Grunt," Tali warned.

"The Justicar started it. I'm offering to finish it."

Samara watched him, a small smile on her face.

"We would warn you," Legion stated. "The probabilities of death by biotic attack are high if you continue."

"You don't have to worry yourself, Legion," Samara said. "Though I will admit, seeing that type of emotion in an AI makes me content."

Legion cocked his head. "We are merely tying to facilitate a proper workplace environment."

"I know. It is touching."

Tali and Miranda exchanged a glance. Tali's shoulders relaxed a bit. "I wonder who'd win in a fight," Miranda said, changing the subject. "Jacob or Kasumi?"

"Miranda," Shepard said softly, the word a reproach.

"We do not have enough data to ascertain," Legion said.

"I thought EDI gave you all of the statistics she could from the ship's computers," Tali said.

"EDI was not capable of exchanging data due to Cerberus restrictions," Legion stated. "Officer Lawson forwarded them to us instead."

"So why don't you have enough data?" Tali asked.

"Because Operative Taylor and Kasumi Goto do not have an antagonistic relationship," Legion replied. "There would be no motive. There would be no serious fight."

"What about the cheerleader and me?" Jack asked, a smug grin on her face.

"Don't answer, Legion," Shepard said tiredly.

"We will comply."

"The question was meant for fun," Miranda said, her tone turning cold.

"Don't get your titties in a knot," Jack snapped. "We all know I'll come out on top. It's just a matter of how soon after we knock some Collector heads. Bitch."

"Actually, I'd wait to kill each other," I interjected. "After we take out the Collectors we're going to have another big issue - namely, the Reapers. So let's wait until we kill them before you rip out each other's throats. Please?"

"Good call," Shepard said with a nod. "The Reapers are our first priority."

"Damn straight," Zaeed said.

"Affirmative," Mordin replied. "This mission dulls in comparison."

"Hey, Mordin!" Kasumi said excitedly. "I just found a vid of you on the extranet! I didn't know that you sang."

Mordin coughed politely. "Not much now. Used to be a great stress reliever for me. Now, can't concentrate enough to learn more lyrics. Still occasionally hum the tunes to myself as I work. Helps with more tedious labwork. Uh - please do not play those vids here."

"I heard you singing earlier, Jacob," Kasumi said, elbowing him playfully. "You're very talented."

"Shit - uh, you heard that? Where were you?"

"I heard Mr. Taylor singing down on Deck Five while he was picking up the sparring mats," she informed us. "And I can't tell you where I was - that would be cheating."

"At least she doesn't pop up in bathrooms," Garrus told him. He'd been strangely silent until now.

I had to look away to hide a grin as Kasumi said, "That's so ill-mannered. The idea doesn't appeal to me. I prefer the much bigger heists myself."

"Bigger, huh?" Jacob asked, looking at her.

"Oh, yes," she said, looking straight into his chest. "Much, much bigger."

"Sexual innuendo?" Legion asked Mordin.

"Such as I believe, yes," the aged salarian replied.

Kasumi and Jacob quickly looked away.

"Have you been teaching Legion human relations, Mordin?" Miranda asked.

"People like to fuck each other," Jack told the geth. "That's basically it on the whole romance scale. Sure, they'll spruce it up a bit, maybe get some flowers and refer to the size of their junk, but they both want orgasms."

"That might explain our scores on Fleet and Flotilla," Legion said. "We will implement this knowledge."

"Okay, this is getting a bit too weird," Kasumi said.

"You have no idea," I muttered, but I didn't think anybody heard me.

"Where do you think you'll be after all this is said and done, Jacob?" Shepard asked.

"I don't really know, Commander," he said. "I suppose I'll be doing something military-related. Might still work for Cerberus... might not. Depends on which way the winds are turning."

"I wouldn't advise working for Cerberus longer than necessary," Thane said.

"What about you, Thane?" Shepard asked.

"I... do not know," the drell said. "I have not really thought of it before. I suppose I would like to see my son again."

"We'll get you the chance," Shepard said.

"I would love that, _si'ha_."

"Sexual innuendo?" Legion asked Mordin.

"No. Mild banter," Mordin replied.

"Affirmative."

"If anybody ever mentions the phrase 'reach and flexibility,' that is the biggest frickin' innuendo in the world," I informed him, looking at Garrus out of the corner of my eye. "Just saying."

Garrus coughed. "Really," he said dryly.

Jack's eyebrows both rose. "Wait - did you try something on - ?"

"Everybody shut up."

It was so unexpected, and so firm, that Jack immediately cut off what she was about to say. We all looked at Commander Shepard, alarmed by the tone of her voice. The Commander was reading something on her omni-tool, and the message headline glowed crimson - an emergency message.

Shepard undid her straps and walked up to the side of the shuttle. She deleted the current course and we all watched her set in a new one. I closed my eyes and bowed my head. "I'm sorry," I whispered.

"We're heading back to the _Normandy_," Shepard said. "She's been attacked . . . the crew has been abducted by the Collectors, save Joker. The IFF was a trap; it transmitted their location."

Real tears began to escape out of my eyes, now. I bowed down and brought my hands to my face, hiding myself from the world.

"They stood no chance," Shepard finished. "Joker gave EDI full control of the ship. He's the only one left. Our ETA is one hour . . . we'll figure out the entire story then."

It was obvious she was talking to me.

"You knew about this," Jack breathed. "You _bitch_ - "

"Jack," Shepard said sharply. "We will _not_ discuss that now."

_I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry, HK._


	49. You will be useful

**(Abby)**

The silence after Joker's explanation was making me sweat. I knew they were all looking between me and Shepard, wondering who would break first. I knew I would have to. The scrape on a knuckle, the smooth metal table in front of me - I wouldn't be able to concentrate on those for long. Why was I trying to delay, anyway? I'd had so long - months, really - to formulate what I would say at this moment. Even though HK and Sarah were no longer with me, the idea was still the same. I couldn't be this scared kid anymore. I'd fought and killed people, and I'd put people's lives on the line. I needed to man up, and I needed to communicate to them the truth of my words, and hope that they could pick that out between all of the half-truths and deceit.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you all sooner," I said, looking up. _HK. Ken and Gabby. Chakwas. Think of them. They will die without you_. "But we all agreed early on that it would be best if nobody knew. If people were going to die in the takeover, things would have gone differently. But the Collectors have them now and they won't die for a while yet. There is still time to save them if we move fast. We can't stop at any planet - we have to follow the Collectors through the Omega 4 Relay, or half of our crew is sure to be dead by the time we get there."

"You all knew about this?" Miranda asked angrily. "You cost us the whole damn crew."

"Hey! I'm okay, I'm still alive, thank you very much," Joker retorted. "It's because of me and EDI that you guys still had a ship to come back to."

Joker was hurt. He was hunched over and had one arm draped across his stomach at an odd angle - apparently when the ship had taken off, he'd fallen at an awkward angle and separated his shoulder. Until we'd gotten back, though, he'd had no medical attention except for EDI's "inane prattle."

He would never say it in front of other people, but I felt as though I'd failed him as well. I'd put him through a trial he'd had no right to experience, and I didn't even have the decency to warn him.

"The ship's lost, there's no way around that," Shepard said quietly. "EDI and Joker did an excellent job with what they had. Throwing around blame isn't going to change anything." She looked at me, her eyes cool, and calm, and I made myself look right into them.

"Doesn't change the fact that they knew what was coming and didn't tell us," Grunt grumbled.

"I see why they would choose not to," Mordin said. "Logical, I assume. Targets have a way of reacting differently when they know danger is close at hand."

"We couldn't give the Collectors pause," I continued. "If they thought something was up, they might not have come. But they probably thought they were going to get Commander Shepard as well. It's complete luck that you weren't aboard when we saw it in our dreams. If you were, you wouldn't have stood a chance."

"Is there anything else you're keeping from us?" Garrus asked sharply.

And then I relented. I had to. The briefing I would have given to Shepard, I had to give to them. I started talking, slower at first, but gathering more momentum as I continued. I told them all about the fight in and the consequences of not upgrading the ship. When I informed Jack, Kasumi, Tali, and Thane that they would've been the first casualties, the latter three looked at each other with something like acceptance in their eyes. Garrus shifted a little to put a three-fingered hand on Tali's shoulder. Jack had her head bowed, arms braced on the table, like she was about to conjure up some unholy monster to eat my soul.

As I continued, though, I felt a new justification for my actions seeping into my bones. What was done was done, and there would be no quick fix. We had to play their ball game.

I told them everything I could about the inside of the Collector Base. I went into as much detail as I could about the mission, and the conversation lasted a very long time with little to no dialogue from any of the crew. "I don't know what goes on with the second fire-team during all of this," I said. "I really don't. But I'm confident that a good leader will get them through all right."

"And what do the rest of us do, if we're not in one of the two teams?" Garrus asked.

"The rest of you are in the second fire team," I said. "Your job is to take most of the heat off of Shepard's location. We all can't go together because the Collectors - all of them - will converge on our position."

I talked about the biotic mission, and then I told them of the state of the crew members as we got them. I even told them about Lilith. "Chakwas will be scared," I told her. "She'll tell you everything. What the Collectors are doing is horrible. They're... incinerating humans. Turning them into goop that transfers down long pipes. The goop is used to create a new Reaper."

"Another Reaper?" Shepard snapped. "Jesus, like we don't have enough."

I snorted. "Ma'am, if our problem was only two Reapers, I would be very, very happy. There are hundreds of them, all waiting in Dark Space. And after this, we're going to see them all."

Silence.

"Fuck," Jack cursed, her hands forming fists.

I continued, telling them about the Human-Reaper. I stopped there, though. "Commander," I said, "I can't tell you about the choice you will face next. It's not safe. And even if it was, I still wouldn't tell you. You have to go with your gut on it, and I don't know what will happen yet. I just don't. So when it comes up, don't even ask. After you make your choice, your platform is going to fall. You'll have to get up _as soon_ _as you can_ and run to the Normandy. Joker will provide cover fire. You need to get out of there as soon as possible. What happens next... is entirely different. But I would focus on checking out Project Overlord. Then, you need to help Liara T'Soni on Illium. After that, Admiral Hackett will come to you for help. You'll want to, because if you don't, the Reapers will arrive and we will all die. I can't explain the entirety of those missions to you, but... I'll let you know. I'll have some form of information for you set up before we hit the relay." I resisted looking at Samara.

"I trust you," Shepard said firmly. I blinked. "Now we just need to put that into action. EDI, you got all that?"

"Yes, Commander."

"Keep a text record of it and transmit to each of us," she said.

"Message away."

As one, everybody's omni-tools beeped. Even mine. It reminded me of the new iPhone 4s chick, Siri.

"Commander, I don't know what shape HK will be in when we get him," I said. "I don't even know exactly what shape the rest of the crew will be in, either."

"Were they mobile in your visions?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Then we'll get them back. I won't leave them behind to die."

"Yes, ma'am."

"You will accompany me on the ship as far as the captured crew. After that, you will be the one to escort them back to the Normandy. And it's there that you'll stay, until the mission is completed. Mordin will go with you."

I blinked. "_What_?" I demanded.

"You heard me," Shepard said firmly. "You and HK are the last ones left, and HK's currently gone. He'll be in no shape to fight after we get him out, by your own words. So. That leaves you."

"No. I can't do that," I said. "I won't abandon you all. This is my fight, too!"

"My decision is final," Shepard said quietly.

"_No_," I said, shaking my head. "You need me out there! I can't just sit down and do nothing."

"Your job is to take the crew back to the Normandy safely," Shepard said. "I'm trusting you with their lives. That's not doing _nothing_. You're performing a valuable service to me."

"I have as much at stake here as you do," I snapped. "If something goes wrong, then - "

"We'll keep in contact over the communicator."

"No! Let me fight with you!"

"Sit this one out, kid," Jacob said, laying a hand on my shoulder. "Sit this one out."

"_No!_"

"I know it'll be hard," Shepard said quietly, "but you've done everything you could. Let us do our job, and trust us. We've trusted you this far, haven't we?"

"It's unfair," I said, blinking away angry tears. "I'll die for you. How can you think otherwise?"

"That's why I want you to take the crew back," Shepard said. "You're smart. You understand more about the base than anybody."

"No, I don't -"

"That's all I'm going to say about it," she said with weight. She turned her gaze from me. "I'll have a final list of who will fill all of the requirements before we head in. Right now, the rest of you need to prepare. Rest up, get some food. EDI's got control of the ship for now, so feel free to send any messages you would like. We'll hit the Relay by tomorrow afternoon. Be prepared."

"We're behind you, Commander," Garrus said, straightening. "You might want to contact the Illusive Man while you've got the time... he probably knows what's going on by now, but he might want to hear it from you."

"I'll get on that," Shepard replied.

Everybody turned around and began to file out, and I felt a great weight settle on to my shoulders. I needed to convince Shepard to let me fight.

"So you got off all nice and pretty, huh?" a low, threatening voice said.

Everybody stopped in their tracks and turned about. Jack's face was a careful mask of calm that belied the anger I could sense underneath. It radiated out of her pores, soaking up the room. For the first time on the Normandy, I felt afraid for my life. This time, Zaeed and Jacob wouldn't be able to stop her.

"How could you do that, you bitch?" Jack spat, her fingers curling into fists at her sides. Her face remained carefully controlled, but her eyes began to blaze. Not only that, but her hands were beginning to glow dangerously. "You could have said something, you could have..."

"Jack," Shepard's voice rang out in a tone of cool, yet firm, authority.

"I'm trying to save us all," I whispered. It would do no good to cower in fear; I had to own up to what I did, and I tried to stand tall. I was terrified.

Before I even realized what was happening, there was a loud noise and I found myself slamming against the nearest bulkhead. My shoulder blades took the brunt of the impact, though I felt my teeth rattle as I collapsed on the floor.

"Jack!" I heard the Commander's voice snap, and then there was a firm hand gripping me by the shirt collar, hauling me up and pressing me firmly against the wall.

"You _BITCH_," Jack hissed through gritted teeth. Her eyes blazed they bored into mine. "You could have saved him! Just one _fucking_ word from you and we could have taken HK with us."

"Jack! That's enough!" Shepard and Garrus appeared directly behind Jack now, each of them taking one of her arms and pulling her back. Jack let out an animal snarl, much like the one she did in the game when she first realized that the Normandy was a Cerberus vessel.

Zaeed knelt down beside me, almost protectively. "You okay, kid?" he asked, keeping an eye on Jack out of the corner of his vision.

"We should have left you here, bitch!" Jack snarled. "The Collectors should have taken YOU!"

"Stand down!" Jacob snapped. There was a whirr of a weapon being activated, and when I looked up, I realized that it was Kasumi.

"Drop it, it's not going to work out this way," Kasumi stated.

"He's my friend, too!" I yelled at her, anger suddenly rising within my chest like a snake, hissing and spitting with its ferocity. "You think that was easy? You think leaving somebody I love was easy? You think I wouldn't have gone in his place? I had to do what I had to do, and I wouldn't have done it if he hadn't agreed to it."

Jack still looked furious. Her entire body still had what looked like a heat wave around it, and for a moment I thought she was going to hit me again-possibly worse this time. However, she ended up standing down, the built up biotic energy dissipating about her. Whether this was because she had regained what little self-control she had, or because several people had their hands near their weapons, or because of the dangerously firm expression on Shepard's face, I couldn't be sure.

Scowling, Jack wretched her arms free from Garrus and Shepard, and took a couple of steps back. When she spoke, her voice was a whole lot quieter and cooler, but somehow it still sent shivers down my spine. "You better be right about everything you told us," she stated. "And we'd better get HK back. If not... then the Cerberus cheerleader won't be the only person I will tear apart after this mission is over." With that, she turned and stalked out of the room.

I released a breath I'd been holding and pressed a hand to my face, unsurprised to find sweat beading above my eyebrows. My heart fluttered in my chest, almost painfully. My hands were shaking.

"Kasumi," Shepard said quietly, "take Joker to the Medical Bay and get him patched up. We won't have to worry about Jack."

Kasumi nodded and led Joker out of the room without another word. Joker muttered, "Shit," and followed.

"Zaeed, Jacob, take Abby and do a last-minute weapons check in the other room. I don't want any dumb accidents out there."

"Will do, ma'am," Jacob said.

Zaeed hauled me up by the elbow and led me outside, keeping a firm grip. "Come on, girly. We got a job to do."

I forced myself to nod. "Yeah. Uh, yeah."

And as we were leaving, I heard a whisper behind me: "EDI, keep an eye on our friend downstairs."

Zaeed and Jacob sat me down in the corner of the armory on top of some storage boxes. Zaeed's arms were crossed over his chest, looking as disinterested as anybody could be, and Jacob just smiled grimly and poked my shoulder. "That hurt?" he asked lightly.

It did. It was definitely going to bruise. "Nothing more than I deserve," I muttered.

"Snap out of that," he said. "We need you at full fighting capacity. You know Jack. She's a bitch, but she'll come around."

"She's got a pretty creepy fascination with HK," I gulped, forcing a shaky smile.

"She's just scared that she's going to lose her favorite punching bag," Jacob replied. "We're not going to let her hurt you. If she tries, we'll kill her."

"Don't talk like that," I muttered. "I'm a horrible person."

"Know how many people I let die?" Zaeed asked gruffly.

I sniffed, shaking my head.

"Neither do I," he said.

"People make mistakes," Jacob said. "This wasn't a mistake. HK knows we're coming to get him, right?"

"Yeah..."

"And you know the way in."

"Yeah..."

"We don't have to worry. You'll get us in there. Things will hit off okay, and then we'll live large on the Citadel. Got that?"

"Mmhmm."

The door to the armory slid open, revealing Commander Shepard. "How's she doing?" the Commander asked, walking over towards us.

"She's functional. The shoulder doesn't appear to be injured, ma'am."

"Good." She gave my head a single pat. "You're not alone in this. I knew that the Collectors were going to get the crew for a long time, I just didn't know when until I saw you and HK together in the Medical Bay." She sighed, looking deep into my eyes. "I didn't say anything because I trust you."

I swallowed, looking up at her with wide, fearful eyes. "You-you knew? How? When?"

"Sarah might have let a couple of hints slip during her stay here," Shepard said matter-of-factly. "Your friend was rightly afraid."

"She was terrified for her life," I whispered. "We were still wondering what to do when she - when she died."

That still hurt.

"You knew about this, Commander?" Jacob asked.

"Yes. I didn't like keeping it a secret, but I knew that I shouldn't ask," she said. "I've seen enough films to know meddling with the future is a very bad thing. The Nyxeris incident springs to mind."

I shuddered. Was HK going to go through all of that again? Was he _aware_? Was he terrified? Did he know we were coming?

"I wish you let me know," I whispered. "I wish... I wish you would have let HK come with us."

"HK was a sacrifice we had to make," she said. "A sacrifice that was harder for you than me, I believe. If you could do it, I knew I could."

"That's so unfair."

"But it's true. I would not ask somebody else to do something I wouldn't do myself."

"But you're brave. I'm... not. I'm just in here, doing nothing of real importance. You won't even let me fight with you."

"And I'm not going to discuss that now," Shepard said. She sighed. "We need to take care of you now that you're the last cheat code we have in this game."

A cold hand of fear clutched my heart. Could she know?

"I suppose that's a bad example," she continued with a wince. "The Reapers aren't a game. But you're sure making it easier for us."

I buried my face in my hands. I couldn't look at her.

"Come on. These guns aren't going to maintain themselves," Zaeed said.

"Not yet, anyways," I breathed, thinking of Ashley.

"Ash used to say that when she was avoiding direct questions," Shepard said wistfully. "What I'd give to have her with us now."

"She was a wonderful woman," I said.

"Yes. She was." Shepard stood up straighter. "I'll leave you all to this. Also, Abby: Samara wanted to see you after you've calmed down. When you have a chance, head down and see her. And do me a favor: don't go on to Deck Four. I don't want to push our luck."

Samara. I closed my eyes. "Yes. Yes, ma'am."

Shepard left, and my shoulders slumped. "Anybody ever do an asari mind-meld before?" I asked weakly.

* * *

When I came to Samara's quarters and entered at her bidding, I found her sitting on the floor... and eating a bowl of ramen noodles. I blinked in surprise. "That, uh, looks good, Samara," I said. "Did Rupert have some extra snacks laying around or something?"

"I simply wanted to try my hand at cooking," Samara said, setting the bowl aside. "I find human pasta to be quite satisfying, and ramen takes so little time to prepare."

"I lived on it last summer," I said fervently. "And some other pasta for school lunches. It's pretty nice, isn't it?"

"That it is; quick and simple. I must give your species credit, you have some delicious food," she said, smiling lightly. She looked directly at me. "So, Abby, how are you? Jack's attack must have rattled you somewhat."

"I deserved it," I muttered. The fear was still there, with me, even a half-hour later. It was like an earthquake had just passed through the ship, and I was still getting the aftershocks. I suddenly missed the dojo terribly - nobody there would have ever done something like that. "I wasn't honest. I didn't expect anything less... well, I did think that you guys would never, ever talk to me again."

I sat next to her, cross-legged, and the smell of ramen noodles hit me like a wall. It didn't smell as though the recipe had changed much in the past hundred years or so. "We need to talk," I said suddenly. "And I think you know what I'm speaking of."

"If you think you deserved it, you're wrong; I know it was incredibly hard for you to let HK get captured, but we all must make sacrifices, unfortunately. I understand that better than anyone, and rest assured, we will get him back," Samara told me, sounding as calm as she always did. "And yes, that is why I wanted to see you. I remember what we discussed, and I wondered if you wanted to take me up on that offer, now that you are the only one left."

"Yes. I do," I said. Don't be mad at me, buddy. But she might find out about the Baby Machine and all of our other whacky ideas. "If I die, I want some kind of assurance that things will still hit off with no trouble. The information... might not be something that you can understand, at first. Our dreams took place in, well, an odd form."

I bit my lip. "Okay, so, just a moment... you'll only get the dreams, right? You won't get, well, the rest of my brain or anything will you?"

Samara shook her head. "No, thankfully, I have the ability to just retrieve the dreams from your mind. And remember: I will be able to store them inside my own mind without even knowing what they possess; I will only look at them if it is absolutely necessary. I understand your concerns, Abby, but you can trust me. I would never go behind your back."

I let out a big breath of air. "Good, then," I said with a nod. "I trust you, too." And this is where she reveals that she's secretly Morinth... "And thank you. Thank you so much for this. Now just tell me what I have to do."

"Think about the dreams; bring them to the forefront of your mind, above all other thoughts. It will be easier for me to take them, and only them, if you do that; this will be a process. I am going to be transferring your visions to my mind, and then storing them away, so we will have to have patience. However, it should be completely harmless," Samara explained to me, moving closer.

"Should be?" I muttered to myself. "Right. Just so you know, the entire series of dreams... it'll take a while. The entire thing encompassed maybe forty or so hours. Would it be better if I just thought of a keyword or something? Generally I associate all of my dreams with that keyword."

"If that would help, then certainly," she replied with a nod.

She set her ramen aside and turned towards me. I took a deep breath, steadying myself. It was all about to be laid open, out there on the table. I had to trust that Samara knew what she was doing. I dropped my head and tried to forget the smell of recycled air, of Samara, and, hell, even myself. I tried to lose myself in the scent of baking cookies, of orange juice, and of the other myriad of smells I generally associated with my house.

The white carpets that never looked white, covered with black dog fur - the table in the living room - the footstool I always leaned back against to play my games. I thought of Mass Effect, buried deep within the video game black hole underneath the television. And with Mass Effect, I thought of krogan, of Anderson, and let my mind drift back to the Character Creator.

I had to think of the video game. Both video games.

Samara was silent for a moment, while my mind put further emphasis on the Mass Effect games and every thing that had happened in them. Every single thing, down to the smallest sidequest. I focused as hard as I could on the once fictional universe, while Samara edged closer and closer to me.

"Now, Abby," she said calmly, staring into my eyes. "Embrace eternity!"

Then, her eyes changed, and I could almost feel her penetrating my brain as the process began.

It felt as though a shadow had passed over my mind, another sentient being prodding my thoughts. I'd never had that experience before. I'd written about it in fiction, but it was a totally different feeling than what I'd been expecting. Samara's deft mental touch felt cold in a good way over the edges of my mind, and I could feel her somehow grasping the edges of my thoughts and using them as little hooks and ladders to draw herself closer and closer into my mind.

I tried not to focus on her chilling touch and forced myself to close my eyes so I would not be distracted by her blackened orbs.

Surprisingly, her deft touch actually helped me remember. The names of planets and systems came more easily to me, and I was able to accurately quote, verbatim, most of the sidequest dialogue. Not only did she take these instances, these missions and plots from my mind, but I could also feel her adapting her way of thinking to mirror mine, as if she was training herself to be my intellectual twin. I could feel the connections forming between her and me, bonding us together as she began to adjust her perspective to better make sense of all of the information. She no longer treated these missions as independent things Shepard just managed to get caught up in - she began to think of them of just different stages, connected by an invisible line that I thought of as 'plot.' Characters became transparent in her mind, Shepard was elevated, and she might have even caught the hint of music in the deeper recesses.

I could feel her slight hesitation as we delved into her own past and what I already knew of her - Morinth, and how Shepard was originally supposed to make the choice. What would have happened if she chose wrong.

These fragments came together as a whole at some point, and I knew that Samara was making a concentrated effort not to look, to take the memories and seal them away in some unfathomable place deep within her aged skull. But you cannot ask somebody to look for a restaurent without noticing the buildings around it. It was inevitable that she would see some things, and I could feel her slight comprehension of the things that passed by her. She was very interested in Kaidan and Ashley, and how they both seemed to fill the same one role. And the various outcomes of the final battle with Saren...

And then, once I was satisfied that she had gotten as much as she could, I began to think of the Suicide Mission. Nothing was much different from what I had said in there, but now she had a visual to place to the verbal description. The bodies of Miranda and Mordin stared at us with unseeing eyes. Samara tried to touch Shepard's face and went limp in her arms. Grunt lay unmoving - no, Zaeed - no, Garrus. Tali was falling. The Human-Reaper charged up another attack. Joker aimed down the sights, covering Shepard's retreat.

I spent perhaps more time on the Suicide Mission than I had on most other missions. The endings, as well. Coffins. No coffins. Everybody alive. Everybody dead.

And afterwards, Overlord. I spent a moderate amount of time on that one, leading her through the scenarios.

I went through Liara's mission as much as I could remember, and communicated the importance of Arrival over all others.

The rest was... well, what I already knew about the third installment. Different husks, Cerberus out to get Shepard, the Reapers invading Earth, and the fact that Shepard had to go around recruiting the races to fight them.

Her cool touch assembled these memories in front of me like a tape, and...

One by one, I felt them disappear.

I could still remember, of course, but there seemed to be an invisible barrier between them that kept her from poking through. And then that cool touch grasped them all like a hand grasping pebbles, and the imaginary fist closed, withdrawing gently from my mind.

I came to abruptly. I let out a long, shaky breath, and opened my eyes.

Samara let out a breath herself after her dark eyes reverted to normal; the experience had seemed to even taken a small toll on the Justicar. She looked at me, and nodded. "It is done," she told me. "I have everything, as far as I know; I viewed as little as possible, and I will continue to do so. Everything is stored deep in the recesses of my mind; your secrets are still safe. You did great."

I could feel a cold sweat beading on my brow, and hastened to wipe it off. Samara's face seemed to be a shade lighter than normal. "Thank you," I said quietly. My own voice sounded loud to my ears. "That was... quite an experience. Are you okay?"

She nodded. "It was tiring, even for me; I have only done this very, very few times before, and never have I consumed this amount of knowledge. This was something new for me, something I was not accustomed to, but I am fine; I will simply need some rest before we reach the Collector base. I am more concerned about you, but it seemed you made it through well. I hope I did not seem invasive."

"No, no, you actually made it... much more bearable," I said, hastening to assure her. "You've done me... _such_ a favor. I can never repay you. Thank you. So much. For once, I'm not as scared as I have been. You can look at the Suicide Mission if you'd like. Actually, I would do that if I were you, to get an idea. In case I die during the mission, you know?"

I wasn't going to escort the others to the Normandy, I decided. I was going to double back and join the second fire team. And _nobody_ was going to stop me.

And if I died, at least I died standing up rather than sitting down.

"Thank you; if the time is right, then I will look at it. For now, I feel content with leaving it tucked away. I trust you to help us," Samara said, smiling kindly at me. "Thank you for letting me do it; I could have never done it without your permission. If something happens to you, Abby, I won't let all your efforts go down in vain. I promise you that."

I hugged her. "Thanks," I said, pressing my head into the space between her neck and shoulder. "And I'm sure if he were here, HK would be thanking you, too. We're not the only ones who know what's going to happen. It's a relief."

Samara hugged me back, and chuckled. "You're welcome; I am glad I could be of assistance to you and your friends. All three of you have an astonishing amount of bravery and strength; I admire it."

"So do you," I said, withdrawing from her. "You're a wonderful person. Thanks." I sighed. "I think I'm going to go grab some ramen... and then maybe lay down for a bit and get my head back on straight. I imagine you need to rest, too. How long did we go on for, anyway?"

"An hour and a half, roughly," Samara answered. "I'm not sure if it felt that long to you, but there was a lot to go through. Your visions certainly seem detailed; it's an amazing ability that you, HK, and Sarah have."

"Sometimes you have to wonder how it worked out," I said, shaking my head. Chain mails generally didn't work, after all.

"I suppose it was simply a gift; we all have our own unique ones," Samara remarked thoughtfully. "Again, thank you for letting me do this; it is honoring that you trust me so much. I will let you go eat and rest; I need to meditate myself after that. Again, thank you."

That said, Samara turned around to face the window, like usual.

I supposed that was my dismissal. I exited the room, feeling lightheaded. Everything I passed seemed unreal, like it didn't really exist and the world I'd been thinking about did. Of course that was mixed up. I wondered if one day I would go to sleep and wake up in a mental institution with a severe case of schizophrenia. That... wouldn't surprise me, in all honesty.

It was odd being one of the few people on the ship right now. Everybody was back at their stations, except for what looked like Kasumi and Thane. The both of them were in the medical bay treating Joker's separated shoulder. "Do they need any help in there, EDI?" I asked out loud.

"I don't believe so, Abby; Thane and Kasumi are coming along well. It seems that Mr. Moreau's shoulder was not injured too badly in the chaos. Hopefully, healing will not take a large amount of time," EDI explained.

"He'll still be able to fly the ship, right?" I asked, a little worried.

"Yes, by the time Kasumi and Thane are done, he should be able to pilot the Normandy," EDI responded.

"Good," I said. "And uh... where is Jack?" I made my way to the kitchen and took out some - ah! - ramen packets and began to set a pot of water to boil on the stove.

"She is in her usual area on Deck Four; she has been there since her outburst. Don't worry, it doesn't seem like she plans to leave any time soon," EDI told me.

"Alrighty," I muttered, and got to work. The ramen, which smelled pretty good when it was done, didn't seem to have that same, unhealthy taste as the kind I was used to. I was a little disappointed, but at this point I couldn't really taste it that well. I put the empty bowl in the dishwasher and ran it for good measure, sure that if Rupurt were here he might appreciate it.

I retreated back to my quarters... They were mine now, all right. HK and Sarah were now gone, and I was the only one left. It... didn't really do me any favors. I could remember placing a game of chess with Neyrata and those two kids in that corner table... talking to HK and Sarah... Even the pillow fight with the both of them.

And then Kelly bursting in, thinking that Sarah and I were lesbians... For the first time, we'd all slept on different sides of the ship. Sarah had slept in Samara's quarters, I'd gone... somewhere, I couldn't remember where. HK, being HK, just stayed in the room.

So many things had happened on this ship that wouldn't have happened anywhere else. We had grown as individuals, we had strengthened each other. We had laughed, we'd cried, and in Sarah's case she'd actually drank some ryncol.

It felt like the end was coming, all right. The empty atmosphere of the ship made it feel as though it were inhabited by ghosts.

I took a nap that maybe lasted about an hour, which was a lot for me. Generally I tried not to sleep during the daytime hours, but Samara's mind-meld had taken it out of me.

I had to leave the room after that - it still smelled like the two of them in there. I went back to the kitchen and popped a bag of popcorn, which was left over from our last trip to the Citadel. And then, because screw regulations, I took it up to the CIC.

Joker had returned to his post, his arm in what looked to be a temporary sling. I held the popcorn in front of his face and he started in surprise. "Shit!" he cursed.

I opened up the bag and took some out of it, munching on the glorious junk food. "You can have some if you'd like," I offered.

Joker reached over and took a handful. "Thanks."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm on some painkillers. The shoulder went back into place, and the swelling is going down."

"I'm sorry."

He sighed." You did what you could."

"Can I make it up to you?"

"Don't worry about it. I get it. I'm not the person you need to worry about. Jack's in a rage."

"I bet," I muttered. "I'll deal with her... well, sometime after the mission. Hopefully HK can talk her down. If our positions had been reversed, she'd be telling him he made the right choice. That's what gets me. But she likes him more than she likes me."

"Mmmmhmm. Sorry, dude. It's a classic catch-22. They haven't even had sex yet."

I shuddered. I didn't even want to imagine that. "Speaking of sex," I said, "there's a reason I brought this popcorn up here."

Joker turned around and looked at me, a mischievous glint in his eye. "Oh?"

"Oh yes," I said. "So - you want some entertainment? Some, er, classified 'we-won't-tell-Shepard-about-this' entertainment?"

"Whaddya say, EDI?" Joker asked. "Want in?"

"That is an invasion of privacy, Jeff," EDI reprimanded.

"And so are prostate exams, but I get a bigger kick out of this." He chuckled menacingly. "Alright, Abs, who are we looking for?" He turned the dashboard in front of him to display the multitude of video cameras.

"Check on... Jacob," I said with a smirk. "Is he in the armory?"

We checked. Zaeed was in there, doing another once-over of all of the guns. Right now he was staring down the sight of the Arc Projector, something we hadn't had the pleasure of using yet. While I was helping them out I'd mentioned that the heavy weapons should be fully supplied and stocked up. I had an idea for them later on.

But there was no Jacob.

I smirked. The back of my neck felt increasingly hot with embarrassment. Should I even be doing this? I told myself yes, I needed to see at least a little bit - I needed to know if the Commander romanced anybody. Knowing HK, that would be one of his questions as soon as we had a moment alone.

"So," I said. "Can you check Shepard's quarters?"

"Uhhh..." Joker's head swiveled around to look at EDI's hologram. "Can I?"

The AI might have sighed. "When you released my restraints, areas of ship security I could not fully access have been granted to me. I _could_ allow you to view the surveillance camera in the Commander's quarters, though I advise doing so."

"Ha! Score!" Joker turned to look at me, a smirk on his face. "Every time I try and look into her room I get blocked by some server that says it needs a password. Miranda, too. I guess the Illusive Man doesn't want us spying on either of them. Which will make it even more fun."

"You've tried to look in the Commander's room before?" I questioned.

"Once or twice, not while she was in there or anything," Joker said. "Just checking out my limitations, mostly. The Illusive Man doesn't seem to care about privacy - there are cameras in the showers, the toilets, whatever. So he can see me take a dump whenever he'd like, but I can't see what the heck is going on in their rooms. It makes me pout."

I didn't much like the idea of people watching me while I showered. There were so many illegal things about that I didn't even know where to begin. It made me uncomfortable, to say the least. How often did they watch, or check the cameras? I normally sang in the shower, after all. "That is... so not right."

"Yeah, I know, I don't much like it either. But I don't look at them, so no worries there. But I'm just saying, there's no privacy on this ship. At all."

If there was no privacy on this ship... A dark, dark thought crept into my head, something even worse than imagining the Illusive Man watching me shower.

He must have known about the attack.

And he let it happen.

Some of the shock might have shown on my face, because Joker gave me a strange look. "Don't be too shocked, it happens," he said. "Gah, I shouldn't have mentioned it."

"I suppose I shouldn't be shocked," I said, trying to buy myself some time. "Get into Shepard's quarters. I just need to see if she and Jacob are going to get it on or not. It's important."

Did this meant the Illusive Man trusted us, trusted me, to get the job done? Was he using us to supplement whatever intel he was gathering? How much had we said? How much had he heard? Not only about that, but about us, about how we got on to the Normandy, how we met... everything we had ever talked about.

Joker's hands flew across the orange, holographic terminal. "Okay," he said. "I'm able to get in now. Thanks, EDI."

A moment before he pressed the Enter Key, however, Joker paused. "If they get it on," he said slowly, "I don't exactly want to watch the entire thing. Weird, you know? It being Shepard and all."

"No worries," I said.

"If you do not wish to invade the Commander's privacy, you may simply ask me where Jacob is," EDI said.

"Oh," I said. "Huh. Hadn't thought of that."

"So where is he?"

EDI gave a pause that lasted a millisecond longer than it should have. "In the Commander's quarters."

"Did he get the prize?" I asked, my face heating up even as I said it.

"Yes, I believe he did. Three times, in fact."

"Uh, the non-psychic human is kinda lost here," Joker said. "What?"

"Nothing," I said quickly.

Joker studied my face with some skepticism. I had a feeling he knew only too well. "Riiiiiiiiiight. You know what? Give me that popcorn."

He took it from me and pressed a button. For a moment there I thought that he may have actually gone through with it, but the button he pressed was not Enter - it was Escape. I was at once relieved.

"Actually, Jacob is leaving her quarters now," EDI said. "He just received a page from Garrus about the training areas downstairs. He wishes to maneuver some of the bigger cargo boxes around to give themselves adequate cover when the Oculus enters."

"That is... actually a good idea," I said, surprised. The rooms down there were a little emptier than I'd imagined, but I hadn't even thought of that part of the plan yet.

"You still creep me out," Joker said, munching on the popcorn. "But I think I've finally realized a level of creepiness that I'm totally okay with."

"How is me seeing the future creepier than Shepard walking up behind you while you're listening to the sounds of a screaming woman?" I asked.

"That?" Joker asked. "Those were cartoons. Old re-runs of my favorite show. Grungie the Krogan was tearing up a mental institution."

"Uh-huh."

"It's true!"

"Sure."

"You're such a female."

"And you're such a male."

"At least I'm better looking than you."

"Oh, of course. The beard - it totally makes the look."

"On a level of physical attractiveness, Jeff, I'm afraid that - " EDI began.

"Don't want to hear it! Gah, you two are so annoying."

"So ask me to leave," I challenged with a grin. "You realize that I would, right?"

"Yeah, yeah, I know..."

"It appears as though Thane Krios is taking the elevator to Commander Shepard's quarters," EDI interjected calmly.

I blinked.

Huh?

"_Whaaaaaat?_"

EDI was silent for a long time. Joker, sensing something may be wrong, quickly hacked into the computer and brought up the video feed. I leaned over his shoulder, popcorn forgotten, and observed the image before me. "Holy _shit_," I whispered to myself. Thane's reptilian head filled the entire screen as he waited patiently at Shepard's door. "This isn't supposed to happen."

Shepard did eventually let Thane in, and Joker switched to another camera angle. Shepard was dressed only in the black, lightly armored bodysuit she wore beneath her regular armor. She was planning on going to bed ready, then. Her hair was wet, like she'd just taken a quick shower. I could understand that.

But _Thane_ was there.

I could see their lips moving. Thane was apparently saying something to Shepard, and the Commander was giving him her undivided attention.

"EDI, turn up the volume," Joker said, leaning toward the screen a little.

A moment later I could hear the sounds of low voices over the speakers.

Thane's voice sounded a little more gravelly than usual as he spoke. "You've helped me achieve more than I thought possible," he was saying as he paced the floor a little. "We've righted many wrongs, and... I have spoken with my son." He bowed his head at this, and then slowly turned to face her. "I should be at peace on the eve of battle."

Shepard crossed the short distance between them and looked at him directly. "Stop," she said gently. "You don't need to give me a speech, Thane. I think... I understand how you feel."

The drell tipped his head, lowering his face. He seemed unable to meet the commander's eyes. "I am... so ashamed," he whispered. The corners of his dark eyes glistened as tears leaked down his greenish cheeks.

Suddenly he turned and slammed his fist against the desk with an aggravation that seemed to take Shepard by surprise. She twitched and blinked, but otherwise did not move. She simply let him talk as he continued. "I have worked so hard," he said, looking in her direction but not looking at her. "Meditated and prayed and done good deeds. Atoned for the evils I've done... and prepared. I consider my body's death and a chill settles in my cut. I..." He turned away, bowing his head and scrunching his eyes shut. "I am afraid," he confided. "And it shames me!"

"Thane." Shepard's voice was soft, gentle with kindness and understanding. Her fingertips touched his wrist, pulling him away from the desk and back from his deep retrospect.

"It's alright," she told him. "We will get through this, all of us. We have the best damn crew in the galaxy and you're part of it. Plus we still have Abby with us, and she has already given us an edge we need-and she will help us beat the Collectors on their own turf."

"We have already lost the other two," Thane remarked. "What happens if we lose the third?"

Shepard glanced away briefly, lowering her gaze. "I won't let that happen." The way she said that sounded like a solemn oath. "We will get our crew back and that includes HK. And then..." She looked directly into Thane's eyes. "After that, we'll take the fight to the Reapers themselves."

Thane sighed softly and glanced away again. "It has been proven that we have come to rely on them far too much," he said. "One is dead and the other is gone... and Sarah did not even foresee her own demise, unless she simply did not speak of it. And all of them refused to tell us about the Collector attack that would take the crew."

Shepard sighed thoughtfully, and nodded. "I agree we have come to rely on them too much," she said. "And I take responsibility for that; I'm the Commander of this crew and I turned to them for advice on nearly every mission. They are a great asset, and great kids; however, regardless of whether they're here or not, we still have a fighting chance. Psychics or not, we will beat the Reapers."

"Surely those three were a gift of the gods themselves," Thane said. "My people believe that there is a great significance to the number three, and I felt that while the three of them were onboard our steps would never be uncertain and that our actions would always be correct." He cocked his head to one side, his eyelids flickering. "I fear that Abby may perish along with the others, especially since their number is no longer intact."

"I'm trying my hardest to protect Abby; she alone did a lot for this crew, and she doesn't deserve to die. HK doesn't, either; neither did Sarah," Shepard noted, looking away for a moment. "However, even with the knowledge that they have, I can't guarantee that we will all make it out of this alive. This mission is not going to be easy."

"Indeed, I knew this from the moment I gave you my arm," Thane acknowledged. He clasped his arms behind his back and moved a short distance away... toward the bed. Though he wasn't looking at the bed; he wore a thoughtful expression on his face and he was staring at the wall. "Perhaps it could be said that Sarah interfered with the goodwill of the gods," he mused aloud.

His eyes grew distant as he became more introspective on his religious beliefs. "She often did things that hindered our mission. I remember a discussion I had with her shortly after I joined your team... I could tell then that she doubted herself." He looked at Shepard now. "She was afraid, as someone who did not belong to this life would be." Now his face shifted as a look of confusion crossed his features. "Why would fate select her to know the future, if it would only result in this outcome? Why was she selected to be in a place where she should never have been?" He seemed to be asking deep questions that must have been on his mind for a while, and he was merely voicing them aloud. Perhaps he hoped that Shepard would have some kind of insight.

Shepard seemed to be contemplating this as well; even if she didn't necessarily share Thane's religious beliefs, she was obviously thinking on all of this as well. "Sarah was a handful, and she harmed our mission on more than one occasion, but her intentions were always good," she said, before pausing and taking a deep breath as she thought. "Why did fate select her to know the future and be here? That same question could be asked about a number of things; Sarah was a special person. She was worth a lot more than what some may think, and I think I always knew that."

Thane nodded a little, permitting his eyelids to flicker shut as he considered her answer for a moment. "Perhaps it is fitting that she did not know when or how she would die." He began to move around the quarters again, examining the floor as though trying to picture exactly where Sarah had fallen when Kasumi found her. "I am certain that if she knew she would die here, she would not have been here." He placed a hand on his chest. "Apparently she knew there was a great chance that she would die, just as I know I will die. But she did not know where she would fall in the end... just as I do not know for certain."

"You and Sarah do have a striking similarity in that aspect," Shepard said with a slight nod. "However, you succeed in an area in which Sarah ultimately failed: You don't let a fear of death consume you. You continue to fight and live; Sarah's biggest issue was that she got too wrapped up in her fear and never actually gave herself a fighting chance."

"I wonder... could we have done more?" Thane asked. "Perhaps instead of confining her to quarters, we could have insisted that she learn to defend herself."

"Sarah was interesting to handle; at the time, it seemed like confining her to her quarters was the best course of action. Looking back, I'm not so sure, but I still don't necessarily regret it," Shepard commented thoughtfully. "And we could have insisted that she learned to defend herself, but Sarah had to believe in herself before we could teach her."

Thane seemed to accept that answer. "If I had known what I do now..." He trailed off, appearing deep in thought. He got that distant look as though he were re-living another vivid memory. If he was, it only lasted a couple of seconds and he said nothing. His eyes quickly re-focused and he looked at Shepard again.

Shepard didn't say anything at first; she just stared at Thane for a moment, seeming to wonder if he was going to elaborate on his thought.

Finally, Thane spoke. "If she were here now," he whispered, "and if we had had this conversation about her in that case... and if I survived this mission against the Collectors, I may have considered taking Sarah under my wing, as you humans say, and attempting to help her. It would give me purpose, along with trying to repair my relationship with Kolyat."

"That's noble of you," Shepard said, sounding very sincere. "I'm not one for 'what ifs' much, but that's very noble of you. You are a great man, Thane."

"I simply do what my body was trained to do," Thane replied. "And... what I am able." He paused. "Nevertheless, I pray that the gods will watch over Sarah's soul, wherever she may be now. And..." Once again, he trailed off.

"And?" Shepard repeated, curious.

Thane gave a slight shake of his head. If I hadn't been staring right at him I would have missed it. "Nothing important now," he answered. "Just... what would have been a promise to the goddesses to help hone the abilities of one of their chosen... if she were still here." He bowed his head slightly.

Shepard nodded in agreement. "Like I said, you are a noble man; one of the most noble I know. I know that Sarah would appreciate your devotion," she told him comfortingly. "And wherever she is, I hope she's at peace now."

"Siha... would you find it strange if I admitted something to you?" Thane asked.

"Go ahead," Shepard said encouragingly.

"Somehow I feel deep in my soul that we haven't seen the last of her."

Shepard raised an eyebrow; she almost opened her mouth to say something, but it looked like she was continuing to think. Finally, after several more silent seconds, she spoke. "You know what? That wouldn't surprise me," she admitted, very matter-of-factly.

Shepard retrieved two drinks and brought them over to the edge of the bed. She handed one to Thane and opened the other for herself – it looked alcoholic. Thane watched her out of the corner of his eye for a few seconds, and then he popped the lid on it and took a large swallow. For one long moment they both looked indescribably old and worn-down.

I felt as if I could see the future, _really_ this time; an aged and battle-weary Shepard sitting next to a friend weighed down by his own faults and illness, just drinking the trouble away. A silence deeper than simple friendship stretched between them, and I felt as though they were in the middle of one long conversation that could stretch on forever, where nothing was said and yet didn't need to be.

I eventually stopped watching, sick of the taste of popcorn and the smell of anti-inflammatory gel underneath Joker's sweaty shirt. EDI told me later on that they both finished their drinks and, without a word, Shepard had crawled into her bed and dimmed the lights. Thane retrieved another drink and sat on the edge of the bed for the longest time before silently slipping out and returning to his quarters.

I retreated to Kasumi's room, and was surprised to see that I wasn't the only one there. Samara was already stretched out in a makeshift bed on the floor, fast asleep. Kasumi was sitting in front of her desk, fingering a rose in her gloves. Her hood was down for the first time since I'd seen her. She was beautiful. She set the rose down and went to a closet. She grabbed a blanket and a pillow and set me up silently on the couch. As I laid down, she smiled a little sadly and stroked my face as a mother would.

"Keiji always said I was too optimistic," she said, her voice nothing more than a natural extension of the dim light of her room.

I didn't say anything, and she didn't elaborate. I fell asleep with difficulty, but Kasumi's room was nice, and safe. Later I would find out that even Garrus, Grunt, Zaeed, and Tali spent that night together in Zaeed's room, telling war stories to make themselves feel better.

As far as I know, Mordin never fell asleep, working incessantly on the necessary armor upgrades for the entire squad. But even that eventually took on a quick, methodical air, and became something like a moving meditation. He was focused on his job, first and foremost. But he wasn't truly alone – his omni-tool was set to read aloud all of the messages and vid-mails he'd ever received from his favorite nephew. Sometimes the old salarian could be heard mumbling along to the messages themselves, quoting them verbatim, or perhaps replying to them under his breath.

Miranda eventually joined us in Kasumi's room. I don't even remember her coming in, but I remember the scent of her shampoo as she lay on the floor below me.

Joker never left his post. EDI eventually reclined his seat for him and took control, feeding music from his playlist over his headset, and he descended into what I would suppose a medically-induced coma.

Jack… slept alone. Or perhaps not at all. Occasionally I would wake up and feel as though she was standing right over me, calculating.

But I will never forget that feeling I had that night, right before the battle: it was as though we were all breathing in, and out, as one.

* * *

**(Sarah)**

Biological and technological functions normal and active. All systems functional, awaiting orders.

Rudimentary intelligence detects the presence of one of the Elders; Harbinger is attempting to access memory circuits and what remains within the memory centers of the deteriorated human brain of this husk.

This unit was formerly human... it's name was formerly Sarah. It is no longer aware of its name, although the Elders-whom this unit knew as "Reapers"-are stimulating what little remains of its memory. This unit is now more machine than human.

Harbinger requests additional stimulation of memory centers. How did this unit, formerly known as Sarah, know so much about the Elders and so many future events?

Memory stimulation active; process has begun. Memory stimulation is complete; all available memories that have remained preserved within this unit's organic brain may be accessed now.

Memory scan initiated. What does the unit formerly known as Sarah remember from its life?

Memory scans show that the organic elements of its mind have deteriorated to the point where most of what remains is irrelevant data. Scan shows the following:

Vivid images of Garrus Vakarian, seen in various areas aboard the Normandy with minimal coverings. One particular image showed a memory of increased hormonal response at the sight of the turian with no pants.

Vivid emotions of fear, terror. This unit knew of the attack on the Normandy and its inevitability. Why did it not say anything to Shepard? This unit could have possibly hindered the attack if it truly knew about it in advance.

Vivid emotions of strong remorse and guilt. This subject experienced sorrow over many of the things it did, including pulling a gun on its good friend Kasumi and for many antics that affected the efficiency and performance of the crew, including Shepard, HK and Abby. This unit even experienced a strong sense of self-directed anger because of this.

Conclusion: This unit's previous human existence classifies as an introverted personality with odd tendencies. Its actions were driven by a variety of emotions; anger, fear, insecurity, self-confidence issues, remorse and helplessness.

Data archived; most of it is irrelevant and useless. We will use this unit to interrogate HK, whom the Collectors have moved to a secure cell reserved for specific subjects on the Collector Base.

We will use the Sarah unit-what it would have called a "husk" during its life-to interrogate HK. Perhaps the HK unit will respond to us if we speak to him through it. If not, we will resort to more painful methods of persuasion.

Note: There are shreds of data within this unit's memories containing personal data contributing to HK's past experiences and personal life. This may be useful in getting more information out of HK.

* * *

**(HK)**

My eyelids fluttered open and it took me several moments to figure out where I was... and to remember who I was, even. I felt dazed and numb, as though I'd been injected with some kind of drug. Or maybe it was simply the fact that I had been hit on the head very hard and dragged off somewhere; my head throbbed painfully.

I looked around, attempting to sit up. I found my limbs attached securely to something that resembled a rather hard bed... almost like the ones in the medical bay back on the Normandy.

The Normandy. That was what I remembered last-the attack happening on the Normandy! I saw the Collectors coming aboard after Shepard, Abby and the ground team had left in the shuttle. The Collectors had begun to take the crew, and I knew that they were coming after me...

And that's when I saw Sarah, as impossible as that seemed. I knew that Sarah was dead. Yet I had seen her rise off of the table, and she looked at me-and then I had noticed that she looked very different from when I saw her last. The last thing I remembered was her contorted face looming over me.

I looked around some more, examining my surroundings. I appeared to be in a small room of some sort, one with sturdy metallic walls and a door on the far side of the room. I already knew that it was probably locked, although it made little difference whether it was locked or not. My wrists and ankles were restrained to the solid surface I was on, so I couldn't get up to go check anyway.

Suddenly the door opened, and then she stepped in. I recognized her as Sarah, the same person I'd seen rise up from the bed in the medical bay on the Normandy and come toward me. Only now she looked even worse and even more contorted than she did before. She had the look of a husk; her hair and scalp had been replaced with a pale bony look, and most of her body glowed the bluish tinge of technology. The only thing that remained the same was something in her face, and the general shape of her form. This was Sarah, no doubt about it; at least what was left of her.

Yet somehow she didn't look like a typical husk. She seemed a little more advanced somehow, as though the Reapers had put a bit of extra tech into her. Even as I stared at her in horror, I couldn't help but wonder what the Reapers had done to her, and why.

Her eyes started to glow, and then the tech in her body brightened until it looked more like a white halo around her body. And then she spoke-only it wasn't her voice that emanated from her technological mouth.

"HK," the deep, almost thundering voice spoke; it almost seemed to bounce off of the walls as it filled the room. "At long last, we have not one of the psychics, but two. This one is the shell remains of the one known as Sarah. Only a little information remained in her mind; we will glean anything you know now. Cooperate, and this will be painless."

I almost wanted to shudder in horror; this was the Collector base. It had to be; I was in that utterly creepy base. And standing before me was Harbinger, once again, but this time he was inhabiting one of my best friends for the time being. It was horrifying.

Sarah had been the one to capture me; Sarah, of all people. One of the people I trusted most was the one to take me to the Collectors. Obviously, it wasn't really Sarah, but still...it was her body. It was even more ironic that instead of getting captured, she'd been doing the capturing.

I was definitely afraid. At the same time, though, I was getting to the point where I almost wanted to just tell Harbinger off. I'd been through this before; I'd been interrogated before. And now, not only does he capture me again, but he decides to use one of my best friends for his own gain. I'd been through so much, I was growing more and more apathetic about all of this.

Still, though, I refused to die. I was not ready to die.

I narrowed my eyes at him; I wasn't feeling the best physically, either. I was sore after my encounter with the husk version of Sarah, and I hadn't fully gotten over that food poisoning when I was captured.

"Do you really think this will go any better than last time?" I asked, snarling at him.

"You will join us," Harbinger's voice boomed. "It is inevitable." As the Reaper's voice continued to speak, I began to feel... different, as though the words were emanating inside my skull and starting to touch the depths of my soul, my heart. "You will realize that the only way your species can survive is for us to conquer it. Your destruction will be your salvation, and it is an endless cycle that cannot be broken. Your friend, Sarah, understood this; and yet she allowed fear to rule her when she should have turned herself over to us." Harbinger paused, as though letting the words sink in. "Do you understand?" he then asked.

I felt the words starting to crawl in my head, and I knew what he was doing; I couldn't let it happen. These Reapers would not get the best of me; the only one in the universe that I ever have and ever will submit to is God Himself. No one else.

I closed my eyes, trying not to listen. "No!" I snapped defiantly.

"It is pointless to resist," Harbinger insisted. "We will not be stopped; you are only delaying the inevitable." His voice, those words... they rang with a firm confidence, as if it was the truest statement ever made.

And then he went one step further. "Sarah is still here, in a way," he said. Part of me knew that this was more trickery, but it was getting harder to think straight. "A portion of her memories and personality remain. Let me show you." And that's when Sarah spoke in a near-perfect replication of her own voice:

"Hiya, HK. How's the Normandy?"

My eyes went wide. _I...what...how?_

I had never seen Harbinger, or any Reaper, do that in either one of the games; the only time that anything close to that happened was when Paul Grayson had Reaper technology implemented into himself, but he was alive, and still had some control of his brain.

Now Harbinger was talking as Sarah. It couldn't be the actual Sarah; it had to be a trick.

"Sarah," I said, some desperation seeping into my voice. I couldn't contain it; I didn't think I'd ever hear her voice again.

Sarah stepped forward, her form still glowing as she stood over me. "How are you doing?" she asked me. "They didn't hurt you, did they?"

"They?" I spat, trying to play along. Though, at the same time, it was hard not to talk to her like I would on any other day. "Don't you mean you?"

"I'm really sorry that happened, I couldn't help it," Sarah said, and she sounded very convincing. "I have control over myself right now, but I don't know how long that will last. Let me get you out of here." She reached for the restraints that bound me, as if getting ready to undo them.

I raised an eyebrow. Harbinger wouldn't do that; could it be?

No, no, she was dead. She was dead. It had to be some trick of Harbinger's.

"If you could, that'd be great," I said, not trying to stop her.

To my surprise, she actually did undo the restraint holding down my left wrist with some difficulty. Apparently husk-fingers weren't designed for such delicate work. She then began to work on the second one. "There isn't much time left," she said.

I stared in confusion; this seemed great, but it was almost too good to be true. It had to be some kind of trick; Sarah seemed like Sarah, but this was so suspicious.

"Thanks, I really appreciate it," I explained to her. I paused, thinking on how to word my next sentence.

"Sarah, you know how close we are, but...I need you to prove yourself to me, somehow. I need to know that you are the real deal, and not some trick; I'm so sorry, but I saw your corpse. This is a little hard to believe."

Sarah actually laughed. "Come on, it's really me. Don't you remember the time when you cut off my character's lekku in that old role-play we did on the internet, and then you shoved him into a washing machine? I still remember you saying later on that you only meant to slash the lekku, not to cut them off."

That was definitely something that not too many people would know, especially in this reality; it was one of my earliest memories with Sarah. Her saying that was positive, but I still couldn't be sure. I had a weird idea; it was probably stupid, but I didn't have a lot of time and this was just something that came to my head.

"Well, okay," I said. "I have one more question, just to make sure that it's you. On what day, exactly, and year, did you get your cat?"

Sarah hesitated. "Sorry, I don't remember that," she said after a moment. "How am I supposed to remember something like that with all this other stuff going on?"

And that was probably the most encouraging answer she could give; I knew Sarah, and I knew she wasn't that good with exact dates. If she had given one, it would have raised my suspicions; I still wasn't certain, but things seemed alright. Maybe I could...go along.

I sighed with relief. "Alright, I believe you," I told her.

"Awesome," she said, and then she finished undoing the rest of my restraints with some difficulty. Once that was done, she moved away from the bed I was on and approached the doorway. Her movements were stiff and a little jerky, but she did seem to be acting somewhat human; she even opened the door and leaned out to look both ways. She then turned back to look at me. "Let's go!" she said. "Maybe we can find the crew and save some of the colonists before it's too late!"

Slowly, I stood up, and I felt slightly unstable, but I could deal with it. "I hope so," I said. I still wasn't entirely sure on whether to trust her, but what I'd heard was enough to make me go with her. "I'm not sure we'll be able to fight through all the Collectors though, but it's better than sitting here."

She hesitated, as if unsure about her own actions. "Do you think maybe we should stay in here, just in case?" she asked me. "I mean... we'd be able to do a lot more when Shepard and the others get here. Oh I hope they get here soon!"

"What if Harbinger comes back?" I asked curiously.

Sarah seemed uncertain. "I don't know," she said. "I guess we'll just have to hope he doesn't come back." Then, unexpectedly, she hugged me. "I really hope I don't end up hurting you," she said. "How is Abby? How is Shepard?" Pause. "How is Garrus?"

I was hesitant to hug her, but slowly, I felt my arms wrapping themselves around her in an embrace. "They're good; it's hard for all of them, but they're holding up," I replied. "But, uh, about Garrus...he found out about...well, you know."

"About what?" she asked. And then realization seemed to dawn across her contorted, husk face. "Oh my God... oh no." She withdrew her arms from me and retreated to the opposite side of the room, looking as though she wanted the floor to swallow her up or the ceiling to cave in and crush her. "I'll never be able to set foot on that ship again," she moaned.

I was starting to have a hard time believing that this was not Sarah.

"Right now, I think we just need to worry about getting out of here alive," I told her.

Sarah sighed. After a few moments, she seemed to recover... more or less. "Let's talk about something else," she pleaded, as if wanting to take her mind off of that humiliation. "Let's talk about... the future." She then looked at me with an intense gaze, and then the words seemed to ring inside my head and touch my soul. "Let us talk about the future from now."

I raised an eyebrow, yet I strangely found myself eager to hear what she had to say. Why was that? "What do you mean?" I asked.

"Please," she said. Her voice was gentle, almost timid, as though she were merely looking for something to talk about other than Garrus finding out about the pictures. Yet for some reason, her words felt powerful, compelling. "Let's talk about the future. What will Shepard do when she comes here?"

That was a confusing question, yet at the same time...I felt the urge to answer it. It was weird; I felt like she really needed an answer, but at the same time, her asking that still threw me through a loop. "You should know that," I answered.

"I do know," she stated. "But I'm a little rusty on some of it." She paused, as if considering what I'd already said. "She will come here," she murmured, mostly to herself. "Will she succeed in destroying this base?" She glanced at the ceiling, as though trying to determine just how sturdy the surrounding structure truly was.

I had to give her an answer; I needed to give her an answer.

But she should know the answer. She was there during most of the journey; she should know what would happen!

"Sarah, you know what the outcome is going to be," I said to her. "You...you know what it is, don't you?"

"Shepard will be victorious," Sarah said. It sounded almost tentative, as though she was trying the answer on for size.

_Confirm it! Tell her she's right!_

I wanted to just shout "YES!" so badly, but for some reason, I couldn't bring myself to do it yet; I felt like forces were pulling me in two different directions on this one. Like there was some battle going on in my head. What was happening?

"Did you already know that, or is that a conclusion you just drew for yourself?" I inquired.

"I know it," she said. Part of my mind then realized that I had confirmed what she was asking through my question, defeating the point... yet it didn't seem to matter much. "Let's talk about what happens next," she said. "What will Shepard do after she leaves here?"

"You should know that, too," I simply said.

"I am... rusty," she said simply. "Please tell me."

I needed to tell her. I had to tell her...but no...this was too strange.

"You know what's going to happen afterwards," I snapped, a bit more firmly.

Suddenly she stiffended and straightened; her form glowed, and it was Harbinger's voice that boomed throughout the room once again. "Foolish," he said. "One way or another, we will get the information we seek."

I gasped. "You," I snapped. "It was you; it really was you. This entire time, it was you."

"It seems that we will need to do this the hard way," Harbinger said, and Sarah's husk-form began to advance toward me.

I began to back away. "Don't you dare try anything," I said, trying to stand up to the Reaper this time.

"Foolish words." With a swing of its arm, the husk-creature hit me squarely in the chest and sent me crashing to the floor. The blow knocked the wind out of me and my vision swam as my head hit the solid, metal floor. Before I could recover, the husk scooped me up and plopped me back down onto the smooth, hard surface I had been on when I'd first awakened. A moment later, the restraints were back in place, holding my wrists and ankles down securely.

I gritted my teeth; I was almost free. Almost, but then, it'd all been reduced to nothing and I was back on this slab.

Yet, at the same time...a part of me wanted to be here. When Harbinger acted as Sarah, he'd been able to get inside my head, to a certain extent, and now, I couldn't get him out. But I couldn't get indoctrinated. I wouldn't. I refused to let that happen.

"So," I said, breathless. "Now what?"

Instead of answering with words, the Sarah-husk grabbed a device off of a nearby pedestal and then approached me with it. Then, without hesitation, the husk-Harbinger-jabbed a sharp point directly into the jugular vein of my neck.

I let out a small yelp at the pain; I knew things were about to go from bad to worse. "Get away from me!" I shouted, growing angry and frustrated with all of this.

The husk drew back, but more because it was finished than because of my reaction. Then the Sarah-husk spoke again... and this time, it was in another perfect imitation of Sarah's voice. "Don't worry, HK," her voice said. "Soon enough you'll be just like I am now, only your memories are intact and your mind is active. The Reapers will know everything you know," her voice taunted.

"Sorry, Sarah," I told her. I had to stand my ground; no more cowering in fear. "I don't think they will; the Reapers will have to settle for your corpse this time."

Harbinger's voice once again spoke, filling the room. "You will be useful."

I clenched my fists; that thought was almost unbearable. But I couldn't back down; not now. "Even if you manage to do that, there's nothing you can do," I told him, trying to sound totally confident. "No matter how much info you get from me, Sarah, or anyone, it won't change anything. Shepard is Shepard; she is always going to find a way to defeat you. She has skills that you and your Reaper friends don't have and that you never will have; she's able to fry all of you no matter what the odds. Accept it, Harbinger: You're doomed."

I was silent for a moment, staring at what used to be one of my closest friends. "I guess I could put it in a way you'd understand: Shepard is the harbinger of your destiny, whether you like it or not."

"This conversation is pointless," Harbinger said, and then the Sarah-husk seemed content to stand idly by, as the eyes of the Reapers, waiting patiently as the tech slowly began to work in me.

"Is it hard to deal with?" I asked dryly. "Knowing, deep in your Reaper cores or whatever you have, that you're going to lose no matter what you do? That all those years of wiping out civilizations is going to come back and bite you? Because no matter what you do, the simple fact is that there's no win for you: Shepard is going to defeat you."

No reply. But I wasn't really expecting one.


	50. Through the Relay, take a right

**(Abby)**

Most of us were in the mess hall taking the opportunity to get a few bites to eat and hit the restrooms to take a quick shower or use the facilities before we embarked on our final mission. The only ones who weren't present were Shepard and Joker, and I knew that the pilot was in the cockpit and Shepard was... well, doing whatever the Commander chose to do as the remaining time ticked away.

We'd all slept fitfully during the night, and now we were simply killing time until EDI announced that we were ready to go through the Omega 4 relay. Everything on the ship was as ready to go as it would ever be and, since EDI was now in control of the ship's systems, things didn't need to be monitored as closely as before. Therefore, the remaining crew could afford let their hair down a little until EDI, or Shepard, gave the signal for everyone to get back to their stations.

Grunt belched. "That was good ryncol," he said, his deep voice slightly more relaxed than usual.

"If you say so," Garrus muttered.

"Now that Rupert is gone, I have full access to his hidden stash," the krogan stated, sounding pleased.

"For a reason," Miranda said. "There's no reason you need to have the entire stash to yourself."

"Oh, piss off and let him drink," Zaeed said. He then held out his hand. "Give me some," he told the krogan./

"Unwise," Mordin spoke up. "Ryncol is not good for human digestion." He paused and drew in a breath in the way that always sounded like a sniff. "Know from first-hand experience when I examined Sarah after she drank some."

"Obviously didn't have the stomach for it," Grunt commented. "Then again, she never did have the stomach for anything, not even a real fight." The krogan handed Zaeed a half-empty bottle of the vile liquid.

He must have really liked that grumpy old man, I later reflected.

"Just... don't let Shepard catch you drinking that, Zaeed," Tali sighed.

As the veteran opened the bottle and sniffed it, preparing to take a swig, Jack suddenly snatched the bottle that Grunt had been drinking from. It was nearly empty and no doubt full of krogan saliva and germs by now, but she didn't seem to care. "I'm gonna take a damn hit," she said, and then she tipped her head back and took a big gulp. When she swallowed the sound was so audible it made my throat hurt to watch her.

Then she dropped the bottle as a shudder rippled through her body. She scrunched her eyes shut, and then she sighed. Something else seemed to pass over her, some kind of emotion that accompanied whatever she was experiencing from the drink. "Fuck, yeah," she said, her voice somewhat raspy. "That's the spirit."

Then she looked like she was going to throw up.

I reacted quickly, taking a step back in case it did happen, my heart beating fast. Everybody was watching her expectantly. And then...

Jack lurched, clutching at her stomach and gagging a little. Beads of sweat oozed from her pores and slid down her forehead onto her face and bare, tattooed chest. However, after a moment of gagging, she straightened and wiped at her forehead with the back of her hand.

"What the fuck are you all staring at?" she demanded after a moment, scowling at everyone as if nothing had happened.

"This stuff isn't so bad," Zaeed said, and took what was probably his second or third large mouthful from his own bottle.

"Take it easy, you two," Jacob sighed. "Save it for the Citadel."

Jack's eyes narrowed, and she put the bottle down. I could tell she was thinking of HK, but she was too strong to say it aloud.

Grunt took back the bottle. "I didn't say you could have the whole thing," he snapped, and drained the rest of it. He let loose another large belch. "That's the edge I need right there."

"How the hell did you two just drink that?" Miranda asked.

"Lots of practice, dearie," Zaeed said with a wink. Sweat was beading on his brow. "I can't finish a whole bottle, but I'm usually good for three or four sips."

"You're both going to die of liver failure," Kasumi muttered.

Zaeed actually laughed. "Not worried about it."

Just then, EDI's voice spoke from the nearest terminal. "Commander Shepard requests that everyone return to their stations," she said. "We are about to go through the Omega 4 relay."

I looked directly at EDI's bulbous form. "Where is Shepard now?" I asked.

"On the bridge with Joker," EDI said, confirming what I already knew.

I got up from my seat, leaving behind my unfinished dish of ramen noodles. If we all died, a couple of dirty dishes wouldn't count as negative karma in the afterlife. "I gotta get up there," I said to no one in particular. I hurried toward the nearest lift, vaguely aware of everyone else scurrying off to their own stations. Miranda and Garrus moved quickly toward their areas. I glanced over my shoulder as I approached the lift.

The atmosphere had changed drastically. Now we were going to do it – we were actually going to do it.

I felt like I wanted to laugh and cry at the same time.

A short time later I reached the upper level where the bridge was. I found myself glancing at the empty seats as I passed them, feeling a slight chill rush up and down my spine as I thought of the missing crew. I knew that we were going to rescue them, and hopefully HK as well. The thought of them inside those chambers, preparing to be processed into human slush to make a human Reaper-it was something I didn't want to think about. And I knew that no matter what happened, Lilith was going to die right before our eyes.

And we would watch her die. As Ashley had said before, you _never_ get used to seeing dead civilians.

I quickened my pace, wanting to be near Shepard as we went through the Relay. I needed to be there. More importantly, I wanted to be there, right next to her, to make sure that she was safe. I didn't want her to die.

I would gladly give my life for hers, if only she could rescue HK.

"So, how'd the talk with the Illusive Man go?" I heard Joker's voice saying as I walked up the narrow pathway toward the cockpit. Shepard stood just behind his seat, armed and armored, ready for anything. She was holding her helmet loosely by her side; the light of the consoles in front of her seemed to fade reluctantly into the matte finish.

"He's anticipating the outcome as much as we are," she said.

"Makes you wonder why he's not demanding to come with us," Joker muttered. "Isn't one of the big military rules go something like, _Don't ask somebody to do anything you wouldn't do yourself._"

"He's given us a job and funded the mission," Shepard said. "Besides, at this point he would only get in the way."

Joker sighed.

"The Illusive Man will be receiving steady reports on our progress throughout the entire mission," EDI confirmed. "That, of course, is one of the dual purposes of our specialized communications network. He may have some input at the end of the mission."

"What makes you say that?" Shepard asked.

"He has asked me to keep him informed," the AI replied. "Other than that, I do not know of his intentions."

I carefully looked away from Shepard.

"Then we'll deal with that as it comes," Shepard murmured. Then, as if to herself, she added, "Just like everything else."

"We're approaching the Omega Four Relay," Joker announced; the sound reverberated through the hallway, and I realized he'd switched to intercoms.

Outside, the relay only grew bigger, and bigger. I'd never seen a mass relay jumped this close before, though I'd experienced countless ones throughout our journey. The red lights sparked and jumped around the two rotating metal structures, almost like tendrils of flesh gradually easing out to suck our ship in.

From the casual way Shepard looked in my direction, I got the impression she'd known I was there all along even though she hadn't acknowledged me. It was either the Shepard Sixth Sense, or perhaps she'd heard me coming. My heart continued to race, and I belatedly wondered how high, exactly, my blood pressure was at that moment.

"Everyone get ready," Joker said. His fingers flew across the console, working with the same technical experience one could see in a skilled musician… except most musicians didn't have to play their instruments for their lives, unless you were Orpheus.

"Let's make it happen," Shepard said.

The ship shuddered faintly beneath my feet as we neared the relay, and the windows tinted automatically to counteract the glaring bright light. Even so, I squinted and put a hand in front of my eyes, stunned by the light. Joker's typing never even hitched. I heard a quick intake of breath, but I wasn't sure if that was him, Shepard, or _me._

The ship jerked – Joker growled.

"Reaper IFF activated," EDI confirmed. "Signal acknowledged."

"Commander," Jacob's voice came over the comm channel, "The drive core just lit up like a Christmas tree!"

"Drive core electrical charge at critical levels."

"Re-routing!" Joker shouted. "Shit – everybody, grab on to something, now!"

I felt a sudden urge to squeeze my eyes shut in anticipation of the jump, but I didn't. I couldn't. I looked down and to the right to counteract the glare as the windows struggled to compensate. A hand gripped my bicep and pulled my close. Shepard had one firm hand on me, the other on some type of support by the wall.

And then we hit the relay.

Space itself looked warped and weird outside the windows as the ship trembled, and I knew that we were almost there. My stomach lurched uneasily. Joker's shoulders were tense. It was the ultimate test of a pilot, making a mass relay jump into an unknown territory.

"Brace for deceleration," EDI warned.

I didn't even remember what happened next. I was falling (when did the ceiling become the floor?) and suddenly I stopped in midair and reversed direction as the gravitational wells kicked in. For a brief moment, I was weightless. I hit the ground, inexplicably, on my feet.

Joker cursed out loud. Like a great maestro, he turned the ship into a difficult turn, barely missing the large chunk of _rock_ that _had been heading straight towards us_. I couldn't help but wonder if EDI was assisting in some fashion as well. The rocks flew at us like the fists of some higher entity, and I screamed as one came particularly close to hitting the tempered glass.

The _Normandy_ surged through the field of debris and, for a moment, everything was quiet.

Then I allowed my eyes to close and I let out a sigh of relief that echoed Joker's. I already knew what would happen, but seeing it in a game and living it for real were two completely different things.

It was a _lot_ scarier.

"Too close," Joker muttered. "Too goddamn close."

Shepard and I exchanged a glance. Her brow was furrowed, belying her nerves, but she looked remarkably composed. I, on the other hand… The look lasted only a second or two, but it was long enough for me to draw strength from it. We both glanced up and through the canopy, into the large and unforgiving nothingness of space around us.

"It's beautiful," I said in spite of myself. The red-hot light from the core glanced off twisted and mangled pieces of ships that had not made it, nor ever would. Each tiny piece of steel was a sunset to my eyes, rippling in the nothingness that it floated within.

"These must be all of the ships that tried to make it through the Omega Four Relay," Joker commented. "Some look... ancient."

And he was right. Some of the ships seemed more preserved than others, and one of them looked like the forerunner to a turian model I'd seen around the Citadel.

I wish I could've taken a picture. I wished Sarah and HK were here, with me, so that we could admire it together.

"I have detected an energy signature near the edge of the accretion disk," EDI informed us.

A mere ten seconds later, our point of destination came into view. An enormous, ugly space station that I knew was the Collector Base. It hung in the middle, having ejected itself out of the even larger base behind it. Beyond them both I could see a bright glowing star, even brighter and more magnificent than any Mass Effect relay I'd ever seen.

"That's it," I whispered. I felt my fingers cramping up and only then did I realize that I was gripping the back of Joker's chair very tightly.

"We made it," Shepard said. "Take us in for a closer look, nice and easy."

_And now I just need to make sure we make it _out_, _I thought.

Somehow, I didn't really see that I was going to come out of this alive.

"Stand by on weapons," Shepard ordered.

"Careful, Jeff, we have company," EDI informed us.

Joker made no reply; his full attention was on what he was doing. The _Normandy_'s pace quickened as the pilot began taking evasive maneuvers; we all knew that the things out there were deadly. I tightened my hold on the panel.

Our lives hung in Joker's hands. For now, there was nothing I could do except wait.

Joker narrowed his eyes. "They're just pissing me off," he said as his hands worked the console. As the _Normandy_ came around, I saw the two little enemy devices in front of us. Two energy blasts erupted from our ship's powerful guns, destroying them instantly and we passed their debris before I could even see much of it.

"EDI!" Joker yelled, "Take these bastards out!"

The ship shuddered beneath our feet, throwing me forward.

"Let's hope Jacob's upgrades come in handy," Miranda said, scaring me. When had she gotten here?

"They want another round," Joker muttered. "Come on girl, let's give it to them!"

The ship rolled sideways as another blast came at us. I gritted my teeth as the ship shuddered again; the _Normandy_'s belly had been struck.

And there were no casualty reports.

I stared at the holographic readouts on Joker's console, following the movements of the _Normandy_ along with the four enemy objects that stayed on our tail. The _Normandy_ rolled and then sailed upward, attempting to outrun our pursuers – or, at least, bring them in front of us so they could get a taste of our new guns.

One of the red dots on the map was getting awfully close, but this was part of the plan, it wasn't n accident. The ship shuddered again, pitching me into the ground. Shepard and Miranda managed to keep their feet, but only barely.

"Alert," EDI announced, "hull breach on the Engineering Deck."

"It's in the cargo hold," Joker confirmed, his voice tight with frustration.

"I'll take a team and deal with the intruder," Shepard said, already moving out of the cockpit. "You get the rest of them off our tail!" As if in anticipation, she suddenly turned and jabbed a finger at me. "Abby, you stay in the cockpit with Joker." Her words were firm and offered no argument – before I could even think of one, she'd left with Miranda.

"Take a seat, Abs," Joker said, his voice tense. "I don't want you hovering around behind me if things turn ugly."

I sank down into the empty chair near his, putting on the crash harness just in case. I looked at the console in front of me and then I tapped into the comm system with my omni tool. If I couldn't be down there, at least I could hear what was going on.

Grunt had already engaged the Oculus on his own with the grenade launcher, and all I could hear for the longest time was the sound of him growling obscenities at the "fucking floating chew toy."

"We're coming down the elevator," Shepard said. "Grunt, draw it off to the side so we don't get murdered on our way down."

"Don't forget to wear your masks," Kasumi snapped. "There's a hull breach down there, people."

"Mass effect shields are up and taking care of it," Joker said. "But don't take any chances."

"Understood," Miranda said. "Status report!"

"Everything's solid," Jacob said. "Take it out!"

"I'm circling around to Grunt's room," Zaeed informed us. "I'll give you covering fire."

"This thing is _begging_ to be obliterated," Grunt muttered.

Things must have worked out as planned, but they were finding the Oculus difficult to beat. At one point it turned and fired into Grunt's room – only some quick thinking on Zaeed's part and some kinetic barriers saved his life.

"Damn you, _budge!_" Miranda yelled.

As the firefight continued, Joker proceeded with evasive maneuvers. I found my attention being split into two directions as I witnessed more than I'd seen in the game. At least a dozen of those things came at us, yet between Joker's piloting and EDI's weapons fire, they didn't get too close. A couple of them managed to get in a few good shots, but the hull plating held up.

"Yes!" Joker said through gritted teeth. "That's it, keep the pressure on!"

"_Take it down,_ _now_!" Miranda shouted.

"It's retreating," Shepard's voice announced.

"Maybe it's had enough," Grunt commented.

"No," the Commander said. "It'll be back."

"Oh shit," Joker swore as another wave of the little ships began to swarm over the _Normandy_. "There's too many of them and we're sitting ducks out here! I'm gonna have to try to lose them in the debris field."

"Do whatever you need to do!" Shepard told him over the comm.

I sat back and craned my neck to see out the viewport; I couldn't see the holographic readouts anymore because I was sitting too far from Joker and his shoulders and head were in the way. I could see that we were heading straight back into the debris field, directly into a particularly thick area.

"Our kinetic barriers are not designed to survive impact with debris that size, Jeff," EDI said.

"Then I guess it's a good thing we upgraded," Joker replied. "We're going in!"

And we did go in. Enormous pieces of debris rushed past us and I could envision the little ships outside being smashed as they attempted to follow us. The _Normandy_ shuddered as her hull scraped across a piece of debris, her metal exterior shrieking as she scraped against metal. "Come on," Joker urged, "find some room!"

"Kinetic barriers at forty percent," EDI said.

"Reroute non-critical power," Joker said. "This is gonna hurt."

I held my breath as the seconds ticked by. We continued through the debris field, and I knew that this was when a second death would have occurred if we hadn't upgraded. The ship trembled and the seconds continued to tick by, but, again, there were no causality reports.

Tali was safe.

"Kinetic barriers are holding at thirty percent," EDI announced once we were out of the worst of it. "No significant damage."

"Take the helm, EDI, and keep it slow," Joker told the AI. "See if we can avoid any more attention."

"I have detected an enemy heading for the cargo hold," EDI said.

Joker peered at the readouts. "That thing again?" he groaned. "This one's up to Shepard."

A moment later, I could hear voices over the comm channel I'd opened again. "It's back!" Grunt announced happily.

"I knew it," Shepard said. "We'll keep it distracted. Grunt, take it out."

There was no more talking as the battle continued in the lower area of the ship. There was only the sound of weapons' fire and the occasional shout. Grunt sounded like he was having a good time down there.

"Sounds like that thing is giving them hell," Joker remarked. His head turned slightly in my direction, although I had a feeling that his eyes never left the console. "What is that thing? Is it anything like that beast that Shepard found on Horizon near the transmitter?"

"No," I said. "It's bigger." _But the Praetorian is a lot worse,_ I thought privately.

"Wonderful," Joker groaned. "Any more of those things on the Collector base?"

"No."

"Well, that's good at least."

The moments ticked by until finally there was a yell of triumph, followed by an explosion that I could feel through my boots. "It'll stay dead this time," Grunt said with approval.

"Better get back up here, Commander," Joker said.

"We are about to reach the Collector base and clear the debris field," EDI announced.

"On my way," Shepard said.

A few minutes later, Shepard and Miranda returned to the cockpit at a swift jog. "There it is," Miranda said as she peered out the viewport. "The Collector base."

_We're coming, HK,_ I thought. _Just hold on a little longer._

"See if you can find a place to land without drawing attention," Shepard told Joker.

"Too late," Joker said. "Looks like they're sending out an old friend to greet us."

The Collector vessel emerged from its docking place on the side of the station and turned to face the _Normandy_. I swallowed. That was a _big_, _ugly_ mother -

It fired. The _Normandy_ moved, twisting left and then right in order to avoid the deadly beam that had destroyed the original _Normandy_ and killed Shepard.

"Time to show our new teeth," she snapped. "Fire the main gun."

I looked out in anticipation as the _Normandy_ fired her powerful weapons, designed and upgraded by Garrus himself. Our ship released her own deadly beam and struck the Collector ship around the bottom of the circular opening.

"How do you like _THAT_, you sons of bitches?" Joker exclaimed. He threw his middle finger up at them, cackling like a madman.

"Get in close and finish them off," Shepard ordered. Now that we had the upper hand and had taken the Collectors by surprise, it was time to destroy that ship. We had them off-balance, now we just had to finish it.

"Everybody hold on, it's gonna be a wild ride!" Joker said. "EDI, I'm taking back the helm."

The _Normandy_ twisted around, narrowly avoiding the deadly beam from the enormous enemy vessel as it returned fire. Once we got in close Joker smacked his fist against the holographic controls. "Give 'em hell, girl!" he exclaimed.

And she did. The _Normandy_'s guns ripped through the Collector as if it were made of butter. As we swung by, I saw small fires and electrical sparks flaring up from the inside-out. We'd hurt it, and hurt it badly.

"Look out!" Miranda exclaimed as debris began to fly toward the _Normandy_. Our ship got caught in the explosion and the _Normandy_ shook violently. Shepard and Miranda held on to my seat to keep their balance.

"The mass effect field generators are offline!" Joker said. "EDI, _give me something_!"

"Generators unresponsive," EDI replied. "All hands, brace for impact."

"Motherfu—"

We hit something so hard that the straps holding me into my seat left bruises afterwards. Shepard and Miranda went flying, but I heard no crunch of bone on metal. I couldn't hear anything outside of my own screams and the screech of metal upon metal. We were _moving_ and we _were going to die -_

The ship hit the ground hard and slid on the exterior wings of the Collector Base. The Normandy finally stopped with a groan and became still.

Miranda and Shepard picked themselves up from the floor with difficulty, and I swung around in my seat to make sure they were okay. Miranda's hair was messed up, but otherwise they appeared fine. "Biotic cushion," Miranda told Shepard. She looked pale, and her dark hair seemed to float slightly at the ends with static electricity. "Only reason we didn't get crushed against the walls."

Joker groaned. "I think I broke a rib... or all of them."

"Multiple core systems were overloaded during the crash," EDI reported. "Restoring operation will take time."

Miranda sighed. "We all knew this was likely a one-way trip," she said, and she sounded worried.

"Our primary mission is to destroy the station and stop the Collectors," Shepard replied. "A return trip was never guaranteed."

"Well," Joker said, "then we're off to a good start. What's next?"

"How long until the Collectors find our landing zone?" Shepard asked.

"I do not detect an internal security network," EDI replied. "It is possible the Collectors did not expect anyone to reach the base."

"If we're lucky," Joker said, "their external sensors were hit like we were. They _might_ not know we're alive. If what Abs said was true, we'll have time."

"Then we'll proceed with the mission," Miranda said. "We need to discuss our next move."

"EDI, start scanning," Shepard said.

She turned around and left. I unbuckled my crash webbing and followed behind Miranda, leaving Joker alone at the helm.

* * *

I stood at Shepard's right-hand side, surveying the mission preparation before us with crossed arms. We were in enemy territory and, despite what I had said beforehand, we all weren't really expecting to come out alive in this one. Jacob and Tali were discussing in low tones the damage to the shielding and what they would have to do to fix it; Zaeed and Grunt were exchanging ammo with barely a word to be said; Miranda was checking her sidearm, rubbing away at a small scratch on the top with a worried thumb.

Worried. We were all worried.

"This isn't how we planned this mission," the Commander said. "But this is where we're at." She placed her hands flat on the table and looked at all of us. "Right now, we can't worry about whether the _Normandy_ can get us home." She looked straight at me. "We_ will_ get out of here," she added, "but right now that isn't important. The ship isn't important. We need to focus on this mission and saving the lives of our crew, and blowing this place to hell."

She nodded toward the table. "We already know what's going to happen," she said. "Now let's go over the plan." She looked at me indicatively. "EDI, bring up your scans."

The center of the table came to life with a detailed holographic image of the Collector base. "You should be able to overload their critical systems if you get to the main control center here," EDI said, indicating the specified area with flashing highlight of the section. "Further perusal of the systems indicates that you will indeed be able to overload their systems manually on location, but due to the alien nature of the system I would recommend that Mordin Solus accompany you as ordinance expert."

"Good eye," Shepard said.

"That means going through the heart of the station," Jacob said, checking something on his omni-tool. "Right past that _massive_ energy signature…"

"That's the central chamber." Shepard pointed out. "If our crew or any of the colonists are still alive, the Collectors are probably holding them in there." She looked at me. "Right?"

"Whatever makes sense to you is what is right," I replied.

"So that's probably where they're holding HK, too," Jack spoke up. She had her palms pressed flat against the table and she was staring at the holographic image intently. Hate – _hate_ is what I was feeling form her now. "Let's blow that thing to hell."

"Patience, Jack," Shepard cautioned. "But that's the plan thus far."

Jack nodded, pressing her lips into a thin line. She didn't look happy, but she didn't cause any more disruptions either.

"Looks like there are two main routes," Jacob said, pointing.

"Two teams can do it," Shepard said.

"But both routes are blocked," Miranda pointed out. "The only way past them is to get someone to open them from the other side."

"Look at the vents," Shepard said. "We will split into two teams and keep the Collectors busy while someone sneaks through the shaft. With all the fire on us, it'll take the attention away from the one stalking through the vents."

"Exactly," I said.

"Then it should be Tali," Jacob suggested. "I would volunteer, but... I already know from Abby that if we don't do things exactly right, well... we're gonna lose people."

"We could lose people anyway no matter what we do," Miranda said. I shot a sharp look at her. _Really, bitch? _"We already lost Sarah and no one saw that coming. We can't go in relying just on Abby to remember the right dream."

"If she was still alive, she would have been taken instead of HK," I pointed out, stung. "And I think we've done pretty well so far, don't you?"

"The bitch knew she was going to die all along, one way or another," Jack growled. I rounded on her, my jaw set in anger. "Too bad she had to die before she-"

"_Jack_," Shepard cut her off. "That's enough. I need everyone to stay focused on the here and now. Understood?" She looked down at me, and I backed off, fists pressed underneath my armpits. It was quickly getting cold in here. Jack made a noise that sounded an awful lot like disgust.

"So," Miranda said coolly, getting back to the matter at hand, "who is going through the ventilation shaft?"

"If you send Legion, Kasumi, or Tali, we will be fine," I reminded Shepard quietly.

"Legion," she said, looking directly at the geth, "are you up for it?"

Legion tipped his head in sort of a nod and cocked his rifle.

"I will lead the second fire team, Shepard," Miranda stated. "We will meet up with you on the other side of the doors."

"Not so fast, cheerleader," Jack interjected. "Nobody wants to take orders from you." Behind her Garrus gave a slight shake of his head, agreeing with the sentiment.

"This isn't a popularity contest," Miranda began, but Shepard interrupted.

"I'll make the decision here, thanks," the Commander said. It didn't sound mean, but it sounded a lot like a reproach. Shepard knew Miranda and knew how she worked – and she also knew that, sometimes, she tended to get ahead of herself.

When I saw Shepard glance in my direction, I knew she was waiting for me to say something. Obviously the Commander wanted to double-check my facts one more time just to make absolutely certain there were no mistakes, even though I was positive she had memorized and logged everything I'd told her before. "If Jacob, Miranda or Garrus lead the second team," I told her, "everything will be okay."

Shepard considered for a moment, eyeing each of the three selected individuals thoughtfully.

"Garrus," the Commander said after a moment, "you're in charge of the second team."

Garrus met Shepard's eyes as he nodded his acknowledgement. "I promise that I won't let you down, Commander," he stated. I couldn't doubt the sincerity of his words.

Miranda didn't say anything, but I wondered if, for a moment, that she felt snubbed.

Shepard took a steadying breath. "I'm not going to make a fancy speech. You all know what's at stake and what we're up against." I nodded, looking down. "If we don't stop the Collectors, if we don't end it here and now, nobody else will. It's that simple. So… let's go."

* * *

As we prepared to leave, I stopped by my room one last time to pick something up. I don't know why I did it, only that it seemed very important to me, and that I should keep it with me at all times. It was a simple bracelet of small light gray rocks strung together on a black leather thong. I'd bought it for Sarah on Illium, and now it only seemed fitting that I wore it. Like some part of her was still here, helping me kick some Collector ass and get our buddy back.

_God is great,_ I thought, crossing myself. I was a poor religious student, but if there was any chance I could get the extra help… Well, I wanted to take it.

* * *

"Abby."

I turned around, putting my hair up in the usual tight bun. Zaeed jogged up to me, armed and armored up, a battle rifle in his hands. I was in the cockpit, spending my last moments on the ship with Joker before we all left. Shepard was in the airlock talking into her omni-tool – I didn't know what or who she was talking with, but I figured I would just leave her to it.

Zaeed and I bumped fists. "I need you to listen to me, girlie," he said.

"Okay."

"Listen to Shepard." His voice dropped into a whisper that even Joker would have difficulty making out. He leaned closer, his breath smelling of ryncol. "You're not to turn back and help us if she sends you away. If you do, I'm going to drag you back to the goddamn ship myself."

"I can't promise that," I whispered back. "He's my friend."

"And you're not a soldier," he pressed. "You've done a lot of shit, but you're not a soldier. You're not cut out for an assault like this."

"What-?"

"There is a _reason_ we were chosen," he said. "Goddamnit, a _reason_. And if you go out there and try and play _soldier_, you'll get killed for the same reason Mordin and Tali would."

I glared at him.

"I haven't worked on you this long to see you get blasted by some fucking bugs," he said. "Deal with it. You're not to disobey Shepard, even if it means my life, Jacob's, or anybody else's on this ship. You understand that?"

"Why the hell-?"

He put a hand on my shoulder and forced me against the bulkhead. Two eyes, one brown, one blue, looked at me with equal intensity. "Do you understand me?" he whispered fiercely.

I had no choice: I nodded. He released me and walked away, and I looked away pointedly from Joker.

How had he guessed that I was thinking of taking off? Was I really the transparent? Or did he know me just that well?

It was disturbing.

* * *

I followed close behind Shepard as we left the ship. The gravity abruptly changed as we left, becoming lighter and less resistant as I walked. I'd had some experience with low-gravity places and worlds before, but I'd never imagined that the Collector Base would be like this. I climbed on one red-brown rock and jumped off, testing my limitations. I hit the ground later than expected and with much less force. I'd have to adjust my fighting style accordingly, it seemed.

Shepard had already taken me to the side and instructed me to run rear guard, and I wasn't about to disobey her orders. I waited for her to catch up – Jacob and Miranda were tagging along with us. Garrus glanced in our direction only once before jumping out of the airlock and disappearing behind another outcropping of rock, followed by the rest of the team. Legion was nowhere to be seen – and neither was Kasumi, for that instance.

The Collector Base was _huge_, much bigger than the ship had been. The dark brown rock (_was_ it rock, or something else?) seemed to be closing in on us, and the entire sense was one of complete suffocation. There were small yellow lights inlaid within the rock which, I found, took away my sense of depth perception. I had to concentrate really hard to see distances the way I was used to. It was like fighting underwater.

"It wasn't nearly this creepy in the dreams," I commented.

"We are in position," Legion announced. The sudden noise made me jump. "Exterior temperature slightly elevated; no obstructions so far."

"Acknowledged," Shepard told the geth. "Second team, are you in position?"

"In position," Garrus replied. "We'll meet you on the other side of those doors. Good luck."

"Keep your line open," Shepard instructed.

Above us ran a tube made of a hard, transparent material. The edges around the tube weren't clearly defined, as the entire shaft seemed to be vibrating at a high frequency. If you stood directly underneath it, you could hear, at the faintest edge of hearing, the slight buzzing noise of the ventilation system pumping the necessary mix of Nitrogen and Oxygen into the air to keep the base operational.

Legion walked some ways ahead of us in the vent, unheard of by us and undetectable by normal heat-detecting sensors. In hindsight, he really _was_ the best choice for this mission – later on, I would learn that such a rich mixture of oxygen would have made Kasumi collapse only a minute or two in, and the security measures would have eradicated Tali on the spot.

Legion truly was a geth Infiltrator.

"Contacts up ahead," he reported. "Also, exterior temperature is growing to unsafe levels. We request assistance."

Up ahead, a large control box connected perpendicularly to the shaft. The keypad glowed a soft amber color, blending in almost perfectly with the lights around the cavern-like structure. "Up there," I said. "Open up that door and the temperature will stabilize. But you know the rest."

It wasn't long before the Collectors realized we'd crashed the party. In fact, it happened earlier than I'd thought. A high-velocity round slammed into Shepard with enough force to knock her back a few steps even with the kinetic barriers. "Sniper!" Miranda shouted.

We slid into cover behind the walls, and not a moment too soon.

And thus, our fight for survival began.

Not just _our_ survival, either. The Collectors were fighting harder than before - faster, stronger than before. Deep within every animal lies a monster that does not hesitate to unleash itself in the defense of their home. No matter how genetically modified you are, no matter how _unfeeling_ you are, even animals of the most rudimentary intelligence are capable of that feeling.

Or maybe it was just because there were _more_ of them. I wasn't sure.

Eventually, I became so engrossed in the fight that I lost all knowledge of Legion's whereabouts and concentrated on _making it through the next few seconds._

Shepard was the most protected out of all of us with her kinetic and biotic barriers powered up. She could take more hits than we could on our best days, but she was not a one-person army. I hadn't slipped away enough that I failed to notice her positioning herself around me, always in the places to give me the best cover and draw fire away. The way she did it was caring… matriarchal, in a way. If you could ever be accused of being caring in the middle of a battle for your life.

At one point a Collector flew into the fray and dropped down right next to me, forcing me into a close-combat situation. I didn't hesitate, and jammed Zaeed's knife into its closest eye before it could even raise its weapon. The Collector buckled, but it did not fall. Inexplicably, it was still alive.

"_Assuming control._"

"_Jacob!_" Shepard yelled.

I backpedaled, but I couldn't leave my cover without being ripped apart by the other Collectors a further ways away. I aimed my assault rifle up at the great big, glowing Collector, and squeezed the trigger. The bullets rebounded harmlessly off of the damn thing's biotic barriers.

As Harbinger adjusted to the new body, Jacob and the Commander launched a joint biotic attack. It rippled through the air and threw Harbinger back several feet. They cut through his barriers like jelly and punched a hole straight through his chest. The blow in his eyes faded, and he was nothing but dust by the time he hit the ground.

"Take rear guard," a harried, irate Commander Shepard ordered. "Don't get ahead of us again."

Harbinger seemed daunted by the aspect of going up against our party again so soon, and for the longest time all I could hear of his activity was Garrus complaining about it on his side. But they had Samara and Jack on their side – they were doing just fine.

As it turned out, Shepard was unable to reach every release mechanism to help Legion each time he came to a dead end. Sometimes she got pinned down or was too busy trying to navigate a safe way through an enemy-infested area to get to it. Once or twice she was too busy keeping an eye on me and taking out a few targets that were after me to do anything. As a result, we took turns punching the switches; whoever happened to be the closest and whoever could get to them first would be the one to punch them. There were eight in total; I ended up hitting one, Miranda got two, Jacob got one, and Shepard hit four.

Eventually we finally made it to the last one, which Shepard smacked firmly. "You're clear!" she snapped.

By this point we were being overrun by the Collectors and all four of us were firing wildly as the monsters came at us. Miranda threw one over the edge with her biotics, rippings the wings off of it as she did so. It was scary to see how much she'd improved over the course of the mission to affect small things like that with such a precision.

The larger-than-life doors loomed above us like the walls to Hades Palace, ever smooth and unyielding. There was no way to open it from our side.

"Come on, Legion," I muttered, ducking under cover to reload. We weren't going to last much longer. We'd set up a successful choke point, but if enough of them came before Legion got his act together…

Shepard turned and touched the door, attempting to force it open. After a moment it seemed to respond to her touch-or to Legion's efforts on the other side. "Come on!" the Commander shouted to us.

We followed her, our kinetic barriers stuttering as round after round drained their charge. "Look out!" Miranda shouted as she followed us inside. "Seeker swarms!"

"We're in position," Shepard barked. "We need this door open _now_."

Legion jumped out of a panel on the underside of the ventilation shaft and hit the ground running for cover. He began to interface with the console next to the door we'd just passed through, and in three long seconds is finally snapped shut. "Go, we'll cover you!" Miranda snapped. I took up a position next to the other door, gripping the assault rifle with sweaty palms.

_C'mon, Legion…_

Legion's metal digits danced over the door controls. "The door has malfunctioned," he said. "Path blocked."

"You better change that!" Garrus snapped.

Legion focused for a moment longer, and then the door suddenly opened. The rest of the crew retreated in, firing at their attackers with unparalleled ferocity.

"Suppressing fire," Garrus said, switching weapons. "Hold the door!"

Fire exploded through the open door as Legion continued to work with the stubborn mechanism. It was as if hell was being unleashed onto the Collectors, any brute that came too close to the door was taken down by our squad. Grunt and Jack seemed to be wreaking special havoc, but I still knew Legion had to hurry if he was going to survive this round.

"Come on, hurry," I murmured under my breath, gritting my teeth as I shot another Collector in the head. "Legion, _COME ON!_" I yelled, unable to contain myself.

The door clanged shut, and the sounds of weapons firing on the other side became suddenly muffled. We breathed a sigh of relief, and I actually laughed. We'd made it.

We were safe for the moment.

"Nice work, Legion," Commander Shepard complimented the sentient robot. "We knew you could do it."

I ran over to the geth and gave him a big hug. "Thank you," I said, gripping him tight. He was, of course, metal and uncomfortable, but it was the gesture that counted.

The geth didn't answer right away, but a three-fingered metal hand then placed itself on my shoulder and gave it a very human-like pat. "We merely did what we were programmed for."

The room we'd sealed ourselves into was some kind of large antechamber that stretched as high as the doors themselves did. Legion seemed to have jammed the doors as well, which gave us some extra time. But it was darker in here. Tarnished silver tubes criss-crossed the room, which seemed to have a greenish color.

"Shepard," Miranda said, "you need to see this."

I followed, resigned.

We saw an enormous chamber lined with those awful pods that contained individual people. I looked upward and I saw the giant tubes above our heads that connected to something deeper within the complex. I felt as though they were all individual nooses, cradling the lives of the people underneath.

"The crew is here," I whispered. "And HK is here, too!" Out of the corner of my eye I could see Jack already moving.

"Get 'em out," Shepard said.

The Normandy crew seemed to be in one area, which made things easier. I used Zaeed's knife as a lever to open the glass tubes before the super-heated stream could do any irreversible damage.

It was _horrible._ I could hear people screaming in the background, pounding on their cells for mercy. I even thought I could hear somebody yelling for God to save them. It became a frenzy of breaking open the cocoon-like pods and not-too-gently hauling everyone out. The entire crew was still alive and we had to move fast to keep it that way.

I ended up rescuing Kelly, smashing my rifle butt into the transparent pod cover. It made a crystalline sound and the amber fluid within oozed all over my chest plate and arms. The pieces of crystal fell away as the liquid washed out and I caught Kelly into my arms and hauled her back. There was one thing I wasn't prepared for; that liquid really stunk, like raw meat left out in a jar too long. It smelled organic, but it had a scent like something I couldn't quite place. It was sharp and acrid, burning my throat and nose. I actually gagged as the scent of it. I couldn't imagine what it was like to be immersed in it, and I knew that these people were going to want a long, hot shower back on the _Normandy_ later once this was over.

In spite of the frenzy, no one got to Lilith in time. Grunt broke up the protective casing on her pod, but she was already in the process of dissolving. As a result, her screams rang out and set my teeth on edge as she was burned alive by the steam. Portions of her newly liquefied body spilled out onto the floor at Grunt's feet and moistened his boots as the rest of her went down into the tubes.

I stared in horror at what I had just seen, especially since Grunt acted like it didn't phase him in the slightest. He looked a bit surprised, but he had the strongest stomach out of all of us. I bet he would have even enjoyed a human milkshake himself if given the opportunity. I shuddered at the thought and tried to shove it out of my mind.

"My God," Shepard uttered.

"HK," I muttered, looking around frantically.

The Commander gave my shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Keep it together," she said. "You're going back to the ship soon." She then looked over at Dr. Chakwas, who was now standing on her own two feet with the aid of Mordin, and was recovering along with the rest of the crew. The salarian was using his omni-tool to scan the crew.

"Shepard," Chakwas said, staring at the Commander in astonishment. Her voice was surprisingly weak, and fragile. "You came back for us."

"No one gets left behind," Shepard told her sincerely. "Are you alright? Is everyone doing okay?" She looked around at everyone; the entire crew was now on their feet, more or less. "Where is HK?" she asked aloud. "HK!" she called out.

"He... he isn't here," Chakwas said.

I felt my blood turn to ice in my veins. _Oh no._ Did that mean he had already...?

"They are showing signs of fatigue," Mordin spoke up, having completed his brief evaluation of the crew's health and well-being. "They appear to have been inactive for some time. Will take time for them to return to full strength. Also showing signs of dehydration and nutritional deprivation. Recommend a hot meal and plenty of drink, as well as nutritional supplements. Easily accessible back on the ship."

"Where the _fuck_ is HK?" Jack demanded She looked directly at Chakwas and jabbed a finger at the doctor's chest. "What happened to him?"

"I... do not know," the doctor said. "I don't believe I saw him here. The colonists were... processed, Those swarms of little robots, they... melted their bodies into grey liquid and pumped it through these tubes."

Shepard looked upward, once again regarding the tubes above our heads. "They're using our genetic material to make a human Reaper," she said.

"A what?" Chakwas asked, startled. Her eyes widened and she looked as the Commander as if she'd grown a second head. "How do you know this?"

"Abby told me everything after you and the rest of the crew were captured," Shepard told her. "Now we have no time to waste. I know what we need to do. Abby," she said, turning to me, "you need to escort the crew back to the _Normandy_."

"Commander," Joker's voice said; he'd obviously been listening into the entire exchange, "we have enough systems back online to do a pickup, but we'd have to land back from your position."

"Very well," Shepard said.

"I've got a fix on your position," Joker announced. "All those tubes you see lead into the main control room above you. The route is blocked by a security door, but there's another chamber that runs parallel to the one you're in."

"However, thermal emission suggest that the chamber is full of seeker swarms," EDI said. "It seems that Abby's intel continues to prove correct on everything."

"Except that HK isn't here," Jack said. "But if he's not here, then where the hell is he?"

"Commander," Joker spoke up, "scanners show that there is another chamber near the central control room. I'm picking up _something_ in there; I think that might be where HK is being held. There's some interference, but call it intuition."

Shepard's mind was already working. "If the Reapers wanted to interrogate HK and Abby on Ilium," she reasoned, "it's safe to assume they would want HK for information, not just another source of genetic material."

"Then we need to go up there," Jack stated. "I'm going there and I'll get him out of there."

"Shepard," Miranda spoke up, "I'm not sure if we can afford to split up our team."

"Shut up, cheerleader," Jack snapped. "I'll go by myself if I have to."

"No," Shepard said firmly. "I don't want anyone going alone. But we're not leaving HK behind either, not if he can be rescued."

"I'm going too," I said firmly. "He's my friend and I want to get him back more than any of you."

"You didn't even lift a finger to keep him from being captured," Jack snapped. "Why should you care?"

"Jack," I snapped, rounding on her, "do everybody a favor and either _grow up_ or _shut the fuck up._ You like HK, we get it. Well guess what, I've liked and known him longer than _you_. I swear to God, if you want to duke it out after the mission for some perceived threat to him from _me,_ go ahead, but right now you're not helping anything."

Jack's eyes narrowed dangerously, and I saw the telltale ripple of biotic energy begin to take shape around her. Grunt clapped approvingly.

"Both of you drop it," Shepard snapped. "What matters now is getting HK out of there before anything happens to him. Abby, I want you to escort the crew back to the ship. Garrus, you will lead a team through the main passage to keep the Collectors off-guard. And-"

"I have a better idea," I said.

"Not interested—"

"_Listen to me_," I said, shooting an apologetic look at Zaeed. "I know him best. He's also my friend. Send Tali back with the crew – she'll make sure they get back with no casualties. She can navigate this place pretty well, and people trust her to lead more than me. Let me go."

Shepard glared at me. "We don't have time to argue."

"But you know I'm right. Please. I promise not to take any unneseccary risks. But this is my friend. I _love _him, Commander. And I couldn't live with myself if he died and I could've done something to prevent it. Don't make me go through another death. If anything happens to me, Samara will lead you through the remainder of the mission."

It was the first time I'd really ever really mentioned my backup plan. Shepard and I locked eyes for the longest time. "Fine," she said curtly. "Zaeed, you're going with her. Jack: you, too. Zaeed's in charge. We can't afford casualties. If it looks like he's dead or you wouldn't be able to get to him without sacrificing yourself in the process, leave him."

"Understood," I said, because I knew that was the answer she was looking for.

Shepard sighed warily as the new decision was agreed upon. She then agreed to reassign everyone. Tali would escort the crew back to the _Normandy_. Zaeed, Jack and I were going to rescue HK, and then we would report back to the _Normandy_ immediately. Shepard, Samara, Jacob and Miranda would go through the seeker swarm infested area. Garrus would lead everyone else through the main passage as a diversion for the Collectors.

Zaeed was shaking his head in disappointment as we split up, following the coordinated EDI gave us. "You've got balls. Let's just hope they don't get us killed."


	51. HK

**(HK)**

I was still lying in the same position as before. I wasn't sure how long I'd been here, but it probably had only been about a day, if even that; yet, at the same time, it felt like I had been here for weeks. This felt a lot longer than my brief capture by Nyxeris did. I thought_ that_ was bad.

This... this was ten times worse.

Harbinger was a lot harsher and rarely granted a reprieve this time around; I didn't know why. Maybe it was because he didn't have two of the 'psychics' captured this time, and one of the three was already dead. Maybe it was because time was of the essence now; I wasn't sure if the Reapers could fear or not. In fact, fear was an emotion, so I knew they didn't. But somehow, I couldn't help but wonder if they knew that if they didn't get something out of me, then they would be toast. Abby would have probably had something to say about that, if she were here.

The circumstances, overall, were a lot worse for me; I'd prefer the old base over this one. The atmosphere was disgusting. Or maybe it was just my own frame of mind; maybe it was because I knew the crew was gradually being turned into Reaper goo, and a human Reaper was being constructed not too far from here.

So many questions were floating around in my brain. How was the crew, anyway? In the game, they would only begin to die if Shepard stopped somewhere on the way, but now, we were in real time, so I didn't know how that affected matters. Another reoccurring question had been about Shepard herself, and the rest of the ground crew back on the Normandy… where were they? Were they coming?

Oh, they were. I knew they were. I had to keep the faith.

Harbinger was putting me through the wringer, and all I could do was pray to the Lord Himself that I got out of this okay. I could feel his indoctrination starting to seep into my brain and I couldn't let him get to me. I just couldn't, but it was _so _hard to resist. Harder than I'd ever imagined, and I gradually felt myself gravitating more and more to his side. _His_ point of view.

But I couldn't do it; I couldn't. We had to stop the Reapers, and I sure was not going to join them or help them.

The fact that Harbinger had Sarah's face didn't help; I'd almost gotten lured in when he used her persona, after all. The Reapers had a huge bag of tricks without that, no doubt, but when I began to think that Sarah was still here, _that's_ when he really got to me. It made me feel so stupid. Sarah was dead and I knew that; I knew that he was just using her body for his own benefit. Yet somehow, he still lured me in.

And ever since then, it'd been so hard to fight some of the contradicting thoughts in my head. So very, _extremely_ hard. I was determined, though; Harbinger had not broken me yet.

This had been such a long, tiring journey; I wondered how long we had been here in this universe. I'd lost track of time at this point, and I used to be great with time. But all of this had required me to focus on honing in other skills.

I had to wonder if I'd ever be back home, in my old life; Abby and I had discussed before that we sort of knew what our lives was or would be like if we were still back there, and I could still feel that. Yet it seemed so vague; I was still physically here, living here, in a fictional universe turned reality.

I had seen so much throughout all of this; so much I shouldn't have seen. At the same time, I had made so many friends and companions that would last me a lifetime. Shepard, Mordin, Jacob, Miranda, Garrus, Samara, so many more...were real people now. Real people that I'd come to love.

And Jack. Oh, Jack...I still didn't even know what to think about all of that, but I knew that I did feel something for her, something so different. And, truth be told, I missed her. At this moment in time, under all of this pressure, I missed her.

And I missed Abby; how was Abby doing? Now she was the only one left of the three of us on the Normandy, and that had to be hard. Abby had to be strong far too much during the course of her life; now, she had to be stronger than ever. I felt bad for her, like I almost left her there, even if I didn't have a choice. She was likely struggling, and I wish I could be there to help her.

But I knew one of my best friends; Abby was strong, and she would get through this. We had other friends, other good friends, on the Normandy that would support her.

I just hoped she was making it alright, but I had to trust that she was.

Then there was Sarah; _Sarah, why couldn't Harbinger let you rest in peace? _It was insulting, and it infuriated me; it's like she was being defiled even after death. I felt bad for Sarah; she should not have died. Even though I had been angry with her on more than one occasion, Sarah had endured as much of a hard time as anyone on the Normandy. She had went through her own problems and they were no better than any other problems that anyone had encountered; I knew that she was scared, and rightfully so. Now, I knew it far better than I had before.

I never wanted to leave her to perish; I never meant to do that. I hoped that she knew that. Despite all of her flaws, despite everything she did, Sarah was still one of my very best friends.

And she had deserved to live.

She had been killed in an awful way, and Harbinger was using her to torment me. Even though I knew this, and it was stupid for me to realize it now, the Reapers were truly _callous._

It was odd, though; even though I didn't see Sarah standing there, the Sarah I knew...I almost felt like she was still in there, somehow. Like...something with Harbinger was a little off at times.

But then again, it may have been me imagining things; I was a hopeful one. I'd always wondered if the Protheans were still deep down inside the Collectors, too.

However, still, it almost felt like something was different.

Just then, as if to confirm that notion, the husk did something that seemed a little... "off" somehow. Harbinger seemed to be about to speak, as if getting ready to deliver another one of his taunts, when he suddenly faltered. The glow in the husk's eyes dimmed and flickered, like a light bulb that was about to die but fought to stay lit for as long as it could.

"Impossible," Harbinger's deep voice said. "This unit seems to be fighting for control. Irrelevant; this unit will do our bidding."

Whatever was happening, it seemed to go on for at least a full minute. The bright glow surrounding Sarah's body brightened and dimmed at times, and there were moments where the husk sagged a bit as though something internal was going on.

All of a sudden something happened; I heard a terrible sound like electricity coursing, and then something burned out. I could smell the stench of smoke and burned circuitry and wires, and I could see smoke rising from some areas of Sarah's body, as though the control centers had been burned out from overuse... or conflict.

The husk then collapsed on the ground in a heap.

I looked on, stunned and confused; at first, I didn't really know what to think, but my mind was swarming with questions. Did he say that the "unit" was fighting for control? Technically, there was no unit; Sarah was dead, it wasn't if he suddenly possessed her. She was dead and in the Med-Bay for some time. We saw her corpse. There were no life signs.

And I had never seen anything like that happen in either one of the games, or anything in any of the other media out there. Harbinger had left Collectors out of his own will before, or when they were killed by one of the crew, but neither of these had happened like this. Harbinger had no intentions of leaving, obviously, and Sarah's body hadn't been physically harmed by anyone.

I continued to stare at the motionless remnants of Sarah's body. What in the world happened?

A few moments later, the door opened and then several Collectors came inside. One of them was glowing brightly and standing taller than the others, obviously under Harbinger's direct control. This particular Collector looked around carefully as Harbinger used the creature's eyes to survey the area.

I saw the glowing Collector stoop down to look at the dead husk that lay on the floor. Harbinger reached out and touched the smoldering remains, and then nudged it as if trying to see if there was any life left in it.

Finally Harbinger rose, and then turned to regard me. "That husk is useless to me now," he said in his deep, booming voice.

"What happened, Harbinger? Can't keep as much control over a dead woman as you'd like to?" I spat. I had enough of playing games with this Reaper; if he wanted to torture me, so be it, but I'd be sure to tell him off in the process.

"I am uncertain what happened with that unit," Harbinger allowed, aiming a digit indicatively in the direction of Sarah's limp form. He then dropped his hand, as if it really didn't matter. "I sensed a conflict, a final struggle... and then nothing. It is irrelevant; I will proceed without that worthless form." He then moved closer to me, taking up a position beside me.

Again, I was confused. A conflict? Final struggle? Sarah was dead; there was no way...I didn't know. And maybe I didn't want to know. But whatever it was, I was glad that Harbinger was through inhabiting one of my best friend's bodies.

"The only worthless form in this room is you," I muttered underneath my breath.

All of a sudden, the door opened again-but this time I heard the definite sounds of weapons firing. The Collectors sprang into action, but I could tell they were taken by surprise. I heard Zaeed and Jack shouting, and I caught a glimpse of Abby bringing up the rear.

I was so happy I could've cried. The cavalry was here! I would live through this!

Jack was the first to charge in, using her biotics to throw several Collectors to the wall. She used her gun to fire at another, and Abby and Zaeed came in right after her, looking determined and unstoppable; all of them had come here to rescue me. They'd taken a detour for me. That meant a lot.

"A small annoyance," Harbinger said, already starting his attacks on the trio. However, it was no use for the possessed Collector; Jack looked angry enough to dart right through him, and Abby looked deranged enough to kill him with a look. Zaeed looked similar, but then again, he always did.

Jack let out a scream of fury before firing rapidly at Harbinger; Abby and Zaeed did the same. Within seconds, he was down for the count.

"This is not over," Harbinger vowed as the Collector's body disintegrated.

"Thank goodness you all are here!" I exclaimed with pure joy, staring at all three of them.

At that instant, it was a race between Jack and Abby over who could get to me first. Jack won partially by tripping up Abby with a flicker of biotic power-not much, just enough to cause her to stumble; Zaeed ended up catching her arm to prevent her from falling-and then Jack was practically on top of me.

The biotic woman removed the straps that were holding me down and then she leaned over me. "You okay?" she asked. Her voice cracked, as though whatever she was feeling was threatening to break through to the surface.

I was half-distracted by Abby's near-fall, but there was a lot going through my head. "I think so. Nothing they did to me was too bad, they just...they've been interrogating me, as you can tell," I told her. "They possessed Sarah's body."

"Come on, get up," Jack told me firmly, helping me into a sitting position. "Think you can stand, or do I have to put you over my shoulder?" Her tone was tense and her eyes were narrowed. Again, I had the impression that whatever she was feeling was getting ready to break through... any second.

"I can stand. Like I said, nothing they did to me was too bad," I said as I slowly got up. I looked at Abby and Zaeed, and smiled. I knew Abby would come for me; she told me she would. Abby was probably the person I trusted most to fulfill her promises, aside from God. "Thank you. All of you."

Abby rushed forward, as if ready to throw her arms around me in a hug, but she didn't get the chance. She was quickly intercepted by Jack, who ignored her protest, and then the biotic woman whirled to face me again.

Jack put her hands on my shoulders and shoved me against the wall. It didn't really hurt much, but it was enough to make my teeth rattle. Her face contorted into an expression of anger, and I could see the hurt in her eyes... along with something else. Fear, maybe?

"You knew, all along you fucking KNEW," she hissed at me through clenched teeth. "Don't you EVER do that to me again! Do you know how much I... I..." It sounded like she was almost going to say 'worried', or something like that, but her voice cracked and she didn't finish her sentence.

Instead she said, "Next time you know something is going to happen to you, you WARN me about it, you got that?" She shook me by the shoulders, emphasizing her words.

"Jack, I'm sorry, I really am," I said. I supposed that I hadn't thought too much about how Jack would be hurt by it, although it had crossed my mind a few times; I'd just been thinking about, well, getting captured and then being interrogated. "But I didn't know for too long that I was going to be the one captured; we thought it was Sarah. After she died, we sort of thought it'd be no one. Then I got food poisoning and...well, you know. But I am very, very sorry. Just...thank you, for rescuing me."

She just looked at me for a long moment, and then she snarled, "I'm not letting you out of my sight again, not until we're out of here at least." Then she initiated a lip lock with me.

Zaeed grunted. "Yeesh, get a room, you two," he remarked.

Abby merely smiled, and she looked a lot happier than I'd seen her in a long time – the dirt could not diffuse the glow that came to her face when we locked glances. She came up to me and rubbed my hair fondly, like apparent would do to a misbehaving child.

"Told you so," she said.

* * *

**(Abby)**

He was tired, worn-out, and broken, but he was alive and he could walk, and that was all I really needed from him at the time. We would have time to talk later, after the mission, and I would tell him everything – how worried I was, how scared, how nerve-wracking it was to do it all of myself. And because he was HK, he would listen, and he would make me feel better, and then we'd go down and get something to eat in the mess hall and everything would be okay.

Later. We'd have to talk later.

I caught Jack's eye and quickly looked away. I had a feeling we'd be talking later, too.

EDI was able to successfully guide everybody through the next set of obstacles and everybody had managed to rendezvous on the other side. It was EDI's turn to guide us back now, and I knew Joker had his link open because I could hear him breathing in the background when it got too quiet. Harbinger wasn't too happy with our escape and he'd made it known, but the problem was that all of the Collectors were too busy engaging Shepard and her troop about two klicks away from us. The Collectors may have had some of the most advanced technology in the galaxy, but their inner security systems were pretty much garbage. I supposed that's the kind of flaw you got when you worked off of a hive mind network.

I kept my eyes on HK the entire time. We had him in the middle of us – Jack and Zaeed in front, me taking up the rear. We mirrored our pace with his. He was going slower than usual – no crap – and seemed a lot shakier, but he was still moving. It's amazing what the threat of death can do to motivate a person.

Meanwhile, I was starting to get a headache. It was the type of headache that started at the very back of your head and then crept around the side of your skull to rest solely on your temples. It _throbbed_, too, like it had a heartbeat of its own. It wasn't like a normal headache, either, or a migraine.

It felt… synthetic.

It was a strange feeling, and I would've never recognized it if I hadn't joined minds with Samara. I could tell somebody was slowly trying to worm their way into my head, and I knew exactly who it was. Samara's touch had been brisk a cool, like a waterfall on a clear sunny day – this touch was heavier. It felt like a hand trying to grip my head.

And sometimes, when it got too quiet on our quick scurry back, I could almost hear a high-pitched whine.

Finally, I had to say something. "Does anybody else have… a headache?" I asked over the comm system.

"Yes," Samara and Shepard replied simultaneously.

"I thought it was just me," Garrus stated.

"Nothing up here," Joker said nervously. "You guys won't turn into husks, will you? Because, really –"

"We need to finish up quickly," Shepard said.

"Agreed," Samara said. "The quicker the better. I have not felt right since entering this place."

HK looked back and locked eyes with me. We needed to get out of here soon.

We were able to find a roundabout route, but that's where we started to hit enemy contact again. Jack began conserving her biotic strength and resorted to tripping others as they ran with a little nudge instead of the impressive displays she'd cooked up before. We advanced slowly, and the next thing I knew more guns had joined the fight. Grunt's laugh sounded like music to my ears.

Grunt and Garrus gave us the cover fire we needed to escape the scrap, and as we crossed the thresh-hold a large door I hadn't even noticed closed behind us. I spied Tali and Legion working at one of the interfaces.

Alone – for now.

I felt like I could breathe again for one quick second. There's no other relief like being among friends. Jack had her arms around HK, supporting him, and Shepard immediately came over and gave him a quick once-over with her omni-tool. He didn't look good – he looked sick, _very_ sick. Cancer-sick, almost.

"We're glad to have you back," Shepard said.

"Yeah," HK said fervently. There really wasn't much more you could say.

Once the Commander was satisfied that everybody was present and good to go, she got right back to business. "Joker," she said, speaking into her communicator, "Are you at the rendezvous point?"

Joker's voice blared, "I'm here, Commander. Chakwas and the rest of the crew just showed up."

And then EDI chimed in, "Tali's group just arrived, Shepard. No causalities." Despite the mechanical, feminine monotone of the AI's voice, I thought I detected a trace of relief. I closed my eyes briefly, knowing that if only Sarah had survived this long she would have been there with them.

_No_, I immediately corrected myself. _She would have been in HK's place. And we would have rescued her there, like we said we would._

Shepard nodded, as if silently acknowledging that everything was going good so far. She wasn't one to display radical emotions during a mission as serious as this – she very much kept her eye on the prize – but I could tell, perhaps because I just knew her well enough, that she was pleased. HK's rescue took a heavy weight off of our shoulders.

I was really concerned about that high-pitched whine, though. Though we left it unspoken, it kept us from getting too compliant, too lenient.

"Excellent," Miranda said. She was standing beside Shepard, looking straight at the Commander. "Now let's make it count. EDI," she addressed the AI. "What is the next step?"

Shepard folded her arms as EDI spoke, and I caught her already eyeing me for confirmation. "There should be some nearby platforms that will take you to the main control console. From there you can overload the system and destroy the base," EDI said.

I nodded.

"Commander," Joker interjected, "you've got a problem. Hostiles are massing just outside the door. Won't be long 'till they burst through. You need to move quick."

"Have everybody stay here and guard the door," I told her, reinforcing what I'd told her before when we had discussed all of the details of the suicide mission.

That was when HK spoke up. His face was pale and his voice sounded raspy, but he managed to speak. "What about Mordin?" he asked.

I stared at him, and then I understood. Oh, shit... how could I have forgotten?

"Mordin?" Shepard questioned, her cool eyes darting between HK and me for a moment.

"Mordin," I said, looking over at him. "It was the same deal with Tali – Mordin's more vulnerable here than the rest of us, Commander. If we keep people like Grunt and Zaeed here, he'd be okay, but… for this one, we need to take our strongest players with us if we're going to conquer."

Shepard's eyes flickered. "Shit."

To my surprise Mordin spoke up, clearing his throat. "Every sentient being dies eventually," he said matter-of-factly. "Knew the risks when I came aboard the Normandy. Never planned to live much longer anyway. Older than I should be, Shepard; only have a few years left." He raised his rifle indicatively and placed a fresh ammo clip inside of it. "Have accepted the possibility of death before."

"Mordin knows his limits," Jacob said. "He'll give us his all."

Thane looked thoughtful, as if he were looking at a kindred spirit. "It can be better to choose how you will go out than to wait for the end of your life to come and claim you," he said.

Miranda pursed her lips. "So we have a dilemma. Shame we didn't think about this ahead of time."

"Shut the fuck up, cheerleader," Jack snapped. "They got us this far and we're okay. Didn't you all come here knowing you could die, or are you all a bunch of pussies?"

"I've always planned on making it out alive," Zaeed said. "Send the salarian back to the ship if he might bite the dust."

"No," Mordin snapped. "I will stay here," he said adamantly.

"Thankfully, I made the choice back on the ship," Shepard said, raising one hand for silence. "If we send somebody back now, they're more likely to be picked off on the way back than they would be here. Otherwise, HK would be on his way back with Mordin _now_. It sucks, but the safest place for all of us is with each other. Fight like I know you can and we'll make it through this alive."

"Very well," Miranda said. "So who are you taking with you to the main control room?"

"I'm going," I said, adamant.

To my surprise, nobody said a word – they just looked at Shepard. I didn't back down, and I knew Shepard wouldn't press the point.

"Shepard-Commander, the Collectors are attempting to bypass my door hacks," Legion stated. "Failing that, we believe they will resort to brute force."

"I've earned the right to see this through," I said.

Shepard didn't look happy about it. "Fine." She looked away from me and her eyes scanned the small crowd of people. I could tell that she was analyzing everyone, no doubt picking out who would be the best shooters and biotics to stay behind; no doubt she wanted to give HK and Mordin the best chance to survive.

"I'm coming with you," Zaeed said, stepping forward.

Shepard raised an eyebrow. "Very well," Shepard said with a sigh. She then glanced around warily, as if to silently ask, _any more volunteers?_ None seemed forthcoming. "Jacob," she said.

Jacob nodded and joined us at the head of the group.

As I eyed the remaining group below us, I strongly felt that Shepard had made the right move in letting Zaeed and Jacob come along. They were both military guys and had worked with Shepard the longest on training _me. _I knew what to expect from them, and they knew what parts of their fighting style they'd have to modify to suit me.

Grunt looked like he was more than ready for the fight of his life—he seemed to be glowing slightly with anticipation. Thane took up a position near Mordin and the two of them exchanged a knowing look; they now had something in common, at least in a way. Samara stood next to Kasumi; the two of them were standing near HK, who seemed to have Jack attached to him. Judging from the way Jack looked, I doubted anyone could pry her away from him until all of this was over and HK was out of danger. Legion simply stood over there at the terminal, his weapon in one arm and a three-fingered mechanical hand working on the holographic interface to keep the Collectors out.

A moment passed. I noticed Thane clasping his hands together as he silently gazed downward, praying.

I'd once done a research paper on psychopaths. They were supposed to have no empathy for others and shallow emotions. They were perpetual liars and got enjoyment out of doing rash or reckless things. They also responded to stress differently – if a normal person was accosted in the street by a man with a gun, they may shake or urinate themselves. If the same thing happened to a psychopath, they would laugh in their face.

And then I came to a wonderful conclusion:

We were all psychopaths, in a way.

I had to tell HK later. I'd finally figured out what was wrong with us.

"We're ready," Jacob said calmly.

_We're psychopaths,_ I thought happily.

Shepard nodded. "Then let's do this," she said simply. She sighed and looked at us all, rubbing a smudge on her armored forearm. "The Collectors, the Reapers… they aren't a threat to us," she stated. "They're a threat to everything—everyone. Those are the lives we're fighting for. _That_ is the scale. It's been a long journey, and nobody is coming out of this without scars. We've already lost one, and there's no reason we won't lose any more. Things happen, and we've been lucky so far. But we can't afford to slip up, we can't afford to be any less aware of our surroundings than if we _didn't_ know what would happen. It's a trap we've slipped into before. But it all comes down to this moment: we win or lose it all together. Make me proud. Make _yourselves_ proud. Fight like I _know you can_."

Shepard seemed to falter slightly with her speech. The rumblings on the other side of the door were steadily getting louder.

"And it's been an honor," she said, "living with each and every one of you."

The way she said that last sentence sent a chill up my spine that had nothing to do with the hot, cloying temperature. Her words went beyond the sharing of mere facilities – in my mind, I could see us all sitting on Five, watching a movie to celebrate my birthday. Not fighting for our lives but merely _enjoying_ our lives together. I couldn't exactly see us all growing old together, but the sense of friendship and camaraderie… I liked that.

It had truly been an honor.

"Well said, Commander," Miranda said.

Shepard crossed over to the controls and opened up the interface with a swipe of her omni-tool. The platform jerked beneath my feet as it detached from the outcropping. I stumbled a little, unsteady, and I looked back at the others, suddenly fearful. Most had already turned towards the door, taking their positions, but others continued to watch us. Garrus raised one hand to his temple in a sad, lonesome salute.

With that, we set off. I tried to look one last time at HK, but Jack had his attention as she applied some medi-gel to a wound on his arm.

I got the sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach that I'd never see him again. I hoped that I was wrong.

* * *

It didn't really hit me until we were in the air – this platform? It was vulnerable to the extreme. There was some cover, yes, but when we were surrounded… and then the Reaper would come down on us…

I didn't like this. Not one bit. And if we fell…

You couldn't reload.

I didn't like this _at all._

Shepard was steering – I didn't know how she knew where we were supposed to go, but I trusted her. I wasn't going to offer to fly _this_ one. Not this time, at least. We were rising steadily into the air and had floated through a large, spherical opening. I could feel it vibrating under my boots. I could see more of the tubes running along the sides of the wall. There were so _many_, I didn't even know where to begin. Shepard was following them.

I could hear the sound of distant gunfire behind us; I didn't dare open up my channel to listen into the battle, despite how much I wanted to know what was going on. It would only prove to be a distraction now – if somebody fell (_Don't let it be HK,_ I thought fervently) then I knew I could lose focus. And right now, I needed to _focus._

I was terrified for my life. I was shaking, it felt like I couldn't breathe, and I was _very_ glad I'd gone to the bathroom before jumping the Relay. I knew I wasn't the only one in the throes of an intense fight-or-flight reaction, either—in the light of the control panel I could tell that her face was flushed and covered in sweat. Before a fight, Jacob's eyes always dilated and Zaeed's breathing always slowed down, as if he were trying not to pant in front of everybody else.

I tried breathing, but all I could think about was the sense of impending doom coming our way.

And the ringing in the back of my head was getting louder.

"Is anybody else running low on ammo?" Jacob asked in a low voice.

"Yeah," Zaeed said.

"Mmmmhmm."

"Just making sure I'm not the only one." As he spoke, a biotic barrier rippled into existence and shimmered in front of him before fading into an invisible thread between him and the rest of the world.

"Jacob," Shepard said softly, "how were your lessons with Samara going?"

"Pretty good," Jacob asked.

I frowned. What lessons?

"Jacob's been practicing with Samara since our run-in with Morinth," Shepard said, catching my confused look.

"Practicing what?" I asked curiously.

Jacob didn't answer.

"What?" I pressed.

"Contact," Zaeed breathed. His quick ears had picked up what I could not – the sound of another platform, heading our way. "Shepard –"

But Shepard already knew where his mind was going. She had our platform hug the wall and stopped it there before retreating behind cover. The control panel was a position that was way too exposed.

The opposing platform came in from the right bearing three Collectors, any of whom could turn into Harbinger at this very moment. We opened fire, but you could definitely sense the edge of worry belying our every choice. There was no ammo we could possibly use or pick up at the moment, so we were down to what reserves we had, and biotics didn't last forever.

Shepard and Jacob were opting out of the straightforward, Jack-like approach. Though I was confident Shepard at least could have lifted all three with her mind, thrown them over the edge, and been done with it, she was being more crafty. As I watched, the muzzle of an enemy gun swung around and shot the other guy in the foot. As the injured Collector backpedaled, Jacob placed more pressure on his upper body and sent him crashing to the ground with a light shove, gripping the trigger firmly and spreading an arc of fire vertically up the air. It caught his attacker in the face, and he was down for the fight.

Zaeed simply sniped the other one.

Another platform came. Jacob and Shepard worked mostly the same throughout each of them, relying on sneaky, underhanded tricks to conserve their energy. I stayed as close to Shepard as possible just as Zaeed stuck with Jacob. It was all a part of the plan – the guys with the guns stick with the guys with the brains, after all. There had to be a sort of poetic irony in there somewhere.

The platforms were connecting with ours, though, boxing us in. Zaeed shouted, "Advance!" and then we were running to the next ring of cover on the platform in front of us. A moment I will probably never forget as long as I lived –

Zaeed strayed too close to the edge. No warning at all, and then Harbinger flew from the underside like a bat out of hell, his wings breaking off and disintegrating under the stress his possession exacted on the poor Collector's body. Just as his feet hit the ground, Zaeed turned around and punched him right in the face like a bouncer and then kicked him over the edge, a feral gleam in his eye.

"Old bastard's still got it," Jacob laughed.

And then Jacob made a mistake that almost got him killed. I could _see_ it happen, and that made it worse. A scion had joined the party and was advancing steadily with no thought of self-preservation at all. We could've taken it out, but a particle beam from the other end of the platform was keeping up pinned down. Jacob was the closest, and he was the one taking the hardest hits from the scion.

In the game, if you stayed in cover during the Shockwave you would be okay. But that was just developers trying to look for an easy escape for the inexperienced player – no, physics actually played a role here. A shockwave didn't _stop_ just because you huddle next to a metal wall. Shockwaves generally didn't stop at all.

Shepard and Jacob were biotics, so they had protection Zaeed and I simply didn't have. As the scion struck, the two of them worked as a team to deflect the blast. If they hadn't, we all would have toppled off of the edge and the galaxy could kiss itself goodbye. This had the adverse effect of draining their energy, because they couldn't turn to the particle beam guy and take _him_ out since he was too far away. I ended up laying on the ground and peeking out from the bottom edge of cover with my sniper rifle to get a good look, but there was just not a good shot I could take from there without hitting the barriers.

So Jacob had an idea. And Jacob didn't tell us the idea.

I couldn't shoot and I couldn't run. Zaeed had taken out one of his grenades, but he couldn't stand up to throw one. I had a vague recollection of Jacob standing up and charging the scion when he got too close, despite a scream from Shepard. He rammed into the scion like a fullback and sent it over the edge with a blast of biotic energy that I could feel even from my position.

Like a marionette whose strings had been cut, Jacob collapsed just as the Collector with the particle beam shot at him. He rolled off the side of the platform and dangled there from his hands in the most precarious position you could imagine.

I had the presence of mind to turn and snipe down the Collector while his attention was diverted. "Jacob!" Shepard shouted, jumping over cover.

Jacob had pulled himself up to his elbows, and then managed to lift the rest of his body back on to the platform. He grabbed his gun.

"Don't you _ever_ do that again," Commander Shepard barked. "If I see you rush in like that again, you're in deep shit, Taylor, do you understand me?"

"Yeah – sorry, Commander," he said, getting to his feet. "Won't happen again."

"See that it doesn't," Shepard said coldly.

There seemed to be a lull in the combat for now. We used that time to hastily pick up dropped ammo from our kills.

"I was just thinking about the holes in your visions," Shepard said suddenly. "Not the ignorant holes, either."

"I'm sorry?" I panted.

"People who know they can't die won't treat it seriously," she said simply. "They get cocky. Or they twist the future to meet their own ends. Better to go with a game plan that's already been tried-and-tested than try and change it. I don't know how this happened, or where your visions came from," she went on slowly, "but whatever force is behind this... I think it knows what it is doing." I paused. It wasn't like Shepard to get sappy like this, especially at a time like now. "Ashley believed that there is a God," she said slowly. "And I know that Thane believes in several. Me? I'm not sure what to believe. But I strongly feel that some force greater than anything I know-something greater than the Reapers-brought the three of you here to make sure everything turned out alright.

"Abby," she went on, and for a moment I almost thought she was going to pull me into a hug, "you and HK are so young, and yet you understood this better than most of us did at times. And Sarah..." Shepard looked away for a moment.

Jacob finished the unspoken thought for her. "She could have easily spilled the beans at any time," he mused aloud. "She could have done anything to save her own skin."

"Instead, she pointed a gun at Kasumi and went bat-shit crazy on Tuchanka," Zaeed said.

"But she never said more than she should have," Shepard said. "She had some very bad choices, but she never sold us out or told us too much. She never betrayed what she, HK... and you Abby," she said, looking straight into my eyes, "were sent here to do." In her own way, she sounded proud of Sarah as well.

I wasn't really sure of what to say here. "She'd appreciate that."

"This is it; the tubes seem to be leading to that spot," Zaeed said, pointing with one bloodied finger. "EDI, what can you tell us?"

Shepard hit the console. "All of the tubes you see are feeding into an advanced super-structure. It is emitting both organic and non-organic energy signatures. I believe the device they are building… is a Reaper."

"Yes," I said.

The spine was the first thing that came into view, hanging from the skull like a limp mechanical snake. The Reaper was held up by four large, heavy-duty supports filled with an orange, bubbling fluid. The tubes formed a confluence there and veered off in to smaller tubes that connected themselves to various parts of the Reaper's body – underneath steel-blue ribs that measured longer than a football field, into the nasal cavities on a skull-like face, into arms that hung limp, and even smaller ones connected into the base of the spine like some horrible, macabre experiment.

It was so _big_.

My headache was getting worse – it felt like two knives were being driven into the base of my skull, bringing with them a ringing that made my eyes water. Just being this close to the Reaper was enough to bring me to one knee.

"A human Reaper," Shepard breathed.

"Precisely," EDI's voice confirmed.

There were various platforms connected around a circular base from which I could only suppose the Collector's worked. Our platform slid easily between the fittings like a puzzle piece.

"The Collectors must have processed tens of thousands of humans," EDI continued. "Significantly more will be required to complete the Reaper."

"It's an abomination," Shepard whispered. "We can't let this continue."

"Shoot the tubes with the orange coloring," I said, pointing. "The four of them. They're weak structural levers—if we bring that down, we bring the Reaper down, but that's only one half of the fight."

"And the Collectors just left their Reaper here to go find us?" Shepard asked. "I don't buy it."

"You shouldn't," Jacob said, bringing his sidearm up so fast that his arm became a blur. He fired, and the shot connected with a large Collector head poking out from its perch on top of one of the large tubes. I hadn't even _noticed_ that.

There were Collectors here. They were _everywhere_, it seemed, crawling along the tubes and down the Reaper's spine like some bizarre mockery of rock-climbing.

And they were all looking at _us._

I swore loudly and ducked behind cover, but there was no need. The Collectors were merely workers, and after a while they stopped watching us and continued their assignment like a bunch of busy bees. The fighters had to know soon, then, and after we destroyed the fighters I felt that the workers would become violent as well.

"There must be two-hundred of them," Zaeed said, his assault rifle up and already pressed into his shoulder.

"And there are only four of us," I muttered. "Crap."

"Reinforcements are inbound," EDI informed us.

* * *

**(HK)**

The fight was brutal, more so than I had imagined; in the game, you never really saw much of the battle while Shepard fought the human Reaper, but this time, I got to see everything. Collectors were pouring in through the door like water, and it was up to this small team to stop them.

This small team of _experts_, I reminded myself. It really showcased how talented all of them were; they'd been through hell, yet they could still fight off the Collector drones like it was nothing. People were wearing themselves out, but they kept going.

And so did I; I may have been strapped on a table for a day or so, but I wasn't going to let that stop me from doing my part. I was behind most of the others with Mordin and Jack; I felt guilty that we'd forgotten about Mordin, and I hoped that he didn't take it personally. There was so much else to cover, his part just slipped into the background. Ironically, the same thing happened when I played Mass Effect 2 for the first time.

But this wasn't a game anymore; I couldn't play through my game again and save him. This time, we just had one chance to make sure Mordin survived.

He was impressive, though; he was undeterred by the fact that we told him that dying was a possibility, and even for a scientist, he was fighting hard. I'd never seen him this charged up – he looked almost _irritable_.

Jack was still sticking close to me, making sure that I was alright; it touched me. She really did care about me. I was not totally sure where we stood, but I knew that she cared enough about me to march all the way here and rescue me. Few would do that, aside from Abby, Sarah, and Shepard. And I knew I cared about her, in my own way.

We kept pounding at the Collectors; they were trying their hardest, but in the end, we were better. I took out a few on my own, despite the state I was in; Harbinger had been brutal on me, but I could still stand. I could still move. I could still fight.

Garrus and Miranda were coordinating the left and right sides respectively. They actually worked pretty well together, though I supposed that you'd have to in this situation. There was just enough cover along the ground and walls that we could successfully stagger ourselves along the back. We'd only run into trouble if a group of Collectors came in from where Shepard just left, but I had a feeling that she was doing her part to keep them occupied.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Thane snipe down a Collector with a particle beam aimed at Grunt as the krogan turned around and used his shotgun to blast a wide berth to the drell's left. At one point Grunt even used his shotgun like a baseball bat to swing aside a charging husk.

Kasumi had been using her stealth attack to pick off Harbingers mid-change, but after a particularly nasty engagement that involved her using a flashbang to free herself from the clutches of Abominations she stayed further back and picked them off from a distance. When Garrus questioned her health, she mentioned that she'd gotten hit and that she didn't know how bad it was. She slapped omni-gel on it, but we couldn't afford to give her medical attention. I noticed that after that, Samara stayed closer to her than she had been.

"Alert: Another wave appears to be approaching," Legion's mechanical voice warned us. Somehow he had more or less become the watchdog who let everyone know when a new wave was coming in. That actually seemed to be more helpful than not, considering everyone was mostly focused on defending themselves and taking down the current wave.

Miranda lifted an arm and sent a blast of biotic energy into a pair of Collectors who were getting too close for comfort. Mordin and I took down a third and a fourth. The latter was still smoking when it hit the ground.

Jack gritted her teeth and stood tall, and then she began to glow. After a moment, a huge burst of energy seemed to ripple across her form and shoot off of her arms as if her hands had become the nozzle point on a deadly weapon. This was one of the few times I'd actually seen a Singularity formed. It was like a powerful orb of energy that picked up at least six Collectors and drew them towards the center of the orb, holding them there, helpless, until she finally released it from exhaustion.

Jack let out a heavy breath and permitted herself to fall to her haunches, panting. Obviously that had taken a lot out of her and it had been difficult to maintain.

"That was very impressive," Samara remarked. It seemed that we had a moment to breath; the Collectors had relented for the moment. "I have never seen a human biotic quite so powerful."

"I doubt I could have maintained such a powerful Singularity for so long," Miranda commented. Maybe she was jealous, or maybe she was trying to foster some kind of neutral ground with Jack.

Jack huffed, and then pushed herself to her feet. "Well precious, I guess they skipped out on enhancing your biotics when they made your perfect little genes," she sneered.

And that was when I noticed that somehow, during the fight... Jack's skimpy top had fallen off.

I stared for a few split seconds, jaw hanging wide open. "I..." I stopped, before quickly snapping back into action. We had a fight to handle, so it wasn't exactly a time to have another awkward HK/Jack moment.

Besides...strangely enough, I'd gotten used to her...well, sudden movements, even if this one actually wasn't her fault.

"Well," I said with a deep breath. "If you want to fight naked, so be it. Whatever is better for you."

"Well, if we're all going to die," Kasumi quipped, "I guess we all may need one last look anywho."

"I don't understand why you never put on any armor, or at least a decent shirt," Miranda snapped in disgust.

"Dress code schmess code," Jack jeered. "I was only on a Cerberus ship because you people busted me out of prison and Shepard agreed to give me information. I can dress however I fucking want to."

"Alert," Legion interjected, stopping any further commentary or debate in its tracks, "another wave is coming, and this one appears larger than previous waves. We detect at least two dozen Collectors closely followed by three scions and approximately fifteen husks."

_Oh boy_.

"Well, there's no time to waste," Garrus remarked, as we all returned to our cover positions.

"Commander Shepard has just made contact with the Reaper," EDI reported. "Hopefully, this will help your chances of survival."

"Won't help hers," Garrus muttered. "Keep us in the loop, EDI."

"Come on, we can do it; let's tear them apart," I said.

I looked around, curious as to how everyone was holding up; we all were tired, but we were all doing fairly well. Mainly, I focused on Mordin; he was panting, holding a stitch in his side. A few bullets had gotten through his shields to graze his arms, but he _seemed_ like he was holding up.

_He can't die. He just can't_.

The Collectors arrived and the battle began once again; gunfire erupted, and I fired a few rounds of shots without even bothering to take cover. Husks and Collectors fell like wildfire, but there were still so many. Far more than before. Samara let off some impressive biotic waves from time to time, and Mordin Incinerated a few, but they were still pouring in.

"Keep going," Garrus shouted above the madness, as he took out another Collector with as much precision as ever. He seemed to be the one trying to keep morale up in Shepard's place. He'd learned from her well. "We can _do this_, damn it!"

He was right. We could do this.

More poured in, as Legion had warned us, but we were undeterred. "Hello, dead people," Jack panted, before sending out a strong shockwave that knocked a few of them back several feet.

Grunt seemed to be a magnet for husk attacks. "GRAAAAHHHH!" He screamed as he ran through another round of husks, ripping them to shreds once again. His shotgun worked in rhythm, and I could hear his gut-shaking laugh as they fell at his feet.

"Assuming direct control," a voice that I knew all too well announced, and one of the Collectors turned into Harbinger, as per usual. Harbinger began with his usual taunts, while trying to take us down with his typical powers.

But, we wouldn't let him win. Thane began to throw a few of his own own attacks at the possessed Collector, which obviously weakened it. After that, Thane put a few bullets its into its chest. He had such intense, impressive focus.

"This is useless," Harbinger said, as he continued to pound into us. "While you continue on in your pathetic fight, we are tearing your leader apart; Shepard will be stopped. Submit to us now and spare yourselves."

"Not a chance!" Miranda shouted, before throwing out her own impressive biotic attack on Harbinger; it pierced through his barriers like jelly and twisted his chest in such a way that even _I_ felt pain watching that. This was what finally killed the beast. I didn't know if Miranda was trying to show herself up, or was doing it out of loyalty to Shepard; potentially both.

She wasn't so petty anymore. She'd grown a lot. We all had.

The Collectors kept coming, but so did our bullets. I glanced over to see Kasumi vanish. "Now you see me," she said as she disappeared. Seconds later, she appeared in between two Collectors and sliced them both across the neck with her electrically-charged omni-tool before disappearing yet again.

Everyone was truly at their best right now.

I looked over at Mordin again; he looked a lot more tired and drug down than he had when the Collectors first arrived. He had also been doing his best, but it was taking it's toll on him; I almost thought I saw a few trails of blood, and I heard his shields get taken down several times during the battle. He was still alive, still fighting.

He fired continuously at one Collector, and once it fell, he quickly Incinerated another.

"Taken care of!" he shouted triumphantly.

However, despite Mordin's top-notch fighting, I could still tell that he was wearing down, and fast. Could he take much more of this?

"Mordin," I yelled, taking a break from my own attacks. I was beginning to feel tired and worn down myself. "Are you alright?"

"Yes. Doing fine. Recommend focusing on battle!" Mordin yelled back.

I sighed, and turned to face forward, before firing at another Collector. I quickly reloaded my gun and took out a few more, before zooming downwards as several bullets flew my way.

Thankfully, they missed.

"Shields down," Mordin announced.

Again, I glanced over to see a few bullets hit Mordin, and I heard him groan in pain. He stayed standing, and kept fighting, but every second that went by, he was slowly getting worse.

I couldn't let him die. I refused to come this far and let _anyone_ on this crew die.

"Jack," I said, quickly looking over at her as she tossed another wave of biotics at the Collectors. My mind was working fast, and I couldn't believe what I was thinking, but I was already determined. "We need to speak. Now."

She looked sharply in my direction, gritting her teeth as she aimed her pistol and shot a husk right between the eyes. She was much better at biotics than with a weapon most of the time, but she was obviously skilled. And she had to do something else whenever her biotics needed to recharge. "What?" she snapped distractedly.

"We don't have much time. This has to be quick, but I can't do this without speaking to you first," I told her. This may sound random to her, but I didn't care. "Mordin's going to die within minutes, I'm sure, if we don't do something. If I don't do something."

Now Jack turned and glared at me. She glanced around, and then she ducked into cover beside me. "What are you saying?" she demanded. "Don't tell me you're going to do something stupid on me. Not when... I..." Her voice actually cracked and her face twisted for a moment as she struggled to keep herself composed. She was so used to being tough, to not letting anyone see her more sensitive side... her heart.

"Don't do anything stupid," she finally said. Her voice was a couple of octaves softer than it usually was. "HK... I was worried sick about you after you were... taken by those fucking bastards."

It did hurt me to see her this way; she had poured so much into rescuing me. Jack had. The woman that once seemed like she had no heart. "Jack, I know...and I can't tell you how much I appreciate that. I...care about you like no other," I admitted to her, as odd as it sounded. "I love everyone in different ways. But my relationship with you is definitely...unique. I need you to know that first and foremost. I'm sorry for how I've treated you at times, but in the end...I truly do care about you."

I saw something in her eyes. A gleam of moisture gathering in the corners of her eyelids-she swiped the tears away in an impatient brush of her hand. "Fuck you," she hissed, and then gripped me in a firm hug.

I gripped her back, for a few seconds, but I knew time was of the essence. However, as ridiculous as it may seem, as cliché...there was something I had to do. I pulled back, slightly, before pulling Jack into a kiss, and I threw almost everything I had, almost all the love and passion I had, into that kiss. It was like some stupid romance movie...but in the end, it was true.

Jack seemed to savor the moment as much as I did. In a strange way, those precious few seconds seemed to last for an eternity as time slowed down around us... and yet the insistent sounds of gunfire and shouts made me all-too-aware that time was slipping by, and we couldn't stay like this forever.

When our lips finally parted, Jack breathed heavily and whispered something into my ear.

"HK... I love you." She placed a hand on the back of my neck and I felt her pressing her cheek against mine.

"I...love you too," I told her as we both pulled back. I glanced at Mordin; he was getting hit hard. There was barely any time left. I looked back at her. "Do me a few favors, and...don't hate Abby or anything. She's one of my best friends, and is a great person if you get to know her yourself. And...defeat the Reapers for me."

I looked again at Mordin; the salarian was refusing to back down, and continued to shoot down Collectors, but they refused to stop hammering him. I didn't know if they knew that he was close to going down, but they were determined to make him go down. Everyone else was still focused on taking down their own targets.

"Up high!" Miranda shouted. Collectors were beginning to take flight around the battlefield, trying to get behind our perimeter.

"And one last thing," I told her, looking back at her. My nerves were welling up, but I had to do this. "I'm going to intercept the next bullets for Mordin; take that chance to get him down before they have a chance to regroup."

"No you DON'T." Jack gripped me firmly by the shoulders. "You already put me through hell once, and I made sure I got you back." She gritted her teeth; her face was contorted with anger, but there was something else in her eyes. Sadness... even fear. She was scared. Afraid to lose me.

"If I have to put you in a fucking stasis field to keep you safe I'll do it!" she threatened.

I looked at her, with the most sympathy in my eyes. I hated this. "Jack, we don't have time for this," I told her, the desperation starting to show in my eyes. "I appreciate everything you've done, and I'm not throwing that away. I never would. But if there's one goal we always had, or one goal that I always had, it was that everyone survived. Mordin's not going to die, and neither are you. I care too much about all of you to let that happen. Fight for me; do this for me," I begged. I pleaded. "Shepard and the crew need you more now than they need me."

Jack's face twisted with a mixture of emotions-anger, grief, indecision. Then she scowled, and turned away from me. She rushed in Mordin's general direction, casting one final look over her shoulder at me before she focused on where she was going.

However, she was delayed; she was quickly overrun by another wave of husks. She roared a battle cry and dealt with them swiftly, but not quickly enough. A deadly Collector with a particle beam weapon was advancing on Mordin, and the salarian didn't look like he was going to last much longer. I knew I needed to do something, now.

A Scion's tore a path through the carnage – Mordin was knocked out of cover. Instead of scrambling to his feet, he lay there, unmoving. The stillness of his body spoke volumes.

And somehow, I knew it was all going to come down to this, ever since I realized how close to death Mordin was.

Now, there truly was no time to waste.

Without a second, fearful and hesitant thought, I took a huge leap, probably the most important leap of my life, and charged at a rapid pace to the area between Mordin and the Collector assassin. Arriving at just the right time, I suddenly felt the particle beam go straight through me amongst the rest of the chaos.

I let out a scream; it felt worse than any of the torture methods that Harbinger had ever inflicted on me, or any other gunshot wound that I'd ever taken. Or maybe it was just because I'd been so torn down already.

Yet, strangely, I almost felt...peaceful. I knew this was the right thing to do.

The pain only got worse; the Collector wasn't letting up. I felt the particle beam penetrate my skin, destroying any sort of outer layer in the process; the light was blinding me, but I could feel blood coming out. I could feel my organs getting crushed by this beam. I yelled out again. After all of the torture, all of the fighting, I couldn't take much more.

It continued for what felt like seconds longer until suddenly it stopped. I collapsed to the ground, unable to stand any longer; everything was a blur, but I could tell that someone had taken the Collector assassin down. I could still hear fighting, but it was dying out ever so slightly.

"_HK'S DOWN_!" somebody shouted.

The world was swirling around me, and I felt awful; I could barely breathe. It was finally hitting me: I was in the last moments of my life. I could vaguely see several people rushing to my side.

"KEEP THE PERIMETER!" Garrus was shouting.

"Mordin," I managed to cough out. "Is... he alive?"

"He's alive," I heard a voice say. It sounded like Miranda. "Thanks to you."

"HK..." Jack said. I could vaguely see her leaning over me. "Don't you die on me!" Did I see

tears streaking down her face?

"Doesn't look good," Mordin said. I could see him leaning over me on the other side, blood crusting the side of his face, which was bruised darkly. "Injury severe... fatal." He sucked in a breath through his nostrils. "Won't live much longer," he analyzed bluntly.

"No, just shut up and do something!" Jack snapped.

"Applying medi-gel now," Mordin supplied. "Won't do much good. I do not have access to replacement organs or emergency life-support out here. Surprised he's still conscious."

"Mordin, you need to take care of yourself," I told him between heavy breaths. "You were injured enough."

"Foolish move," Mordin said. "Shouldn't have done that. I'm old. Told you I was prepared to die. You were young, had life ahead of you."

I shook my head, just barely. "It wasn't foolish, it was...right."

"Joker," Miranda's voice said. She must have patched into the comm; I still heard fighting, but not too much. "HK down, is there any safe route you can give us back to the ship?"

"Not sure what's going on with Shepard right now; I think she's got enough going on as it is," Joker said hurriedly. "Come on HK, man, you can't die. I don't know if Abs could take that!"

Even Joker sounded slightly upset. It touched me, even in my fragile state. "Abby is strong; tell her that she... meant a lot to me. She can go forward and do better."

Tali's voice came through the comm. Apparently she was in the cockpit with Joker and EDI. "Damn it, don't give up!"

"I'm not giving up, Tali," I assured her. "I'm just...doing what I needed to do. Maybe it's how this was meant to end for me."

I felt myself getting weaker; I felt the world fading more and more. I looked at Jack, the best I could. "Jack...I'm sorry."

She said nothing for a few long seconds. Finally she embraced me, and then supported my head with one hand as she looked into my eyes. She was getting my blood all over her bare chest but she didn't seem to care. "You mean a lot to me," she said. "Just... thank you, for showing me that there are... are some good people out there." She shut her mouth and her lower lip trembled.

"You mean a lot to me, too," I told her honestly, trying to smile. "Thank you for showing me...a lot of things. More than you know."

"You'll be missed, HK. More than you know," Miranda admitted, and I could even hear sadness in her voice. It meant a lot to me.

"Thank you. All of you. I'll miss all of you," I said, coughing again. I could feel myself falling apart. I looked at Jack again. "Like I said...defeat the Reapers for me."

"Kalihira," Thane's voice whispered through the comm, "goddess of oceans and the afterlife... I beg you to embrace HK's soul as he leaves his body and accept him as he joins Sarah and every other soul who has departed from their flesh." He paused briefly. "For surely," he continued, "he and Sarah are two profits of the gods."

"That is a very touching sentiment," Kasumi said, her voice low and thick with emotion. "Garrus, I'm going to circle around and take out that sniper. Cover me."

"Affirmative."

"I said the same prayer over Sarah's body after her passing," Thane admitted.

"Thank you, Thane. I...truly do appreciate it," I said honestly. It was very kind, and meant a lot to me.

I felt myself continuing to fade out of the world; I was still in pain, but it was starting to go away as I started to go away. I didn't bother to fight it; I simply laid back, in Jack's arms, and let it take me.

_Dear Heavenly Father_, I thought to myself. Now it was time to talk to my own God. _I...hope I did you right. I hope I brought glory to you in the best way possible; I've had a long life, full of mistakes, but I've tried my best to serve you. You died for me on a cross; now I'm dying for someone else. Save me, forgive me of my sins...I love you. Thank you for giving me so much. I'm happy to join you and Sarah now._

That, above all else, was the most important thing I needed to do. Again, I laid back, as I felt myself drift away; my life was flashing through my eyes. Memories of my friends at school. Memories of my family at our old house; me and my sisters playing. My mother taking so many pictures of us. Us moving into our new house... my memories with my grandmother. My memories with my father. My memories with all of my friends... my memories at Church, my memories of praising God. My memories of loving Him and others. My memories of all the chaos online, both good and bad... all the fun. All the best things. All of my memories of this universe. All the fun and good things with my friends in this universe. Yes, it had been a good life.

With all of that thought and said, the pain started to get greater, but I ignored it; slowly, but surely, I felt myself finally drift into the light.


	52. Did you see this?

**(Abby)**

"The headache is getting worse," I told Shepard, grimacing in pain. "And the ringing. Do you hear that?"

"Yeah," Jacob said.

"The more unbearable it gets, the more the Reaper is trying to indoctrinate you," I surmised. "Until you submit, I suppose. We need to lean on each other here - if something starts feeling out of the ordinary, we have to say something."

"Here they come," Shepard said, retreating to a safe distance. Above us, the injection tubes continued to open and close sporadically. "Zaeed, take out the scion on the left. Abby - right."

I dropped behind cover and took aim through the sniper scope, my finger twitching in anticipation of the shot. As soon as the incoming platform connected with ours, I fired. The bolt penetrated the scion's strange, lopsided head and pushed it back a few feet, but it was still coming. It took three more solid headshots to put it down entirely.

As I worked, Shepard and Jacob focused on the smaller objectives. The Collectors were coming in fast, accompanied by husks and the like. One after one they were picked off either by a subtle display of biotic power or their superior aim.

I heard the tubes above us begin to open. I laid down on the floor and aimed upwards with my sidearm, squeezing off as many rounds as I could before the tubes closed again, but not before I saw satisfactory white cracks appear on the tempered glass.

"Focus on the rightmost one when it opens up again!" Shepard ordered.

When they opened up again, all four of us turned and concentrated our fire on the opening. It was actually kind of cool in hindsight. All at once, the glass seemed to break and shatter. The lift holding it up broke off with a loud screech of metal. The orange liquid inside of it spilled like an egg out of its yolk, falling down, down, down into the abyss below. One of the bigger pieces of the lift fell on one of the platforms, disengaging it from the others and bringing it down with it.

"Look at the workers," I breathed, ducking down behind cover again. About half of them were scattering away from their positions to fly down to the fallen debries. "There's no way they can lift that by themselves."

"Something's telling me that they're a lot dumber when Harbinger isn't paying attention to them," Shepard said. "Zaeed!"

I whipped around just in time to see a group of abominations leap at the grizzled warrior. Harbinger followed close behind him, his fists clenched.

Zaeed's body suddenly jerked backwards and slid along cover until it rested right beside Shepard, who was humming with biotic energy. "Jacob, now!" she yelled.

Jacob stood up and fired his assault rifle at the abominations as Harbinger raised his hand to attack. Just as the Reaper lurched forward, Jacob's biotics suddenly came into play - Harbinger's arm was pulled down with brutal strength until it was touching the floor. Confused, he unleashed his attack...but it wasn't going where he'd intended it to.

The abominations flew off of the platform and Harbinger's body dropped to the ground, its neck broken. The body dissolved away into ashes.

However, it wasn't long before Harbinger possessed another form, making a proclaimation that if we killed one then one hundred more would take its place. It simply reinforced the fact that there were many, many Collectors here... and they meant nothing to Harbinger. They would simply keep coming and he would simply keep possessing one after another.

Another wave of enemies came us, a combination of husks, scions and Collectors. And this time, there were three Collector snipers armed with particle beam rifles.

"Shit," Jacob cursed, "looks like they're pulling out all the stops."

"They want to protect their new abomination," Zaeed deduced.

"The others have it worse," Shepard said, and then there was no more time for talking. We were too busy taking out enemies left and right to focus on anything else.

Suddenly, the tubes opened again. Shepard barked an order and all of us spared as many shots as we could on the rightmost one she had indicated before. It did the trick; the glass cracked, splintered, and then burst. The fluids within spilled out, and the Reaper began to lean a bit as some of the support from above gave out.

The fighting continued, and I no longer paid much attention to how much time passed. It mostly consisted of following Shepard's orders, using my own judgement at times, and aiming at the correct tube when they became visable. One by one, we managed to take each of them down.

Finally we had only one tube left, and from the way the human-Reaper was swaying, it seemed that the final support structure was barely holding it up. Perhaps if it stayed that way long enough-without repair-it would eventually fall on its own. But we weren't here to wait, we were here to finish it off.

"Now!" Zaeed yelled.

And that did it. The final tube shattered and bled its vile contents as the final support structure gave out.

"Hell, yes!" Zaeed cheered.

The human Reaper seemed to bow before us, straining against the various wires and tubing holding it up. Orange liquid spilled out of the spinal discs and gathered on the bottom to drip off into the darkness. Metal groaned and shook as it collapsed in upon itself, and the four of us backpedaled quickly to the platform behind us as the one we were standing on collapsed and fell from the strain.

There was something about the Reaper's fall that was mesmerizing in a way I couldn't explain. It was such a huge, colossal thing, after all. The workers on it scrambled for purchase, some even flying to repair the wires, but there was no helping it. The Reaper broke the last wire and fell beyond all sight.

"Shepard to ground team," the Commander snapped. "Status report!"

"_It's Thane. We are holding, but they keep coming. A quick exit is preferable_."

"Head to the Normandy," she ordered, jogging towards the center of our platform. "Joker, prep the engines. I'm about to overload this place and blow it sky high."

_"Roger that, Commander_!"

She knelt down and popped open the core with a twist of her hand. A cylindrical computer buzzed to existence.

"_Shepard_," Joker buzzed back in. "_We're getting a signal from the Illusive Man. EDI's patching it through_."

Shepard glanced up at me, and I merely nodded. Jacob activated his omni tool, and a life-sized figure of the Illusive Man sprang forth. He was dressed in one of his designer suits, as usual, and his hair was combed back to perfection. His vivid blue eyes stared at the Commander indicatively.

"Shepard," the Illusive Man said, his arms clasped behind him, "you have done the impossible."

"Not yet I haven't," said the Commander, turning to open up the computer. "I still have to destroy this base."

"_Not necessary- I have a better option,"_ he said smoothly._ "I'm looking at the schematics EDI uploaded. A timed radiation pulse could kill any remaining Collectors, and we could utilize any remaining technology and machinery intact."_ He looked triumphant._ "This is our chance, Shepard. They were building a Reaper. That knowledge, that framework, could save us_."

I refused to look at her, staring at my boots.

I heard her stand and cross over to the Illusive Man until she was standing right in front of him. Her sharp brown eyes searched his. "It's not exactly portable. What are you suggesting?"

"_Our best chance against the Reapers is to turn their own resources against them. They were working directly with the Collectors - who knows what information is buried here! This base is a gift, we can't just destroy it_."

Zaeed made a noise in the back of his throat like he was about to interrupt, but didn't.

Shepard shook her head. "You're a ruthless bastard. Next thing I know, you'll want to grow your own Reaper."

"_My goal is to save humanity from the Reapers at any cost,"_ he said, his mouth forming a grim line._ "I've never hidden that from you. Imagine how many lives could be saved if we keep this base intact and use this knowledge to fight the Reapers. Imagine the lives that will be lost if we _don't_._"

Shepard was already shaking her head. "No. No matter how many kinds of technology we may find, it's not worth it. You should know that."

"_Shepard_!" The Illusive Man was getting tense. I could tell. "_You died fighting for what you believed. I brought you back so you could keep fighting. Some would say what we did to you was going too far, but look at what you've accomplished. I didn't discard you because I knew your value. Don't be so quick to discard this facility. Think of the potential!_"

"We'll fight and win without it," Shepard said firmly. "I won't let _fear_ compromise who I am."

I grinned. I couldn't help it. Seeing the Illusive Man lose the upper hand in a conversation was entertaining.

The Illusive Man turned around. "_Jacob, stop this_."

Jacob looked at Shepard, and then he snorted. "Or what? You'll replace me, too?"

"_I'm giving you an order, Jacob_!"

"Then consider this my resignation," he said. "Team Milky Way - out!"

And he shut off the link. The Illusive Man disappeared.

I stared at him blankly. "How did you just come up with that?" I demanded.

He shrugged.

"I hope I just made the right choice," Shepard said, placing a data disc into the center of the drive. Tali and Mordin had prepared it before the jump.

"I don't know," I said honestly. "But it feels right. They will turn on you, you know. I believe the Illusive Man may become indoctrinated in the future."

Shepard placed the computer back into the core. "There. We'll have ten minutes to get out before we blow this place to hell-"

_Pain._

I screamed and fell to my knees, holding my head in my hands. The pain had suddenly intensified with no warning, like a jackhammer was drilling underneath my skull. The ringing was louder than I'd ever thought it could become - my head was splitting open, it had to be.

I had the vague sensation of our platform moving like a ship at turbulent seas, and the sound of screeching metal. A robotic scream.

Hands dragged me behind cover and forcibly opened my eyes - Shepard's face floated in front of me, her expression drawn with pain. "My head," I whispered. "It hurts so bad."

Shepard suddenly hugged me, drawing me closer to cover. My vision was filled with orange light, and the smell of burning metal seemed to permeate everything. She'd saved me, for the moment.

_**You have hurt me**_.

I whimpered. The voice… that voice was not Harbinger's.

_**You have defiled this place. You have killed my caretakers.**_

"I'm SORRY!" I yelled. The pain only grew, until I was screaming.

_**I bleed because of an adolescent human. You may be older, but I contain a wealth of experience far beyond your own limited horizons. **_

I thought that I could hear sounds...maybe. The voice and the consciousness were all that I could pay attention to. I was reduced to a shaking, crying little girl in a corner. I couldn't even remember where I was, only that I had done a great wrong.

_**I will not bleed again for you.**_

I had the sudden urge to stand up, so I did, sniffing and rubbing my eyes. My weapons fell from my hands.

_**You see the future. Did you see this?**_

_Step. Step. Step_. The sounds of the battle faded away. All I could hear were my own footsteps on the heated metal, all I could feel was the cloying consciousness surrounding me, and all that I could see was a large, metal face so reminiscent of a skull, in front of whom was a glowing Collector.

I thought I heard the screams of humans. It pleased my controller.

I stood next to Harbinger, looking him in the eyes. A burning consciousness looked back, and I almost thought that he seemed... happy.

I walked past him without incident, close enough to brush his burning and cracked flesh.

I stood at the very edge of the platform, staring at the human Reaper's skull-like face. He looked like Death himself. This comparison pleased him.

Harbinger's harder, much more deft consciousness joined with the other Reaper's, and I felt as though my mind was about to break from the sheer strain of it.

_**Tell us.**_

I groaned. "Visions..." I whispered. "Visions..." I panted heavily. "Ungh..."

A vision of Sarah's corpse stood before me. HK's wide eyes.

Shepard's dead eyes stared up at mine unseeingly, next to the bodies of Jacob and Zaeed. The Collectors knelt down to remove the destruction order in the core computer.

It was no good to resist. They would die anyway. They would... win.

"It started... with... a wish..." I whispered. "And it ended... here. But... can't... _won't_... tell. Kill me."

_**She screams for you to help us. Can you not hear her?**_

I thought I saw Shepard's tear-streaked face appeared in front of me. _"Tell them - look, you tell them what they need to know. They said they'll let you go. Damn it, that's an order! Tell them!"_

That couldn't be Shepard. She'd never tell me to work with the Reapers – and she'd never cry about it, either. "Won't let... fear... compromise who I... am. Kill me."

_**TELL US.**_

"Kill..."

I had the urge to take several steps forward. I acted on it instinctively, trembling. The ringing became very intense, and for a moment I thought that, maybe, it was music.

I could see my death before me. A couple of more steps and I would fall off of the platform and to my salvation. Only death could free me from this pain. I would be like an angel spreading its wings, free from the hurt of this unclean existence.

I prepared myself to jump.

A hard, muscular body wrapped its arms about my chest and dragged me back. I struggled vainly, to no effect. I saw a blur of black grapple with Harbinger. Jacob released such a wave of biotic energy as I'd never seen before, pushing Harbinger and the husks I hadn't noticed surrounding him off of the platform. I'd never seen something that powerful from him before.

The human Reaper screamed in pain. From what, I did not know. My hearing was gradually coming back.

The arms around me disappeared and I was left standing there. Another Collector turned into Harbinger and walked right in front of me, too close for my shields to engage.

And suddenly, I knew how I was going to die.

He brought his assault rifle up with one glowing arm and pulled the trigger.

I dropped.

And now, I could hear the world perfectly. I heard the screams - Shepard's, mainly, yelling at Jacob to get back to cover. Zaeed was shouting at Harbinger, expelling round after round into the Collector's frame. Jacob yelled, "I got her!" and then I felt arms picking me up, bringing me back to cover.

And then in one, glorious second, the ringing in my head disappeared entirely.

The human Reaper was screaming now, screeching in pain. My eyes were squeezed shut. The platform rocked violently, and suddenly we were falling.

"Zaeed!" Jacob shouted, holding on to me tightly.

"I have him!"

The platform shifted again, and from the drop in my stomach I surmised we were falling, and falling quickly. Jacob and I were sliding along the platform, and I could hear his heavy breathing in my ear, smell the stench of his sweaty armpits. He pulled me up, mumbling words I couldn't hear, and then I heard him gasp.

Something hit us very, very hard, and then I didn't feel anything at all.

* * *

_"Do you copy? Come on, don't leave me hanging here, Commander, do you copy_?"

"We're here, Joker, I copy." I blinked, confused. Jacob's face was suddenly all I could see. "Did the ground team make it?"

"One casualty. But we're waiting for you now."

Jacob was bleeding pretty heavily from a head wound. That's all I could think about as he picked me up like a kid and cradled me in his arms. I'd dropped my weapons somewhere… somewhere else.

There was a flapping of wings that I didn't quite understand, but Jacob suddenly took off. My head kept bouncing against his chest. There was a pain in my chest I didn't really understand, and breathing… breathing hurt so, so much…

_**HUMAN.**_

I groaned.

_**You've changed nothing. Your species has the attention of those infinitely your greater.**_

Jacob was running fast. I could hear gunshots and the telltale sound of bullets being deflected off of a biotic barrier. Behind us, I heard an explosion.

Slower, now. Going uphill. "Keep it steady, keep it steady," Jacob was growling. "Ungh, you're heavy, damn it."

I chanced a look around, gasping for air. Everything seemed brighter, more vivid, than I'd remembered. The colors blurred together.

"Hold on. You just need to hold on."

But even as the words processed, my eyes closed.


	53. Abby

Shepard grabbed her from Jacob's grasp and sent him off, and then she hauled her in after Zaeed, muscles burning. Mordin and Miranda were there giving covering fire. She could feel the pressure of the kinetic barriers beginning to reach its peak as round after round was vainly diverted away from her armored self and away from the smaller, fragile girl she was shielding with her own body. "Joker!" she yelled.

The pilot, still squeezing the trigger, sacrificed his hold on the weapon to slam his hand against a solid panel. The airlock closed, separating the seven of them from the horrible, horrible place below. Their ears popped, the pressure changing, and then the inside door opened.

"Yeah yeah, we get it, EDI," Joker snarled, leaving them. "Everybody hang on!"

Shepard never heard EDI's response. She was now the only thing holding Abby upright. She allowed her to slide to the floor, holding her hand against her chest to stop the bleeding. Behind her, she felt Mordin finally collapse, succumbing to his wounds. "God damn it, we need a medic!" Miranda shouted. "EDI, get Chakwas!"

"Why are you here?" Shepard snapped.

"We were cut off by a team of scions," she explained. "We just made the jump. Everybody else was able to enter through the cargo hold three to four minutes ago."

Shepard had no more medi-gel to spare, having used the entirety of her personal stock on her leg to staunch the bleeding. She could only resort to using her free hand to hold Abby's head up. A feeling of helplessness like no other took ahead of her. Despite everything, despite _everything_, she could do nothing but sit and prolong the inevitable. Abby's light blue eyes were rolling blindly in her head.

"I need you to breathe for me, sweetie," Shepard said, her voice cracking. Abby's eyes seemed to focus for a split second. "Breathe!"

Abby's sharp intake of air was anything but hopeful. It gurgled in her chest like a stuck drain, causing her body to shudder horribly. Her left lung was collapsing. A trickle of blood was pooling from one side of her mouth, leaving a crimson mark on her cheek.

The bomb detonated, and the _Normandy_ rode the shockwave out past the debris field. She felt them hit the relay, and then, silence. If only it'd been that easy to begin with. She glanced back at Miranda and an unconscious Mordin - the former's hands were stained yellow with his blood. Jacob and Zaeed were kneeling down in the hallway, and the former had his omni-tool out, scanning their vitals.

Boots thundered on to the deck. Ken Donnelly and Gabriella Daniels looked pale and shaky, but determined. Both carried a large red bag. "The Doc's prepping the surgical theater," Gabby said breathlessly, dropping to one knee in front of her. She began to open her bag, removing a collapsible gurney.

"Shit," Ken cursed, looking at them both. He opened his respective bag.

Together, they were able to put Abby and Mordin on there without jostling them too much. Shepard kept her fingers pressed firmly against her wound the entire time. "Look at me," she said, running alongside the gurney as Gabby pushed it towards the elevators. Abby's eyes focused on hers, but she seemed to be a long way from hearing. Her hair was stringy with sweat, blood, and dirt; her face still bore the same, grate-shaped scar from Zorya, but it looked fainter now. But what really struck Shepard was how young she was, young beyond belief. All except for her eyes: those stared at her with a calm she would've never expected.

Her lips twitched as they got into the elevator. "Are you trying to say something, Abby?" Shepard asked her, leaning close. "Tell me."

The words were barely there, and she had to lean in close to hear. "H... K... HK... D-d..."

_HK._ Shepard could read her wants and needs as good as a mother, now. And she knew the answer she had to give would be different than the one she should give. As soon as HK was killed, EDI had messaged her on her private link to tell her. She didn't have the heart to tell Abby just yet. "He's on his way, sweetie," Shepard said calmingly. Miranda never looked up. A strange hand seemed to be grabbing the inside of her throat, squeezing it. A hot pressure was building up behind her eyes. She wiped the blood off of Abby's cheek with her glove. "He wants to see you. He's so happy you saved him."

Abby's mouth twitched a wry smile that was not young at all. "Liar," she whispered, her eyes fluttering shut.

Shepard stroked her head urgently with her free hand. "Hey, don't close your eyes. You need to stay with us, Abby."

Her eyes flickered in a bemused sort of way. "She's not going to make it," Ken whispered in a hollow sort of voice. "Shit."

"Don't say that," Jacob said.

Shepard risked a glance over at Mordin - he looked no better. Miranda had put medi-gel on the worst on the wounds, but there was going to be internal damage. Blood had crusted underneath one bulbous eye.

Abby sighed. "Shepard..." she whispered.

"Save it for later, we're almost there," she said. The elevator stopped on Three and they wasted no time in wheeling the two out. There, they could see the ground team – most of them looked busy treating the other members of the crew for minor injuries, regardless of their own. Shepard looked over at them just once and saw a body covered by a blanket apart from the group, and knew who it was immediately. What little talk had been going on quieted immediately, and their collective group focused on them. Kelly's lower lip wobbled, and she pressed herself into Garrus.

Chakwas took it from there. Despite her own shock and terror, she jumped straight into it, shooing everyone but Shepard and Gabby out. Gabby had, at one time in her life, been a Physician's Assistant. Chakwas controlled Mordin's bleeding with a clamp and began to take X-rays, but she was more worried about Abby. "Lung's collapsed," she said. She inserted a syringe into the girl's chest, but she still didn't look happy. Abby's blood pressure was dropping rapidly.

Chakwas drew Abby's shirt up to see the wound itself. It was nasty. "Close-range shot," Shepard said. "Assault rifle too close for the shields."

The wound itself was a hole to the left of her sternum. She could see flecks of white bone beneath. When she breathed, only the right side of her chest rose.

She tried – she really did, but eventually Doctor Chakwas shook her head. "I'm sorry, Commander." She looked close to tears. "But Mordin could use my help now much more than her."

Shepard knew what she was asking. She needed to focus on the ones she could actually save before wasting her time with a hopeless case. Shepard nodded grimly, mechanically. But just because Chakwas was done with her didn't mean she had to give up. Shepard began to administer a painkiller through an IV drip and gave the girl a transparent oxygen mask. Medi-gel wouldn't work, not for internal injuries like this.

All this time, Abby watched them. She could probably hear them, too.

Shepard started looking around for something—anything–she could use.

"It's okay," Abby whispered. "It's okay."

Those two simple words stopped Shepard in her tracks. She was already shaking her head. "No, it's not," she said. "We're going to make you all better. We need you. Here, with us."

"HK and Sarah," Abby mumbled. "They loved this place. They loved you."

Shepard swallowed. "I'm so sorry," she said. "I could have done better."

"No," Abby said with a gentle smile. Her hand reached up and laid itself on top of Shepard's. "Never your fault. Ours. We aren't soldiers."

"You saved my life."

"You saved mine..."

Chakwas and Gabby both faded into the background. Even the people outside, the people she knew were watching, seemed nonexistent. "I can't lose you three," Shepard said. "You always brought a new adventure." She smiled for Abby's benefit, but she was closer to tears. "I'll miss you."

"Don't be sad," Abby said, that bright spark once again apparent in her eye. "We will always be with you."

Shepard chuckled. "You need to tell me where you come from," she said. She had to have a family somewhere that would want her body, and from there she'd dispatch Miranda to find out more. "I want to know."

Abby eyes fluttered and her breath hitched. "It doesn't matter," she said. "Something brought us together. I'm glad it chose us." She smiled a little. "Guess what."

"Hmm?"

"Headache's gone." Her giggle looked like it hurt. "Stay with me?"

Shepard's lip wobbled, and she had to force a smile to stop an instinctive sob. "Of course," she said, feigning a bright tone as she rolled Abby's shirt down over the wound. She sat down next to her bed, holding her hand, and began to talk. Nothing of consequence, really. She talked a lot of the dress-up party they had in her quarters before crashing Hock's party. She told her that she secretly liked the outfit.

She didn't get far. Abby's hand grew steadily colder in her hand, and, eventually, she stopped breathing.

There was no beeping, no signal that Abby had come to the last legs of her life. She hadn't been hooked up that certain sensor. She just stopped, ceasing to live as gracefully as if she'd fallen asleep. Shepard bowed her head, pressing her freezing, blood-soaked hand into her cheek. She kissed it once, and then stood, looking down at her face.

She didn't look like she'd died peacefully. She looked like she'd gone through hell - those scars, that blood. Her eyes were still looking up at the ceiling, glassy blue and misted over. She'd followed Shepard's last order to the end.

Shepard closed them for her and took out the IV drip – she wouldn't need it anymore. She took off the oxygen mask and set it to the side, and then she grabbed a thick, heavy blanket from another bed to drape over her body for decency's sake.

She was in the same bed as Sarah had been, Shepard realized.

Shepard stayed long enough to make sure Mordin would survive, and then she left to join the crew outside. They quieted anxiously at her approach. Joker was with them. Garrus and Miranda were taking medi-gel off of Kasumi's thigh for a better look. Thane was sewing up a nasty gash on Grunt's face. They both stopped.

She didn't have to say anything. They'd seen it all, and more knowledge could be taken from the twin tracks of tears on her face. Jacob slumped against a wall, head in his hands; Miranda bowed her head, her shoulders shaking; Zaeed pushed past Shepard and walked into the Medical Bay; Garrus sighed and shook his head; Jack looked away resolutely; Grunt growled deep in his throat; Tali went to comfort Jacob in an unprecedented display of care; Thane clasped his hands and prayed as Samara walked over to the observation window; Kasumi began to cry in earnest now, burying her head in her hands; and Joker took his cap off, his jaw twitching with emotion. The rest of the crew exchanged darkly significant looks.

"We've lost them all now, then," Joker said flatly. "What about Mordin?"

"Still alive," Shepard said. "And he'll probably stay that way."

"You realize what's going to happen now, right?" Joker asked. "Without them, we're finished. Harbinger's still alive and there are more Reapers on their way. And they don't exactly _like_ us."

"We're not finished," Tali snapped. "Look, we know what we have to do. It'll just be harder. But we'll make those _bosh'tet_ Reapers pay."

Shepard wiped her eyes and shrugged. "I'm not going to give up. I'm going to kill Harbinger."

"I believe you," Thane said quietly.

"Too right we will," Ken said angrily.

"It was a victory," Miranda said, looking up. There were no traces of tears on her face. "We've taken care of the Collectors. We've saved hundreds of _thousands_ of human lives today."

_And I can be blamed with the final extinction of the Prothean race,_ Shepard thought grimly.

"Move the bodies to Deck Five when you have a chance," Shepard said heavily. "We'll have a proper service for them." That signaled the end of the conversation, and the others got back to work, but they seemed less energized than before. Shepard knew how they felt – she felt as if she'd run an entire marathon only to find out she was back at the starting line.

"She isn't gone, Commander," Samara's soft, sad voice said from behind her.

Shepard turned around to look at the asari, her brow furrowed. Samara's back was to her. Through the glass, Shepard could see Chakwas and Gabby slaving over Mordin's body, masks on their face, and gloves on their hands. Zaeed was standing over Abby's body. As she watched, he took the moon rock bracelet she'd been wearing and put it on his own wrist. That gesture touched something deep within Shepard. Somehow, Abby had succeeded in bringing out the softer side of the grizzled warrior. And then Shepard realized that she had not earned his loyalty to the crew—the dead girl had.

Samara turned to regard the Commander: her eyes were black as night. "She left us something."

Shepard's heart seemed to twist in her chest, and memories of the hours leading up to the flight through the Omega Relay followed. "An asari mind meld," she guessed. "She bonded with you. You know everything."

"Yes," Samara mused, staring into nothing. "Apparently I do."


	54. To life

The large, protective hands around her waist weren't enough for Shepard to feel at ease. Hidden under the soft bones of the bed, she and Jacob had fallen asleep intertwined like an old married couple, clean-smelling and _normal_ except for the bandages around their respective wounds. When she moved her head, her hair brushed against the stitches on his temple – when he touched her leg, he no doubt could feel the heavy cloth wrapped carefully around a wound that had torn through the plates of her armor. She was overtired – that had to be it. She still had that rush of adrenaline in her system, wired for something – _anything –_ to happen. Even the blankets draped over their bodies seemed like it, too, could be an unseen threat.

All was quiet, except for her beating heart and the water bubbling from the now-empty fish tank. The stillness was equal parts intoxicating and worrisome.

She wasn't going to sleep naturally. She'd already expected that, and for the longest time she thought that Jacob wouldn't either, but eventually he slipped off an hour and a half after shutting his eyes. She envied him. Darkness didn't spell safety for her. It was just a marker that she was running out of time, and sometimes she felt like she was the only one that knew it.

'_Never your fault.' _The whisper seemed to follow her wherever she retreated to in the deepest recesses of her mind. It was like an accusation. Not the words, but the bodies that accompanied it. _'Ours. We… aren't soldiers.'_

The flash of a bloodied smile.

'_It's okay… it's okay.'_

_It's not okay,_ she told herself, over and over. It would never, ever be okay.

One day she may begin to forgive herself. But that would never make it okay.

Eventually she began to move, slowly inching out from Jacob's embrace. He started awake anyway, tightening his grip on her waist instinctively. "Shh," Shepard whispered, and winced. That sounded loud, even to her ears. "Go back to sleep. I'm going downstairs for some water."

"Bring me back some," Jacob sighed tiredly, relaxing back on to the pillows. As she dressed, the snores gradually resumed. She cracked a small smile.

She slipped out of the room quietly and took the elevator down to Three. The lights were dimmed to give the illusion of night, and she could hear the mass effect core thrumming faintly in the background. Shepard had sent the entire crew off for obligatory sleep before they resumed their usual rotations. EDI and Joker could handle it from the cockpit just fine, and Samara hadn't seen any more attacks in the near-future. She slipped out, specter-like, into the mess hall.

It was still a mess. There were dark stains on the floor, mostly human blood, but she could see some krogan blood mixed in there as well. Rupert hadn't gotten to cleaning it yet, and she didn't blame him. There were also some cut bandages and wrappers lying on the ground next to discarded ammo packs. Only two people were sleeping in the medical bay tonight, though – Doctor Chakwas and a crewman named Hawthorne. He had apparently sacrificed himself for Joker's sake during the Collector's attack. She would have to go in tomorrow and personally thank him.

She rounded the corner and glanced habitually at the tables by the wall.

Shepard's steps slowed, and then they stopped all together.

A soft light from the ceiling shined down on the center table. A wreath of green decorated with white paper lilies was propped up next to a holographic frame that cycled through pictures slowly. Small, red teacup candles were spaces around it equally, glowing resolutely in the night. A piece of paper had been taped to the table itself. As Shepard approached, the twisting feeling in her chest seemed to expand to her entire body. Grief weighed her down, until she seemed to be sinking in it, not floating.

"_Because I could not stop for Death- _

_He kindly stopped for me- _

_The Carriage held but just Ourselves- _

_And Immortality."_

The note was written in beautiful calligraphy – she didn't know who had done it, but she was glad they did. It was something Ashley would have done.

The holographic frame cycled through a collection of pictures that must have been taken from the security cameras. As she had expected, each picture depicted their casualties in some way, shape, or form. There was Sarah talking with Rupert, holding a rag; HK playing some kind of board game with their rescues from Zorya, looking as though he were enjoying himself; Abby and Ken exchanging a knuckle-punch.

Her eyes filled with tears, and she collapsed into the chair to watch the slideshow of images. There were a lot, she realized, and sometimes the picture wouldn't be a picture of their psychics at all. Sometimes a picture of a colonial world would pop up, the estimated population written underneath. All victims of the Reapers.

There was something hypnotic about the memorial. She didn't want to leave, because to leave would have meant she was abandoning them. She wanted to at least see all of the pictures – maybe she would even copy all of them when it was all said and done, erase that picture of Kaidan upstairs and replace it.

_Kaidan._ Those wounds still hurt. They probably would for a long time.

And the flowers… those were artfully chosen. White lilies represented innocence in older, Western civilizations. In the Orient, white was also the color of death and it was often associated with those they wished to glorify. There was something so perfectly right about that choice… so _poignant._

She heard the soft _ding_ of the elevator opening and looked up to see Jacob, dressed only in a pair of sweatpants, round the corner. She smiled halfheartedly and gestured to the memorial. "It's nice, isn't it?" Her voice cracked.

Jacob's eyes passed over the hand-made lilies and read the message before looking at the pictures. "Shit," he whispered, gripping her shoulders in both hands. He began to knead the tense muscles there. "Who did this?"

"I don't know," she answered.

"The lilies look hand-made."

"They do."

"And the pictures…"

"Yeah."

Jacob sighed and turned away. She heard him rummaging around the kitchen. When he returned, he had two mugs of hot chocolate in his hands. She gripped the mug in both hands, drawing strength from the warmth. "I thought about that moment a million times," he said softly, breaking the silence, "and I can't think of any way we could've made it better."

"I can," Shepard replied. "That's the thing. It's all I can think about. It's eating away at me. I made a mistake."

"No, you didn't," Jacob said patiently. "You did what you could. Hell, you're in charge here. You know you can't start thinking like that. Not everybody we lose is your fault. It's circumstance."

_What ifs get you nowhere but the grave,_ Shepard recalled. "I know. I just have this thing where I like to take responsibility for everything. Like the galaxy. That's a big one."

"Yeah, you can sure pick 'em," Jacob sighed. "They were good kids…" He set his mug down. "They were good kids."

"It's Christmas Eve," Shepard muttered, leaning into his solid frame. His skin felt hot and flushed to her touch, or perhaps she was just cold. "I didn't even realize that."

"We _have_ been busy," he pointed out.

Shepard wondered if the three of them had celebrated it at all. In hindsight, she really didn't know much about them at all. Where they came from, how they got aboard, if they had any siblings, boyfriends, girlfriends… It hadn't bothered her before, but now she just found it upsetting.

Sarah's face flashed across the frame. She was holding a weapon unsteadily. That picture had been taken soon after their arrival on the _Normandy._

_Five days ago. Ambush._

HK and Abby were shown on Deck Four, playing some kind of card game with Grunt, Ken, and Gabby.

_Not even a day ago. KIA._

_December 24th, 2185. Christmas Eve, and all I can think about is… this._

Jacob snorted. "We just gave the galaxy one hell of a present, don't you think?" he asked, stroking her hair.

Shepard didn't answer. If she twitched her face at all, she felt as if the tears would escape again. Despite their relationship, she didn't want Jacob to see her cry like a common woman. She had to be strong.

Jacob watched her for a while. He seemed to be waiting for her to say something… or stay quiet. He was good with either. "Sometimes I just wanted to kick the three of them off the damn ship and be done with it," she admitted, leaning her head on his shoulder.

His laugh shook her body. "They had that affect on people."

"We're going to find out where they came from," she said, echoing a resolution she had made only hours previously. "We'll find their parents or any sort of family. Give them the news."

"We'll find something," Jacob said, but there wasn't any kind of conviction in his voice. Shepard halfheartedly agreed with him there. Miranda had Cerberus operatives digging up information on them since day one and nothing had come up.

She sighed. Everything always had to be difficult, didn't it?

"Hey," Jacob whispered, his lips tickling the hair next to her ear. "You're beautiful. I love you."

"The feelings are reciprocated," Shepard said with a chuckle.

"You're the best thing that's ever happened to me," he continued. "And I want you to know that I'll always be here. I'll always try and protect you, even from all of the Reapers in the universe. The last thing I ever want to see is you hurt." His arm drifted down and stroked her wounded thigh. "You… inspire me."

Shepard drew back and smiled grimly, caressing his temple. "Same to you, soldier."

"You're one hell of a woman." The growing excitement in his voice was noticeable. "The Reapers won't stand a _chance._ We're going to rip apart their ugly asses. They won't screw with us again."

"Sounds like a plan," she said, kissing his bottom lip. Kaidan would have been so angry. The petty part of her enjoyed the thought, but the reasonable part told her that he was never to know. "Now, Mister Taylor, what would you like for Christmas?"

"I just want tonight," he said, returning the kiss.

And then, unbidden, a slow, sad dirge began to play over the intercom. It sounded hauntingly familiar, but for the life of her Shepard couldn't place it.

It was a song she could dance to.

Jacob looked up at the ceiling and grinned. "I think EDI's giving us a hint." He took her by the hand and they stood pressed together in the center of the mess hall. The candles next to the memorial flickered with their sudden movement. They rocked side to side in rhythm with the song. Jacob was definitely the taller of the two. She'd always been aware of it, but she hadn't been as aware of how her head seemed to fit perfectly into his shoulder like a puzzle piece.

He was such a _strong_ man, she reflected. This close to him, she could feel his abs against hers. His skin was soft, but his hands had calluses. They were strong, too. They gripped her hand and waist firmly, leading her around the mess with an understated flair.

It was easy to pretend it was just the two of them that one moment. The others behind closed doors no longer existed. She closed her eyes and let go of her concerns, all of the pain, for that one dance. For the first time since Sarah's death, she felt her heart slow into a healthy rhythm.

The song ended, and so did their dance. They remained pressed together, and then Jacob was kissing her. She was the first to withdraw, walking back to the memorial-table to grab the mug of hot chocolate she'd set down. She handed Jacob his, and then she took his hand.

The faced the memorial and raised their mugs simultaneously.

"To life," Shepard said. "And living it."

"To life," Jacob agreed.

They clinked their mugs together, sealing it off like a promise.

**The end.**

* * *

_Stay tuned for a message from Team MilkyWay this week, including individual author notes about writing the story and important information regarding the continuation of Amelia Shepard's story._


	55. Author's Notes

**A message from the authors.**

* * *

**Sarah**

Hi everyone! This is Sarah, and I spent a large portion of the fic writing for the OC based on me, although I spent some time writing for other characters as well. I particularly enjoyed writing for Morinth and Jack; they were awesome.

I've seen all of the awesome reviews that everyone left, and I have noticed a few complaints. It has been pointed out that the story dragged on at times and got repetitive, mostly due to Sarah's antics. Upon looking back I'd have to say you're correct. I'd just like to give an explanation as to why that happened. I love to write, and occasionally I do it as a way to express ideas (even dumb ones) and try them out. I also do it as a way to vent stress, meaning that sometimes I write whacky things on impulse. I will admit that I went overboard and got a little carried away at times, though, lol.

Okay, a LOT carried away. But I had a blast, haha.

Occasionally, I'll admit, I got discouraged with this story. I felt like Sarah had become a useless character, and that I had thoroughly messed up with her, especially after a couple of incidents in particular. One was when she left her post due to a "nosebleed" when Abby and HK were in danger, although later I came up with an explanation as to why that happened; it was revealed when she talked to Thane about her insecurities.

Then of course came the moment where she went nuts on Tuchanka. That was something that HK and I wrote on impulse, though it was mostly my idea. Honestly I'm not even sure what I was aiming for with that; I just wanted to give Sarah one final chance to act badass, and she ended up acting like an idiot like usual. However, I gave in to the ludicrous-ness of it all and I remember laughing my head off while HK and I wrote that chapter.

However, if that hadn't happened, the HK/Jack romance may never have happened. It was after Sarah got into so much trouble that I needed something else to do and HK realized that his character never interacted with anyone all that much. So that's how that got started, haha.

Anyway, I wanted to make one more comment about Sarah's ridiculous antics. In some ways, they were a result of lazy writing, I'll admit. Or perhaps I should say "lazy reading". There were a few times when I didn't read some of the things that my co-partners had written as closely as I should have, or I wasn't around when they wrote some scenes and I didn't feel like catching up. And I also wanted to do my own thing at times in the story, so… that's why Sarah constantly went off and did her own thing, and often found trouble to get into. I didn't interact very well with my co-partners and at times I didn't participate with them all that well.

I tried my best to make up for that in the later chapters, though, and I think I succeeded for the most part.

The only other thing I want to comment on is Sarah's death. Part of me regretted it later on, but at the time I felt as if I had screwed up the character too much. I also felt as if I had done just about everything I could with her. Yeah, she could have helped Joker when the Collectors boarded the ship, or she could have gone through the same things HK went through on the Collector base. But the truth is that my co-partners and I often write "just for fun" or "experimental" scenes, where I like to try an idea on for size or get it out of my system in case we don't end up using it.

However, that also meant that I ended up doing a lot of writing for Sarah. Scenes that involved Sarah getting captured by Collectors, Sarah hiding with Joker and following him around on the Normandy to avoid capture, and possibly one or two other variations of that. When all was said and done, we had played around with that kind of potential scene so many times that I got tired of it. I guess I was also tired of Sarah, and like I said, I felt like I couldn't do much with her anymore. So we talked about it, and we came up with a fairly realistic way to "off" her.

And so… I guess that's pretty much all that I wanted to say. Just thank you all for reading.

Oh and you might be interested to know that I will be hosting a contest for Team Milky Way art on Deviantart in a few weeks. Look up my Deviantart name, "Troutylips", and keep an eye out for it if you are interested. I will even be offering prizes.

That is all. Thanks again! You're all awesome.

* * *

**HK**

Hello, everyone! As you can see, I'm HK, the real version of the character you've been reading about over these 54 chapters; when I found out from Abby that she and Sarah had come up with an idea to do author's notes, I was really happy. It's funny to realize how you, as the readers, and us, as the writers, are on two entirely different sides of TMW. All of you only see the final product, while the three of us see all of the scrapped ideas, deleted scenes, and heaps of discussion that goes on before we actually get a chapter published. It'll be nice to let you guys into our thoughts, if only a little bit.

Team MilkyWay was very, very fun for me to write. I met Abby and Sarah on a Roleplaying site about five and a half years ago, and I've been writing with them ever since. However, this was the first time that the three of us, together, did a fic; it's one of two times that I've ever been with a fic and finished it. I owe a LOT of the credit to them; if not for their creativity and determination, TMW would never have gotten as far as it has.

TMW impressed me and surprised me in a lot of ways. As I said, we often did RPGs rather than fics, and so this was kind of a new experience for me. But it amazed me how fun and satisfying it was to write it. I am also used to writing for my original characters and not myself; this gave me another new experience, sorta. I got deeper into my character than I did on previous self-insert RPs. TMW is a fic that I am VERY proud of, and one of my top favorite works out of all of the writing I've done over the past several years. I've played in a million RPGs, had a few of my own, but TMW is so unique and special. It's well-put together, it's organized, it's fun, it's dramatic. It has to be the most balanced work that my friends and I have ever put together.

There were several things that I liked to watch and write as the story progressed on: The interesting interplay between the squad was extremely fun. This is something that I wish that we'd see more of in the games themselves, and TMW gave an opportunity to do just that; we developed the squad's characters, somewhat, but I don't think we went overboard. Not to brag on and on, but I think we managed to keep them true to who they are in the games and expand on that a little bit. My partners were both really good at that. Similarly, the development of Shepard was brilliant; Abby did a great job with this. I seriously loved how Amelia Shepard turned out. She was so well-developed that sometimes I didn't know whether the story was about us or her, which is what I liked. Shepard is the central character of Mass Effect and she should be the same, or pretty darn close, here. The story may have been told from our perspective, but a lot of the things we did pertained to Shepard and the squad, which is how it should've been.

I know I am babbling about how good the fic was, but the other thing that I particularly liked was how we tried our best to stick to the ME2 plotline. In the past, the three of us have had a tendancy to get into a storyline and rip the canon universe to shreds; poor Star Wars will never be the same. That can be good in a lot of ways, but I think we kept TMW stable by sticking to the ME basics. Even if it seemed repetitive, at times, to have characters say their every line word-for-word from the game, I think that played a big part in making TMW the kind of story it was.

Okay, now, enough about the TMW lovefest. :P The real reason that you're reading these author's notes(and the real reason I'm writing them) is to hear about my writing for the story. Obviously, the main character I wrote for was myself. I assisted in the writing for the canon characters a lot, especially in a lot of the earlier chapters, but of course, my main focus was HK.

Writing for myself was extremely tricky. I tried to keep my actions and reactions as true as possible, but it was so hard because who really knows what it's like to be sucked into the ME universe? Whether I did well or not, I don't know, but I'd like to think I did. It got easier as time went on. I knew that as HK got more used to being in the Mass Effect universe, the easier it would be to write for myself.

During a lot of the chapters from the earlier parts of TMW, I was around a lot, and we saw a lot of things from my POV, but i tended to slip back a lot; Sarah and Abby would be developing relationships with other characters, but I didn't. This was pretty much my fault. In a way, I was being true to form. I am often the person that slips back and tries to let other people have the spotlight, in real life and fiction. When I noticed this, I did want to change it and develop myself a little more inside the story, as well as my relationships with other characters.

Then _Jack_ came along.

The 'Hack' relationship, as Abby calls it, was something that I never, EVER saw coming when we began this fic. It was unexpected, and only started when we decided that I should develop more relationships around the ship. Then, suddenly, romance started blooming, and it actually turned out really well! During a lot of the romance scenes with Jack, I had a hard time writing for myself. I wasn't sure how I would react to her actions and how in the world it would let our romance continue. Somehow, though, it did, and I think it did it in a sensible way. Looking back on it, I am very proud on the way that turned out.

Sarah did the majority of the writing for Jack, if not all of it, so a lot of this really goes to her. She wrote Jack brilliantly and without her, this romance would not have been nearly as good as it was. I think that both of us did good with our respective characters. I never wanted to go overboard with the romance stuff, and it worked out in a way that we never did, but the romance still turned out well and was satisfying for everyone.

Overall, I am really glad we did the Hack relationship. Jack and I are a coupling that would never be expected, but it all worked out extremely nicely. I have to commend Sarah for her superb writing of Jack.

All in all, I think I turned out fairly well in the fic. It was so much fun to write for myself, and others, and I could not be prouder of everything. Team MilkyWay as a whole, Hack, everything. Everything and everyone added to the fic in a unique way; Abby, HK, and Sarah all became great characters in this fic. Say what you will about things like Sarah's antics, but without them, TMW wouldn't be the same, great fic it was.

It was an honor to write this fic, and I have to thank ALL of you, the readers, for being so good to us. Perhaps that is the biggest debt of gratitude that I owe. When we started this, it was just for fun. I really never even thought about the prospect of people liking it or not liking it. Yet here we are, at the end of the fic, and we have 200+ reviews. It's amazing, and I thank all of you for staying with us through the periods of lagging, the periods of craziness. Your loyalty is astounding and I appreciate ALL of you so much. Without you guys, we wouldn't have had the encouragement to keep on sometimes, I don't think.

So, thank you, and stay tuned!

PS: I feel the need to explain something reeaaalllyy quickly. Throughout the fic, you all may have noticed the appearances of random, unknown characters such as Sister Ethea, and mentions of characters like Erin; even though their existences may have been explained in-story, I wanted to provide a little more clarity on them. They are OCs of mine from previous RPs and fics. They are wacky, zany characters that have been central in their original RPGs, and have been later featured in fics and one-shots revolving around them. They have managed to make cameos in almost everything I've written due to their quirky personalities, and so TMW was no different. However, it was more of an inside joke than anything else amongst the three of us, so I wanted to tell you guys where they came from and why they appeared or were talked about in a chapter or two.

Again, thank you guys for everything! All of you guys are a BIG blessing!

* * *

**Abby**

Being a part of Team MilkyWay was in many ways a blessing for me. The three of us met on a Star Wars Roleplaying site seven years ago, and our appetite to write – especially with each other – has obviously not vanished since. However, as it usually does, life began to get in the way. We each lived in separate states, and our communications relied solely upon whether we could all be on IMing at the same time. We'd left the forums behind us, except for one.

The idea for Team MilkyWay wasn't really a fleshed-out "idea" at first. I had just learned about an amazing website that allowed people to write on the same document at the same time (EtherPad) and I eager to use it. After demonstrating how it worked, we started a project we tentatively called Team MilkyWay. The first chapter was published on May 22nd, 2010, and over a year later we have reached the end of the Suicide Mission.

It was great fun. We got plenty done before I started my new school, and that's when it became tricky. Every day I would get up at 5:30 and leave school at either 5:30 or 6, go to Aikido, and when I got home at 10:30 or 11 I had to do homework I hadn't gotten to during the school day. Also, I was taking seven classes in an eight-period block – it got very stressful! Soon I was training people for their own Aikido tests as I progressed through the ranks, I stayed until 8 two nights a week for Pit and Jazz Band practices, and then my weekends were quickly being taken up by other responsibilities. NaNoWriMo, anybody? For the longest time our only communication was via group emails and the occasional scheduled time we would all meet on the Ether Pad.

As I said, stressful – I dropped Art class at the beginning of the second semester so I could breathe. But all of those commitments influenced my writing. Suddenly there were lags between chapters that hadn't been there before. We weren't always on the same page. Or, sometimes, we wouldn't even talk to each other for a long time as things got more hectic. There were health problems, summer camps… the list goes on.

Team MilkyWay has been, in many ways, a constant for me. It's always been there, it's always been testing my ability to shine as a writer. I enjoy getting into character's heads, and I enjoy making my own, letting them flesh out themselves as time goes on. Amelia Shepard is my pride and joy – never have I allowed myself to get so into a character's mind, and she's surprised me at many points. In many ways I based her off of my Aikido Sensei, but with a more motherly, nicer side to her. (Thankfully, Sensei will never see this, but if he ever does, I love your classes, don't kill me, I'll feed the cat.)

Everybody has their own story to tell. I tried to focus less on glorifying my own character – after all, I was 14 when we started this thing, and a 14-year-old can't do much in practicality. Instead, I tried to focus on the interplay of relationships among the crew. One of my favorite scenes to write for had to be the showdown between Grunt and Mordin in Chapter 42. That was another instance where Shepard surprised me by putting the gun to her own head, and I remember thinking, "Oh, wait, this is GOOD, I can totally see her do that!"

I had many of those moments, both when I was writing and when I viewed Sarah and HK's work. Sometimes I would become worried that the references we'd make in the story would be confusing to readers – Erin, Sister Ethea, some other things. It's been a delicate balance of brevity and a get'r'done attitude, but I think that for the most part we worked very well together.

At the risk of tooting our own horn, I think that we're a unique group of people in the fact that we were able to do this and get it done. Not one chapter in this story has NOT been edited by at least one of the others. Sometimes I'd add some party-banter in HK- or Sarah-centric chapters, and the others would likewise make changes to my own chapters. I believe that it's a mark of how well we work together that we could take these changes and accept them – and even if they weren't good, we had the guts to go up to the other person and say, "I don't like this, let's not use it." I take it for granted, honestly. There's such a familiarity among the group that it's possible – where it would annoy somebody else, we're generally a lot more accepting.

This is a family – it truly is, and I am so thankful that we have this opportunity. I'll go ahead and mention a bit of a poignant moment for me when, just the other day, I was reading through this story and saw my self-insert self worrying about an upcoming 3rd Kyu Aikido test… Well, on December 3rd I took my blackbelt test and passed. I'm now the youngest _shodan_ on the East Coast. The man I took the test with was 68, the oldest man to be awarded _shodan_ in our dojo. I get to wear a hakama now – it's pretty awesome. ;)

My favorite chapter to write for had to be Chapter 53, my death. I actually was writing it on a very long, 10-hour drive home from a visit to some relatives. It's my first and only chapter – ever – that was not written on the computer. I wrote the entire thing on my cell phone. I touched up some typos and descriptive things later on, but the meat of it was actually written on an iPhone and sent to Sarah and HK as soon as it was finished – sent to them even before HK's death.

Also, (shameless self-promotion, YEAH!) I'd like to point out that the last chapter is very parallel to another Christmas one-shot I wrote last year titled "Sharp Wounds." The two are very similar for a reason – Shepard still has those feelings for Kaidan, and even when she's with Jacob, she's thinking of him. And the thoughts she's thinking mirror his own on the Christmas after her death. So, I tend to think of "Sharp Wounds" as a slight offshoot of TMW – if you have the time, please check it out. :)

Before I wrap things up, I do want to say how much every review has meant to us, especially to me. I never expected to get 50 reviews, much less 240 reviews, 2 features, 64 favorites, and 68 loyal readers. Permit me to say, HOLY SHIT. That is all! Check out Sarah's comment for details on the CONTEST on DeviantArt.

NOW, on to some important info regarding the rest of it. Yes, thank you for putting up with my long-windedness up there, but here's all that juicy info I promised beforehand:

**Will you follow the events of Mass Effect 3? **You bet your sweet behind we will. We haven't come all this way just to end it here. Can't disclose details yet, but +Alert my profile here for an upcoming fic to be started around March or April.

**Why are you focusing on Shepard now?** The rest of the team isn't there! Really, would you rather hear about our dull lives in comparison to the adventures of a Spectre? Pssh. If you answered yes to that, you're a stalker. :) Seriously, though, Commander Shepard still has some adventuring to do before ME3.

**Where's that DLC you said you'd include?** Commander Shepard will continue her adventures with Overlord, Liara and the Shadow Broker, and Arrival respectively. Since this is separate from TMW, but still in the genre, it will be written in a separate story titled **Passages.** When does **Passages** come out? Uhh, about twenty minutes ago, on my profile. Be sure to follow the story, as it will set up some very important groundwork for Team MilkyWay 2.

**Will Jack and HK ever have sex? **Ask HK. Or Sarah, because she's been writing for Jack.

**Will Grunt and Zaeed ever realize their feelings for each other? **Yes. They've been culminating their relationship in the Kodiak shuttle for quite some time. Zaeed enjoys dressing up as Batman.

**WAIT! Can't you give us something else? **Oh, yeah – you might want to check out **TMW: Deleted Scenes** on my profile as well for some VERY random, non-TMW canon stuff we've saved over this time.

Now it's time for _me_ to ask a question:

We have Hack and we have Sarrus (or Surian :P ), but when do I get a fun romance? Can he have tattoos? CAN I FLY THE NORMANDY?


End file.
